Rapid Workforce Planning & Analysis with SAP Analytics Cloud

To accelerate the implementation of SAP Analytics Cloud Planning (SAC), SAP offers various business content. Particularly noteworthy is the Rapid Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A) Suite for SAP S/4HANA. It consists of three solutions: Rapid Financial Planning & Analysis, Rapid Sales Planning & Analysis and Rapid Workforce Planning & Analysis. In this article, we take a look at workforce planning, analyze the strengths and weaknesses of the solution and consider possible alternatives.

Rapid FP&A Suite

SAC Workforce Planning is part of the Rapid FP&A Suite delivered by SAP. This represents SAP's best practice content and combines profit & loss, balance sheet, cash flow and sales planning in addition to workforce planning. The Rapid FP&A Suite also offers integration with S/4HANA, IBP and SAP Success Factors. This is intended to ensure a uniform view of the data in SAC and enable a quick start for planning.

Rapid Workforce Planning & Analysis

The FP&A Suite's workforce planning module, Rapid Workforce Planning & Analysis, enables planning of personnel costs based on various drivers. For example, indicators such as headcount, salary, salary increase, bonus, social benefits, overtime and expenses (e.g. travel costs) can be used for planning.

The solution combines the most important key figures from SAP Success Factors and SAP S/4HANA Cloud in SAP Analytics Cloud to enable trend analysis of historical data. To provide a comprehensive overview, SAP combines visual dashboards with crosstabs. Both input layouts and advanced formula calculations (advanced formulas) can be used for planning.

In addition, the relevant drivers can be taken from historical data before the planners start planning. This means that HR planners can start with a pre-filled plan and enter their hiring, terminations, transfers and make other adjustments.

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Weaknesses

SAC Rapid Workforce Planning can certainly be used as a starter kit. However, SAP itself admits that the Rapid FP&A Suite only represents the lowest common denominator of all customer requirements. In practice, however, the requirements for a planning solution vary greatly from customer to customer. The HR planning process is different in every company.

The granularity of planning is also different in every company. SAP uses dimensions such as company code, cost center, employee location, job classification and account for planning. It may be different in your company - for example, many companies are divided into profit centers.

In addition, the chart of accounts looks different for every company. Unfortunately, the chart of accounts from the SAP content is based on hard-coded accounts for business transactions such as travel expenses, which certainly do not correspond to the structures of your company because, for example, the granularity of the accounts does not match. For example, instead of one account for travel expenses, you may use different accounts for flight costs, hotel costs, lump sums for lunches, etc.

All of this would therefore have to be adapted when using SAC Rapid Workforce Planning. This affects both the reports and input layouts as well as the calculations in data actions, which entails a corresponding amount of testing. It may therefore be better to implement an individual, homogeneous, solution that is tailored to your needs. We are happy to support you with our many years of experience.

NextTables as an alternative

SAP Analytics Cloud combines reporting and planning under one roof. Users can analyze actual data with visually appealing dashboards and plan future values with the support of data actions and advanced formulas. However, it is often sufficient for the plan values to be stored centrally on the basis of consistent master data. NextTables could offer a cost-effective alternative, especially for smaller planning solutions that do not require dashboards or calculation logic.

With the help of NextTables, you can create compact planning applications quickly and easily. For example, for personnel resource planning and personnel cost planning. NextTables is an SAP add-on that can be 100% integrated into your BW landscape. You do not need separate licenses for SAP Analytics Cloud.

Thanks to NextTables, you can speed up planning processes enormously and replace Excel as a planning tool. Thus reducing planning errors thanks to the single version of the truth. NextTables also offers additional benefits with known SAP tools such as simple expansion options via BAdIs. SAP Analytics Cloud, on the other hand, is less flexible as a Software as a Service (SaaS) product. While Rapid FP&A limits the scope to the most common requirements, NextTables is fast and customizable. In addition to planning capabilities, NextTables also offers simple maintenance of master data in SAP BW.

Workforce Planning - Our Summary

Although SAP Analytics Cloud (SAC) Content can be used as a project accelerator, many adjustments are necessary in practice. SAP Content therefore serves more as a tried-and-tested solution for the most common requirements, such as centrally managed cut-over dates in planning layouts.

To implement a holistic solution that covers all needs, you need a strong partner with the necessary know-how. We are happy to support you with our in-depth process expertise, knowledge of the latest SAP technologies and many years of project experience. Simply get in touch with us - we look forward to exchanging ideas with you!