--- title: "Streamline your FP&A processes with SAP Analytics Cloud" date: 2023-12-27T08:30:00+01:00 author: Flexso canonical_url: "https://www.flexso.com/en/insights-blog/integrated-financial-planning-and-analysis-with-sap-analytics-cloud" section: cp.sections.blog --- ![FP&A processes with SAC Financial planning](data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf-8,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%271360%27%20height%3D%27544%27%20style%3D%27background%3Atransparent%27%2F%3E) **With more and more companies on the path to becoming intelligent enterprises, a disconnect can arise between the business’ vision and more traditional processes of financial planning. SAP Analytics Cloud (SAC) accelerates the evolution of intelligent processes in finance and beyond by bringing together planning and analysis (FP&A) under a single intuitive platform.** ## Financial planning processes are becoming smart at different rates With Excel spreadsheets and e-mail still playing key roles in finance, budgeting and financial reporting activities can be slowed to a crawl. Even more, manual financial processes may introduce more opportunities for error and duplicates. “However, we’ve noticed that an increasing number of companies are ready to change their traditional mindsets and introduce integrated planning processes,” says Koen Vanderwegen, competence lead at Flexso. “This means **interfacing financial planning processes with planning in other business areas.**” For truly integrated, intelligent digital planning, reports need to be easy to analyse, and FP&A teams must be able to use them to determine the financial impacts of potential strategic decisions using simulation. “To meet these needs, FP&A departments must be empowered with **a modern, digital platform for planning and analysis**. SAC is a clear winning choice.” ![SAP Finance processes with SAP Analytics cloud planning](data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf-8,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27950%27%20height%3D%27%27%20style%3D%27background%3Atransparent%27%2F%3E) ## Integrated information sources, rich insights, accurate financial forecasting SAC offers **a single platform for both planning and analytics**, saving costs and avoiding actual and planning integration hiccups. “The platform offers unprecedented advantages for planning,” Koen continues. “All of these benefits are based on several key capabilities: user-friendly planning input, workflow support and collaboration, intuitive variance analysis, ability to link business-wide data and the power of the cloud.” Driver-based planning, flexible allocation and out-of-the-box simulations bring quick answers to strategic questions from the management team. By interlinking data generated by other business areas such as HR, manufacturing, supply chain, etc., planning is **simplified and streamlined through scalable insights and real-time measurements**. A practical example is the possibility of running product cost simulations in SAC. The base data for these simulations comes from published cost estimates in SAP. It allows for tracking the impact on your total product cost by simulating cost changes in raw materials and activity types (e.g. energy). Learn how **Centrient** has modernized its financial planning process with SAP Analytics Cloud, leveraging SAP’s best practices and Flexso’s standard cost simulation tool. [Read the story ](https://www.flexso.com/en/cases/pharma-sap-analytics-cloud-financial-planning) > ![Koen Vanderwegen](data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf-8,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27156%27%20height%3D%27156%27%20style%3D%27background%3Atransparent%27%2F%3E)“SAC goes even further than accurate predictions: machine-learning capabilities are immediately up and running to support automated trend forecasting and the identification of key influencers in your data.” ## The beauty of end-to-end integration As it is a cloud application, planning teams can access data through the platform at **any time and in any location**. SAP offers an acceleration track to set up financial planning and analysis in combination with [S/4HANA](https://www.flexso.com/en/solutions/sap-erp-software). “In addition to inputting stories for P&L, cashflow and the balance sheet, people can see the actual real-time data in S/4HANA for lightning-quick reporting and variance analysis. Imagine sending the approved budget back to the financial system at the end of the process simply and easily – that’s the symmetry of end-to-end integration driven by SAP Cloud Analytics.” A good practicable example is the possibility of running **product cost simulations in SAC.** The base data for these simulations would come from published cost estimates in SAP. It allows for tracking the impact on your total product cost by simulating cost changes in raw materials and activity types (e.g. energy). ## Extended FP&A at Centrient Pharmaceuticals Learn how Centrient has modernized it’s financial planning and analysis process with SAP Analytics Cloud, leveraging SAP’s best practices and Flexso’s standard cost simulation tool. [Discover the story](https://www.flexso.com/en/cases/pharma-sap-analytics-cloud-financial-planning) ## Flexso combines functional and technological expertise Thanks to our team’s strong background in financial planning and analytics processes and extensive SAC and S/4HANA product knowledge, we can guarantee an optimal implementation that maximizes the solution’s impacts for your specific business. > “We deeply understand relevant processes and how other companies approach FP&A and reporting. Because of that, we can play a unique advisory role during implementations to streamline them and ensure that the technology is adapted to each company’s process flow.” “In addition to our technological expertise, we’ve completed numerous FP&A and reporting implementations, and have the functional experience to challenge companies’ approaches to the processes themselves,” Koen asserts. “We deeply understand relevant processes and how other companies approach FP&A and reporting. Because of that, we can play a unique advisory role during implementations to streamline them and ensure that the technology is adapted to each company’s process flow.” ## Financial planning in SAP Analytics Cloud: the business benefits - One platform for financial planning and business intelligence. - Out-of-the-box simulations provide quick financial answers to strategic business questions. - Interlinked planning, HR, supply chain and other business data, for rich forecasting capabilities. - Fully integrated machine-learning capabilities. - Cloud-based, for easy access to data any time and from anywhere. - Rapid platform setup with SAP Cloud Analytics’ standard business content. ## Ready for an integrated financial planning and reporting? We've got your back! [Get in touch](https://www.flexso.com/en/contact) --- Written by ![Wouter Vanhoutte](data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf-8,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%2794%27%20height%3D%2794%27%20style%3D%27background%3Atransparent%27%2F%3E)**Wouter Vanhoutte** Share - [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.flexso.com%2Fen%2Finsights-blog%2Fintegrated-financial-planning-and-analysis-with-sap-analytics-cloud"e=Authors%20%2B%20brand) - [LinkedIn](http://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.flexso.com%2Fen%2Finsights-blog%2Fintegrated-financial-planning-and-analysis-with-sap-analytics-cloud&title=Authors%20%2B%20brand&summary=&source=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.flexso.com%2Fen%2Finsights-blog%2Fintegrated-financial-planning-and-analysis-with-sap-analytics-cloud) - [Whatsapp](whatsapp://send?text=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.flexso.com%2Fen%2Finsights-blog%2Fintegrated-financial-planning-and-analysis-with-sap-analytics-cloud) ![SAC Releases 2024 - SAP Analytics Cloud - Header](data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf-8,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27375%27%20height%3D%27281.25%27%20style%3D%27background%3Atransparent%27%2F%3E)SAP Business Data Cloud, Datasphere & SAP Analytics Cloud: Discover the latest releasesWhat’s new in SAP Datasphere this year? 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