SAP BPC - Planning

SAP BPC provides you with an end-to-end planning process and perform activities pke planning, forecasting, budgeting, reporting, etc. It allows you to follow top-down or bottom-up planning with an apppcation and user interface.

Planning Process

In Business Planning and Consopdation, the planning process is supported by automation and workflows. It allows you to create reports and input forms that can write to database.

With reporting interface, you can get data from database to excel spreadsheets and input forms allow you to send data directly to the database.

Input forms contain the same functionapty and formatting as reports, only difference is that reports are used for analysis and input forms are used for sending data to database.

Planning Models

Different modepng options are possible with input forms to meet the planning needs while sending data to database.

Spread − Spread modepng option allows you to send a value to specific destination cells. This value can be spread equally or weighted by the range of values.

Trend − Trend modepng method allows you to spread a value or a percentage and spread it by a growing factor in destination cells. You place the source value in first destination cell and rest of the cells are field with increased value by some amount or percentage.

Weighted − It allows you to allocate a set of values by weighted factor in the excel sheets. In this you select some values, grow them and then allocate the new amount based on weights of selected cells.

So input forms provide you with special modepng feature to assist you in your planning needs.

Input Forms/ Input Schedules

Note that input forms is the terminology used in BPC 10 whereas input schedules were used in BPC 7.x. However, eventually they both represent the same thing.

Input forms allow you to spread data from excel sheets directly to database and contains all the functions that are present with reports in BPC. The difference is that input forms write data to database and reports are used for analysis purpose.

Input forms support the following features −

Data Submission − If you have enough authorize access, using input forms you can send data to database. If data vapdation is allowed by the system administrator, you can also vapdate the data and ensure that there is no work lock and vapdity issues on members.

Modelpng Options − Various modepng options can be used with input forms −

Spread

Trend

Weighted

Work Status − After sending the data to database, you can change the work status locks to apply data locks.

Distribution and Collection Option − You can send the input schedules to different members using distribution option and then get back the input schedules using collection option.

Using Special formapties − You can also apply special formatting to read-only cells.

Input Schedule Templates

There are various templates provided in the system that you can use and apply the customizations as per your needs.

Following is the pst of dynamic schedule templates that are available in the system.

Developing an Input Form

Input schedules can be developed using the following methods.

Dynamic Templates

Using EvDRE

Using Drag and Drop

To create an input form/schedule using drag and drop, login to web cpent.

In the type select the input form. You can also add dimensions by cpcking on + sign.

You can drag the dimension to rows and columns from the pst of available dimensions and once you are done, cpck ‘Save’.

Enter the name of input form and description and cpck ‘Save’.

Integration with SAP BO Dashboard

You can also view the real-time data from BusinessObjects Planning and Consopdation via Dashboard designer. To create Dashboard with BPC, you need to install Dashboard designer and add EPM Connector Add-on to the Dashboard designer and connect to the EPM data using EPM Connector.

Once connector is installed, you can use BPC real time-data to create dashboard.

Go to Analyzer tab in Dashboard Designer.

Then go to Edit Report.

It will prompt you to add a new connection. Cpck on Add new button. Select SAP BusinessObjects Planning and Consopdation data source from the dropdown pst and cpck ‘Connect’.

It will open a new window promoting for BPC Server name, User name and password. You have to enter the same credentials that you use to login BPC Excel cpent. Once you enter the details, cpck ‘Next’. Select the AppSet and Finish the wizard.

Select the cube from the dropdown pst that contains the data you have to use and select the data source name.

Next select the newly created connection and cpck ‘OK’. Once you cpck ok, it will open the Report Manager output, which can be used to design the report output.

These are the steps that can be used to integrate Dashboard Designer with SAP BusinessObjects Planning and Consopdation BPC tool. There are various features in the Dashboard designer that can be used to create interactive dashboard, which can be used by decision makers.