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Hello everyone, Uli here from SAP's Product Engineering Finance Team. I'm thrilled to share an update on our latest release - SAP S/4HANA Cloud Public Edition 2408 for Line-of-Business Finance. This update highlights significant innovations including business AI:
- Financial Planning and Analysis: Cost Center Review Booklet
- Financial Planning and Analysis: Review Booklet for Cost Centers: Gaining Financial Business Insights Powered by AI (Beta)
- Financial Planning and Analysis: Service Profitability Review Booklet
- Financial Planning and Analysis: Review Booklet: Updated Value Help, Additional Dialogs and Commenting for Review Booklet
- Financial Planning and Analysis: Hotspots in Multidimensional Data Grid Apps
- Accounting and Financial Close: SAP Fiori app ‘Manage Operating G/L Accounts’
- Asset Accounting: AI-assisted Explanation of Fixed Asset Depreciation Keys (Beta)
- Asset Accounting: SAP Fiori app ‘Post Asset Revaluation’ to Manually Readjust Asset Values
- Asset Accounting: API for Asset-revaluation Postings
- Group Reporting: SAP Group-level Green Ledger: Managing Greenhouse Gas Emissions for Group Reporting
- Contract and Lease Management: Intercompany lease processing enablement in Contract and Lease Management
- Event-Based Revenue Recognition: Support for imminent-loss handling for fixed-price customer projects and project-based sales
- Event-Based Revenue Recognition: Shared-risk-based Revenue Recognition for Professional Service Projects
- Cash Management: Optimization of Cash Flow Reporting by Including an Estimated Value of Default Bank Accounts
- Advanced Payment Management: Migration Concept from In-house Cash to In-house Banking
- Advanced Payment Management: Integration of Bank Account Management and In-house Banking Through Electronic Messaging
- Accounts Receivables: Automated Fallback Processing Rules
Video 1: Release Highlight Video for Finance in SAP S/4HANA Cloud Public Edition 2408
Here are the topics covered in the release video:
Financial Planning and Analysis: Cost Center Review Booklet
First off, we introduce the new Cost Center Review booklet, the second member of our highly acclaimed Review Booklet series. This tool allows overhead accountants to analyze and validate cost center data through predefined reports. It offers transparency in cost center reporting with business applications that combine application logic and comprehensive insights tabled in a user-friendly interface. You can effortlessly analyze and strategize actuals and plan efficiently for different scenarios.
With this app, you can display, analyze, and validate cost center data. The app displays information about actual and planned costs and groups several predefined reports under Actuals and Plan/Actuals pages.
Value Proposition
The cost centers review booklet helps overhead cost accountants achieve more transparency into cost center reporting by:
- Providing business applications that embed insights into the relevant business context and help answer critical business questions for daily jobs out of the box.
- Representing a new category of SAP Fiori apps that combine application logic and guidance with integrated multidimensional insights.
- Helping to fulfill the promise of insight to action within embedded analytics.
Demo 1: Cost Center Review Booklet
Capabilities
- Analysis of actuals and plan data in one report based on predefined pages to answer critical business questions efficiently.
- Switch between guided views and generic slicing, dicing, and pivoting based on your business needs.
For more information, see Cost Centers Review Booklet
Financial Planning and Analysis: Review Booklet for Cost Centers: Gaining Financial Business Insights Powered by AI (Beta)
You can now gain financial business insights powered by AI. This feature employs a digital assistant to radically streamline your data analysis process. Whether it's analyzing tabular data or sharing results directly from our app, managing cost center data has never been easier. What's more - this feature is currently in our AI beta program, offering you a sneak peek into the exciting future expansions of SAP S/4HANA Cloud Public Edition.
Value Proposition
This feature supports you, as an overhead accountant, with the following tasks:
- Analyze cost center data with increased efficiency.
- Understand and interpret data with the help of the digital assistant (powered by generative AI).
Demo 2: Gaining Financial Business Insight Powered by AI
Capabilities
- Based on the Actuals or Plan/Actuals page you’ve selected, you can:
- Analyze tabular data.
- Summarize tabular data.
