SAP BPC, as an EPM solution, focuses on financial planning, budgeting, and consolidation. It empowers organisations to make informed decisions by providing accurate financial and management data. However, like any software, SAP BPC requires ongoing attention to maintain its effectiveness.
SAP BPC is approaching the end of its maintenance cycle. When a software solution reaches this stage, several challenges arise:
Lack of Vendor Support:
With the end of maintenance, SAP support has been seen to be decreasing and may cease altogether as a practical option given their current capability as observed by customers. Organisations must rely on internal expertise or third-party partners for assistance which are also becoming scarce.
Security Risks
Unsupported software becomes vulnerable to security threats, there are increasing risks that older versions of BPC are already dependent on unsupported third party components in their landscapes and the end of maintenance will expose businesses to an even greater ongoing threat. Regular health checks help identify and address potential vulnerabilities.
Performance Degradation
Over time, performance issues may emerge due to outdated components or configuration drift. Health checks mitigate these risks.
Operational Excellence through Regular Health Checks
A. Data Integrity and Accuracy
Data Validation
Regular health checks help to ensure ongoing data integrity within SAP BPC. This includes validating the processes and logics applied to data, ensuring consistency, and identifying discrepancies.
Master Data Maintenance
Keeping master data up-to-date is critical. Health checks help identify outdated or incorrect dimension configurations, members and properties that can evolve over time.
B. System Performance Optimisation
Performance Metrics
Monitoring system performance metrics (e.g., response times, data load times) helps to identify bottlenecks. Regular health checks allow for timely adjustments to infrastructure and application configuration to maintain system performance. It is good practice to apply regular performance metric checks which can be configured for a system and automated which can provide an ongoing early warning of system issues.
Memory and Disk Usage
Ensuring optimal memory and disk usage prevents performance degradation. Health checks highlight areas for improvement.
Script Logic and Calculations
Reviewing custom script logic and MDX calculations ensures efficiency. Outdated or inefficient logic does impact performance which can be exacerbated when other bottlenecks impact users/clients.
End User Reporting
Reviewing the reports and input schedules used and the methods applied in them will often highlight opportunities for system performance enhancement. Given the reliance of SAP BPC on Excel as the principal reporting client and the challenges that result in bandwidth, latency and local desktop resources, it is highly likely that issues can be identified and remediated as a result of health checks that can deliver significant performance and user satisfaction improvements.
C. Security and Compliance
User Access Controls
Regular health checks review user access rights and management processes. Revoking unnecessary privileges enhances security as well as ensures compliance for SOC and other controls which can be a risk where Finance manages security directly or there are unclear processes between IT and Finance.
Audit
Maintaining audit data will support good governance in processes but can impact system resources. Validating the correct audit settings are in place ensures all required audit data is both captured and is accessible to administrators, but can avoid an excess of irrelevant data.
Backup
having appropriate backup processes and policies are essential for compliance. Ensuring backups, including things like the file store which are often missed is essential to deliver a system that is both secured from data loss in the event of systems failure and can also provide a last line of protection against hostile activities.
D. Integration and Interoperability
Integration
SAP BPC often integrates with other systems (e.g., GL’s / ERPs as well as data warehouses and other sources). Health checks can verify integration processes as well as highlight weaknesses that can often be easily addressed and will support more efficient, rapid and accurate processes.
Model Data Flows
Ensuring data flows between SAP BPC models and potentially other external applications contributes to operational efficiency and can also highlight significant (and easily addressable weaknesses) where manual processes are involved.
Because SAP BPC’s end of maintenance status presents challenges, regular health checks will deliver significant benefits. By focusing on data, system performance, security, and integration, it is possible to maximise the remaining value in your EPM investment and mitigate the risk in lack of vendor focus. Operational excellence begins with a proactive approach to SAP BPC maintenance.
Kabeelah has a team of SAP BPC application and technical specialists who have supported many organisations over many years addressing performance, stability and security issues. We have three BPC Health Check services available including a complimentary ‘light’ service as well as a full health check and an EPM Maturity option that compliments our SAP BPC Roadmap support. Feel free to get in touch if you have any questions.
Useful Resources:
- Kabeelah SAP BPC Health Check Service
- Kabeelah BPC Roadmap Webinar Recording
