Innovation management software that connects ideas to strategy

Most evaluation fails because each reviewer carries a different idea of what matters. Brainstormer asks the workspace owner to describe the company and set three to six strategic goals, for example reducing churn, entering a new region or lowering cost to serve, and to give each a weight.

When AI scores an idea, it rates impact, cost, risk and strategic fit from 1 to 10 and calculates a weighted total using your weights. It also writes a short rationale, so a reviewer can see why an idea landed where it did and disagree with a reason rather than a hunch. Weighted goals are part of the Business and Enterprise plans.

Scores are a starting point for people, not a verdict. Admins still shortlist, approve and reject. The difference is that the conversation in the review meeting starts from a ranked, explained list instead of a blank agenda. For more on the method behind ranking, read about idea prioritization.

Every idea sits in one of seven stages: submitted, in review, shortlisted, approved, in progress, implemented or rejected. Each move records who made it, when, from which stage to which, and an optional note. Six months later, anyone can see why an idea was approved or why it stopped, and the audit trail can be exported as CSV on Business and Enterprise.

When a challenge closes, the board report pulls the ranking, the themes, the number of ideas in each stage and a recommendation into one document. You can print it to PDF from the browser, download it as Markdown or export the data as CSV. It is written for a leadership meeting, not for the innovation team alone.

Running several challenges in parallel is how a program becomes a portfolio. Our page on innovation challenge software covers how to write the question, and the idea management system page explains how to design the stages and review rules.

Innovation management software costs from about $1,800 a year for a single team to $50,000 or more for an enterprise suite. The price depends on how many people can submit ideas, how many admins run the program and whether the vendor bundles implementation services. Most enterprise vendors quote on request, so the public numbers below come from their own pricing pages or from purchase data.

Brainstormer publishes every price. Team is $1,788 a year for up to 25 members, Business is $4,788 a year for up to 150 and Enterprise is $11,988 a year for up to 1,000. Hives lists its Core plan at $795 a month billed yearly, about $9,540 a year, for up to 500 contributors. Ideawake starts at $500 a month on its Flex plan. Brightidea does not publish prices, and Vendr purchase data puts its median contract at $49,196 a year.

The idea management software pricing page breaks down how each pricing model works, and the Brightidea pricing article traces every public figure to its source. Before a sales call, ask whether setup, training and support are inside the quote, because some vendors bill them separately.

Established enterprise idea and innovation platforms have been used by large companies for many years. They are sold on annual contracts with pricing quoted on request, they offer deep configuration, integrations with other systems and implementation services, and they suit organizations that need single sign on, formal procurement and a dedicated rollout project. If that is your situation, they are a reasonable choice, and our IdeaScale alternative page compares the two approaches honestly.

Brainstormer is built for companies that want a working program this month. You create the workspace, pay by card, invite up to 1,000 members depending on the plan and run your first challenge the same day. There is no implementation project and nobody needs a call.

If you are not sure yet, try the demo challenge on the homepage, then compare the plans on the pricing page.