- Edit, copy, export, and share the results directly from the app.
For more information, see: Get Involved Early. Register and experience the latest AI features in SAP S/4HANA Cloud Public Edition and influence upcoming AI developments.
Financial Planning and Analysis: Service Profitability Review Booklet
We present the third member in the review booklet series: the Service Profitability Review Booklet for sales accountants. This booklet offers an in-depth, interactive glance at service-related financial Key Performance Indicators. You can now validate KPIs like billed revenue, recognized revenue, revenue adjustment, deferred revenue, accrued revenue among others under Margin Views - demystifying all dimensions of service profitability for service orders and service contracts. Easily stay ahead of your finances and ensure your service profitability stays right on target.
Value Proposition
You can analyze the following KPIs under Margin Views:
- Revenue KPIs: Billed Revenue, Recognized Revenue, Revenue Adjustment, Deferred Revenue, Accrued Revenue.
- Cost KPIs: Actual Costs, Recognized COS, COS Adjustment, Deferred COS, Accrued COS.
- Margin KPIs: Recognized Margin.
- Other KPIs: Reserves (You can monitor plan and actual comparison for P&L accounts).
- KPIs: Actuals, Baseline, Ongoing.
Demo 3: Service Profitability Review Booklet
Capabilities
- For Service Order you can report on margin views, actual view, and plan information.
- For Service Contract you can report on margin views and actual view.
- Line items will only be included in the calculation if the journal entry is assigned to a service (the service document is filled in the journal entry). Values are Shown in the company code currency.
For more information, see What's New Service Profitability Review Booklet
Additional innovations not covered in the video:
Financial Planning and Analysis: Review Booklet: Updated Value Help, Additional Dialogs and Commenting for Review Booklet
The Group Financial Statements Review Booklet has been enhanced with the following features: Active Page Filters button, Add Calculation function (see image), Conditional formatting dependent on threshold values in views and hierarchy in context menu.
Capabilities:
- Active Page Filters button: It displays the number of active filters, and you use it to open the Page Filters panel in the side panel. This is where you add and remove page filters and their values.
- Add Calculation: You can create calculations based on the measures or structures of your data source and add them to your table and chart.
- Save conditional formatting in views: On the Formatting tab, you can define threshold values and display them with different background colors or as colored values. Now you can save such formatting as part of a private or public view.
- Hierarchy in context menu: You can open the context menu of a hierarchy to drill to a lower level in the hierarchy or open all levels.
Figure 1: Add Calculation in Group Reporting Review Booklet
For more information, see: SAP Help Portal.
Financial Planning and Analysis: Hotspots in Multidimensional Data Grid Apps
As of release SAP S/4HANA Cloud 2408, you can see for which UI elements in-app help is available.
Value Proposition
- So far, the in-app help was displayed in the help panel but you couldn't see the connection between the information and the UI. This has not been resolved.
Capabilities
- How it works: Choose the question mark in the upper right corner to open the in-app help. The help panel on the right opens, and the little question marks (hotspots) tell you for which UI elements in-app help is available. To display the help, choose the question mark for the UI element you're interested in.
Figure 2: Hotspots on Help Topics in Multidimensional Data Grids
For more information, see: SAP Help Portal.
Accounting and Financial Close: SAP Fiori app “Manage Operating G/L Accounts
With the Manage Operating G/L Accounts app, you can perform actions to master data of operating G/L accounts depending on your role and the system that you access.
Value Proposition
- View the master data of operating general ledger (G/L) accounts.
- Create a new operating G/L account by copying an existing one, and adapt it according to your need.
- Efficiently activate a new operating G/L account in a company code by copying company code-specific settings from one source company code to one or multiple target company codes.
- Enable mass change of attributes of multiple operating G/L accounts.
Capabilities
- Streamline processes by focusing on operating G/L accounts.
- Increase performance through a modern SAP Fiori app.
- Smooth the user experience with a harmonized UI.
