SAP Analytics
Thought Leadership

In the last article we looked at the definition and content of the EPM Maturity Model.

In this article we’ll look at how to gauge EPM Maturity and how to identify areas to improve. At the core of the Maturity Model is the definition of:

• Right Model
• Right Audience
• Right Time

Across these definitions we lay a scale that moves from low levels of maturity to high levels of maturity:

Column5’s EMEA EPM Summit 2016, which took place on 30th June and 1st July 2016 at St James’s London, United Kingdom, promised to facilitate a platform to bring together customers, SAP product development and management teams (SAP BPC and BFC), and EPM Practitioners. The primary objective was to enable these participating groups to share their views, experiences, and future goals to take their EPM journey to the next level. As a first time participant and a presenter at the Column5 EMEA EPM summit, I was really thrilled to see the response from all these groups and as a result the final outcome. In this blog, I would like to share my views on the Summit and the key takeaways.

You may have noticed in the news recently that many large multinationals have been the subject of some rather intense media and public scrutiny regarding the amount of tax they pay in certain countries.  As media pressure and public anger has escalated, governments and regulators have been compelled to take action to improve the visibility of where companies make their profits and where they pay their taxes to help ensure that they pay a fair share to the coffers of the national governments.

It had become obvious to governments that the underlying issues could not be addressed by unilateral regulation and instead need a cohesive joined up approach to tackle tax base erosion and profit shifting through transfer pricing arrangements between multinational subsidiaries.  The OECD in conjunction with the G20 countries devised an action plan which includes the need for greater levels of disclosure from multinational enterprises (MNEs) in relation to the countries where their economic activities occur and amounts of tax they pay in each jurisdiction.   This has resulted in the creation of the Country by Country (CbC) reporting standards by the OECD that are being implemented through the local tax governing bodies of all OECD members.

The OECD CbC regime requires the following reporting on a country by country basis;

Aggregate country wide information relating to the global allocation of

* Income;

* Taxes paid;

* and; other indicators of economic activity (stated capital, accumulated earnings, tangible assets, no of employees)

Buying an Adequate Level of Service

Column5 offers many solutions and best practice concepts outlined in numerous blogs and webinars with the intent of supporting clients who wish to cultivate an internal capability to best elicit value from their EPM solutions. While all are recommended for our clients, we understand that for many organizations, being in a confident position to properly support their EPM investment is not easily met immediately after go live. We have found some clients looking for assistance with adhering to these best practices, or a little extra bandwidth to supply additional continued support post go-live. In response to these requests, Column5 has assembled a number of services designed to fill any gaps in your EPM deployment plan.

Whether you already have an existing BPC environment or are planning a new one, how to appropriately staff and support your EPM environment is a big question to tackle early on. While the number of FTEs will greatly differ based on the size or your organization, the complexities of your planning process, and the level of automation you invest in upfront, there are some basic skillsets you should address.

A risk is the possibility of an event or a condition that could negatively impact a project. There are many events or conditions in any EPM BPC implementation that can derail the project, because BPC is a complex tool that touches many areas of your organization. This article is intended to help mitigate risk.

While working with clients to deliver EPM capabilities, we have all heard about how it is critical to have good EPM business processes in place within an organization. I would say that I totally agree with an earlier Column5 blog post, “The Process is King”. Clearly documented business process models assist organizations to align operations to their strategy, promote better communication, improve existing practices, establish control and consistency, and even gain competitive advantage.

How to Get the Most from Business Process Flows in SAP BPC

Overview

The Process Flow Design is an integral part of any SAP BPC implementation project.  As a stage in the project it should come immediately after the Conceptual Design phase and before the essential Blueprinting step, as shown in the diagram, below which outlines the ten basic project stages.

The traditional IT vs. Finance gap and why it is essential to overcome that for EPM success.

Everyone loves a rivalry, at least when it comes to sports teams. It seems that the bitterer and longer running the rivalry, the better. When it comes to corporate politics, there can be few rivalries as legendary or potent as that between IT and Finance.

No one knows when it all started, but make no mistake, this can be trench warfare that started long before computers were even used in business. I can imagine the conflict raging so long, that there may have been a dialog like this in ancient times, “I simply can’t let you operate the wheel on your own, you don’t have the technical skills. Why don’t you tell me what you need the wheel to do, and I will operate it for you…just so there aren’t any mistakes?” “What? It’s just a stupid wheel; surely I am qualified to figure this out. Let me try it and we’ll see how it goes.”

Access to Advanced Training

Before being allowed to drive a vehicle unaccompanied, we are required to undergo training on both the theory (stopping distances, speed restrictions, road signs, etc.) and practice (actually handling a car) of driving, as well as passing a number of tests.