This is a common problem with any organization using costing based CO-PA. Due to the inherent architecture of costing based CO-PA, it is an uphill task to actually get CBC (costing based CO-PA) to reconcile with FI, however still not impossible. All we need to do is get the objectives right from your CO-PA report users and design a completely different intelligent CO-PA solution, with some assistance from BI reporting, which will be more powerful than the standard CO-PA module. With my new CO-PA design you will be able to do the following :-
Get a full CO-PA report up to the PBIT level with 100% reconciliation with FI
No need to run any CO-PA assessments
All postings are fully automated without any manual adjustments
You can do multiple CO-PA simulations with different versions to project a dummy profitability
You can change the profit segment of posted documents to a different profit segment without reversing or re-posting the documents
Yes, the obvious answer to get actual production cost of the manufactured products is to implement Material Ledger (ML), however some organizations do not want to implement ML due to the high cost of implementation, and also do not want to add additional complexity in month end closing steps. Those who have already implemented ML are struggling with operating that module or understanding it's reports. What’s more, with Material Ledger, you have wait till month end to get the actual cost of the product and also CO-PA reports and can never get it on a daily basis to control your profitability. If you are facing a similar dilemma , I can alleviate your problems with an alternative solution to Material Ledger which is capable of doing the following :-
1) Provides you the actual cost as accurately as Material Ledger and also with equal or greater detail than Material Ledger.
2) If you already have Material Ledger, you can stop using it, since my reports will provide you the actual costs you get from Material Ledger
3) The cost of implementing my solution will be only a fraction of what Material Ledger implementation will cost
4) My solution will not require any additional complex steps to be performed since the actual cost will be readily available for use.
5) Last but not least, with my solution you can get the actual cost on a daily basis instead of waiting till month end
Yeah, I know how it hurts when you are asked to use a software system that you are not familiar with. You have to stumble around to find your way to the function you are looking for. This is like being blind folded in a dark room. Let me admit the fact, I was like you a decade ago when I started with SAP, but I took a step back when I was exhausted with SAP, one day and started to ponder the right way to master SAP. This is what I did, instead of learning how to click on the buttons and menus on SAP, I started to study the reasons why we have to click on those buttons and menus, and what will go wrong if we do not click on them. This opened up another window of opportunity for learning through researching instead of learning by asking for assistance. I started to make more mistakes than I did before, however it sharpened up my knowledge about SAP concepts, and what would go wrong if I do not do that step and also why SAP was designed in that way or doing things in that specific way. Finally, I was in the process of studying the SAP concepts, instead of the buttons and menus that I had to click. Well the moral of the story is, ultimately I have become a very good trainer to train the end users and make them aware of the back stage operations of SAP. As a trainer i can train the end users or new consultants by not teaching them about the buttons or menus to click, but rather by teaching them the concepts as to why SAP is designed in such a way and why we need to click on those screen objects. Understanding the concepts is more crucial than knowing how to execute certain steps. Based on these underlying principles, I can make SAP a very simple application to learn and use.
I have been to many big finance departments, and felt sorry for the finance staff, they are so busy running around trying to maintain their books, despite the fact that they have installed the best and largest ERP system in the world. Not to mention the month end pressure where they have to work extra long hours. I consider this like washing clothes by hand, while sitting right next to the washing machine. I am not sure who’s in charge of managing workflow in these situations, which can be seen even in many big organizations. Is it the consultants who did not propose new automated ways of doing tasks, or the users who did not demand it? Or perhaps it's the management who did not bring both parties together to create a platform for innovative automation? Okay let's stop the blame game, now what I can offer in this area of automation is that I will go through all the process flow charts from your finance and other department operations, and propose how best to automate some tedious manual tasks using your SAP system . While many can think of automating the jobs, only a few can really bring projects to fruition by breaking the barriers that will come up during the process. What you can count on from me is, no matter how resistant the management can be, I can convince them to buy my proposals by showing them the case studies, and other proven techniques to implement automation in your organization, and increase productivity dramatically. You will be amazed to see how many tasks that you are doing manually can actually be automated if the right thoughts and plans have been applied. Unless a consultant is truly passionate about automation, such innovation cannot happen. Think of it as the innovation of consumer machines designed solely to relieve human beings from doing menial tasks manually!