Figure 3: New Manage Operating Chart of Accounts App
For more information, see: SAP Help Portal
Asset Accounting: AI-assisted Explanation of Fixed Asset Depreciation Keys (Beta)
Analyzing asset values for different depreciation areas can be difficult due to complex depreciation key settings. Powerful SAP Business AI helps you to easily understand the configuration settings of depreciation keys, resulting in efficiency and better decision-making for asset accounting and financial reporting.
Value Proposition
- Reduce the time to onboard an asset by reducing the time to understand the complex setup of depreciation keys.
- Improve business user productivity by easily understanding the asset and depreciation values.
- Reduce the time to process periodic activities by reducing the time it takes to understand depreciation values. Periodic activities can be performed efficiently and in less time.
Demo 4: AI-assisted Explanation of Depreciation Key Configuration
Capabilities
- Explains how depreciation keys operate and the rationale behind the system's depreciation calculations in a user-friendly and easy-to-understand natural language for business users.
More information: Customer Influence Page under SAP S/4HANA Cloud Public Edition, AI-assisted explanation of fixed asset depreciation keys in Finance.
Asset Accounting: SAP Fiori app ‘Post Asset Revaluation’ to Manually Readjust Asset Values
Use the SAP Fiori app Post Asset Revaluation (F7775) to manually post revaluations for assets and adjust asset values to either reflect inflation or apply market value principles. From the Manage Fixed Assets app (F3425), you can navigate to the SAP Fiori app Post Asset Revaluation (F7775) by choosing the Post menu button.
Value Proposition
- Improved flexibility in asset revaluation postings, for example, by processing revaluation postings to offset an inflation-related cash devaluation or to apply market value principles in Asset Accounting.
- Apply revaluations to acquisition and production costs (APC) and ordinary depreciation amounts.
Demo 5: New Post Asset Revaluation App
Capabilities
- Post revaluation for an asset acquired either in the current fiscal year or in a previous fiscal year.
- Revaluate an asset for selected ledgers and depreciation areas.
- If necessary, adjust the specified revaluation amounts before the actual posting, by displaying the asset line items and choosing the Adjust Translated Values button.
More Information: Help Portal (Documentation) under Post Asset Revaluation.
Asset Accounting: API for Asset-revaluation Postings
Import asset revaluation postings into your SAP S/4HANA Cloud, public edition system using the API Fixed Asset – Post Asset Revaluation (API_FIXEDASSETREVALUATION_G4BA). You can use the OData version 4 service to post a one-time revaluation for one or more assets.
Value Proposition
- Increase flexibility in asset revaluation postings.
- Improve data accuracy compared to manually entering revaluation postings.
- Reduce costs compared to manually entering revaluation postings.
Capabilities
- Perform asset revaluations for multiple assets in one request.
- Revaluate assets for selected ledgers and depreciation areas.
- Apply revaluations to acquisition and production costs (APCs) and ordinary depreciation amounts.
More Information: Help Portal (Documentation) under Fixed Asset – Post Asset Revaluation.
Group Reporting: SAP Group-level Green Ledger: Managing Greenhouse Gas Emissions for Group Reporting
With this release, Group Reporting provides you with specific additional fields to support you in fulfilling mandatory quantitative disclosures for the emissions of greenhouse gas. After activating a business function, the following new fields are available to maintain the greenhouse gas emission quantity breakdowns in your SAP S/4HANA Cloud system:
- GHG Scope
- GHG Categor
- Scope 2 Calculation Method
- Mode of Transport
- Scope 2 Contractual Instrument
These fields are visible in the Define Consolidation Master Data Fields configuration step.
Value Proposition
The fields support you in becoming aware of your company's carbon emissions, understanding their financial implications and increasing efficiency in managing greenhouse gas emissions.
Figure 4: New Fields to Maintain GHG Emission Quantity Breakdown in Group Reporting
Capabilities
- Define additional master data for greenhouse gas.
- Import consolidation-related greenhouse gas entries into the consolidation system.
- Define selections for restricting the data range for relevant greenhouse gas fields.
- Upload reported greenhouse gas data for one or several periods.
- Check the logs of the consolidation task for reclassification along the consolidation process for greenhouse gas data.
- Make manual postings to adjust the reported greenhouse gas data.
- Post multiple manual journal entries to adjust the reported greenhouse gas data.
