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 Planning

 

As of SAP Accounting powered by SAP HANA 1.0, a new solution for financial planning is available. This solution is characterized by the following criteria:

  • Microsoft Excel frontend. The planner can record plan data in a user friendly way by entering them in a normal MS Excel sheet that uses an Add-on from Analysis Office.

  • Use of embedded BI. Plan data is stored in a BI cube that is an integral component of the ERP system. A sample cube is provided by SAP, but customers are encouraged to copy the cube and adopt it to their needs. Actual transaction data and master data are shown in the MS Excel sheet without replication - changes are immediately visible.

  • The views feeding the BI cube make use of the latest HANA technology enabling seamless Top-Down and Bottom-Up planning scenarios.

SAP delivers sample content for the following:

  • Cost Center planning

  • Internal Order planning

  • Project planning

  • Profit Center planning

  • Cost of Sales planning

  • P&L planning

For each of these planning scenarios, two sample MS Excel workbooks have been created; one based on periods, and one based on the fiscal year.

To save effort during system setup, SAP also delivers a program that automatically analyzes existing customer-specific CO-PA dimensions and generates the corresponding BI objects.

Due to the fact that all planning processes write their data to a common data source, all resulting plans are integrated and aligned by design.

As this planning solution is completely new, it has no impact on existing plan data. SAP will not provide migration functionality.

In the first release of this new planning solution, the development of functionality has been focused on enabling plan data capturing in a very user-friendly way. If further plan data processing is necessary, releasing them to the classic FI/CO plan data tables may be considered in future releases.

An installation guide has been created to enable system administrators to install the solution smoothly. Please refer to this guide for detailed information about related authorization profile requirements, and so on.

To support the new Planning function, carry out the Customizing activities under Start of the navigation path Controlling Next navigation step General Controlling Next navigation step Planning End of the navigation path.