- Display line items of posting documents relevant for greenhouse gas data.
- Display different views on consolidated greenhouse gas data.
- Display, analyze, and validate greenhouse gas data.
For more information, see: Fields for Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Additional Fields for Greenhouse Gas.
Contract and Lease Management: Intercompany lease processing enablement in Contract and Lease Management
With this feature, you can manage real estate lease processes between two companies that belong to the same corporate group.
Value Proposition
- Streamline the process of tracking and managing assets and their use across different divisions of a company, boost operational efficiency, and increase transparency.
- Ensure optimal use of company assets by clearly defining the rights and responsibilities of each entity.
Figure 5: Intercompany Assignment of Usable Object
Capabilities
- Manage intercompany lease-out contracts.
- Manage intercompany lease-in contracts.
- Make periodic postings for intercompany lease contracts (accounts receivable and accounts payable.
- Run periodic valuation for intercompany lease contracts.
For more information, see: What’s New: Intercompany Lease Processes in Contract and Lease Management.
Event-Based Revenue Recognition: Support for imminent-loss handling for fixed-price customer projects and project-based sales
With this release, Event-Based Revenue Recognition provides a new option to automatically handle imminent loss for your projects. If you enter into a contract with a customer, you would expect the potential revenue of the contract to exceed the expected cost to generate profit. However, this might not always be the case. Per accounting standard, if the costs of a contract that the company expects to incur to fulfill the contract surpass the economic benefits it expects to receive from it, this contract is considered onerous. If a loss is expected in this type of contract, the entire loss should be recorded in the income statement.
Using the integration with customer projects, Event-Based Revenue Recognition assists in adhering to the accounting requirements for fixed-price projects with an expected loss including professional service projects and revenue-carrying enterprise projects.
Value Proposition
- Enable automatic imminent-loss handling for fixed-price projects in project-based services and project-based sales.
- Automatically identify a WBS billing element as onerous, if the planned costs are higher than the planned revenue.
- Record a loss reserve for the expected loss in the income statement.
- Adjust the loss reserve according to the cost-based percentage.
Figure 6: Record a Loss Reserve
Capabilities
- Support customers in meeting international accounting regulations.
For more information, see: Loss Handling with Event-Based Revenue Recognition
Event-Based Revenue Recognition: Shared-risk-based Revenue Recognition for Professional Service Projects
With this release, the new revenue recognition key SPTMSR is available. Its purpose is to support the shared risk model for customer projects of the time and expenses contract type. In the shared risk model, the service provider agrees with the customer on an initial scope within which the customer can be billed at regular sales rates. The possible risk of having to provide services beyond the initially agreed scope is already foreseen at project creation. These additional services or costs shall be billed to the customer at a reduced sales rate. Billing at reduced sales rates for the same billing element can be achieved by creating a second work package assigned to the billing element with dedicated sales rates defined for the second work package. With this revenue recognition key, you can conduct revenue recognition for this scenario and calculate revenue recognition values for both work packages.
Value Proposition
- Focus on time and expense-based projects in which the customer agrees to share risk by being charged a reduced rate if additional work is needed to achieve the project scope.
Figure 7: Shared-risk-based EBRR Posting Scheme
Capabilities
- Enable more precise revenue recognition for the described scenario, where a reduced rate is agreed upon if additional work is needed to achieve the scope. During revenue recognition, the reduced rate for additional work is considered not only once the additional work is done but also once it is known that additional work is needed.
Cash Management: Optimization of Cash Flow Reporting by Including an Estimated Value of Default Bank Accounts
Since SAP S/4HANA Cloud 2408, you can keep the liquidity item through the whole document chain when the cash flows are moved from the Treasury and Risk Management data source to the One Exposure data source.
Value Proposition
- Empowering the cash manager to define the rules for estimating cash flow values for the default bank account without having the bank account information, such as cash flows from accounts receivable or accounts payable invoices.
Figure 8: AP Fiori app Short-Term Cash Positioning to view forecasted cash flows
Capabilities
- Provide the cash manager with a complete view of cash flows including bank accounts Use the SAP Fiori app Short-Term Cash Positioning to view forecasted cash flows.
For more information, see: SAP Help Portal
Advanced Payment Management: Migration Concept from In-house Cash to In-house Banking
Setting up an in-house bank can lead to increased manual effort. Using an automation concept, master data should be created automatically.With edition 2408 there are two new migration object within migration cockpit available for in-house banking.
Value Proposition
- Enable migration services to automate the creation of master data in in-house banking.
Demo 6: Master Data Migration from In-House Cash to In-House Banking
Capabilities
- Provide a straightforward way to help customers move from in-house cash to in-house banking.
- Provide migration object for in-house banking accounts and in-house banking conditions.
For more information, see: SAP Help Portal
Advanced Payment Management: Integration of Bank Account Management and In-house Banking Through Electronic Messaging
The new bank correspondence framework in the Manage Bank Accounts app allows users to efficiently manage their bank account-related attachments and electronic messages in a centralized location. With this feature, the bank account opening processing in Bank Account Management is now connected with In-House Banking to provide you with a more simplified and streamlined process of opening in-house bank accounts based on electronic messages of ISO20022 standard.
Value Proposition
- Simplified integration between Bank Account Management and In-House Banking enables easy setup of individual in-house bank accounts, complementing the existing mass creation method via XML upload.
- Streamlined and traceable process of opening in-house bank accounts through electronical messaging-enabled bank correspondence.
- Enhanced transparency and traceability in bank related communications.
- Easy access to important documents organized in one central place.
Demo 7: In-House Bank Account Opening via eBAM
Capabilities
- Centralized management of all correspondence objects, including electronic messages and attachments, related to the account opening process.
- Streamlined and traceable process of opening in-house bank accounts in Bank Account Management by integrating with In-House Banking.
- Creation of new in-house bank accounts, sending requests to In-House Banking, receiving responses, and updating both the in-house bank account master data and the bank account master data.
For more information, see: Opening In-House Bank Accounts via Bank Correspondence and Managing Bank Correspondence
Accounts Receivables: Automated Fallback Processing Rules
In the Manage Processing Rules – For Bank Statements and Manage Processing Rules – For Lockbox apps, you can create and automate processing rules that make bank statement processing and lockbox processing easier and smoother. Sometimes, bank statement items and lockbox items do not apply to any of the processing rules’ conditions in your system. In such a case, the system cannot process the items and you need to manually reprocess them.
To address this problem, we have created a special type of automated processing rules: “Fallback Rules”. As the name suggests, the system can now use automated fallback processing rules as a fallback. Fallback rules have a more simplified Conditions section where you can only enter conditions for company codes. This way, you can determine that items that could not get processed by other processing rules are processed in a certain way, according to the actions that you have defined in the fallback rule for the respective company code.
Value Proposition
- Reduced number of unprocessed bank statement items and lockbox items.
- Reduced manual effort in reprocessing items.
- Easy to use and simple to create.
Figure 10: Automated Fallback Processing Rules
Capabilities
- The Conditions section is already partly filled in, so you just need to enter the respective company codes.
- You can immediately decide whether you want the fallback rule to carry out a one-step or two-step posting.
- You can choose any of the four available action types: G/L Posting, AP/AR Posting, Clear in Sequence and Reprocess Items.
- Fallback rules are immediately active as soon as you have created them.
Don’t hesitate to leave a comment and check out our community page to ask your questions and engage with the experts. Follow the PSCC_Enablement tag to stay up to date with our latest blog posts. Follow us on @Sisn and #S4HANA, and myself on LinkedIn and X.
Watch the Replays of Our SAP S/4HANA Cloud Public Edition 2408 Early Release Series!
From July 8 to July 12, we hosted a series of 20 compelling live sessions to highlight the exciting innovations shipped with the SAP S/4HANA Cloud Public Edition 2408 release. Missed the live sessions? We've got you covered! Take advantage of the entire series or pick and choose the sessions most relevant to you. You will find a 65-minute-long recording and a presentation for Finance as well as 19 other topics of interest. Don't miss this chance and watch them on demand–anywhere, anytime.
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