SAP

What Is SAP?

SAP (Systems, Applications & Products in Data Processing) is the world’s largest enterprise software company, best known for its ERP systems. SAP software runs many of the world’s largest corporations, managing everything from finance and supply chain to manufacturing and human resources.

Key SAP products:

• SAP S/4HANA: Cloud-native ERP platform
• SAP ECC: Legacy on-premise ERP
• SAP Business One: Small business ERP
• SAP SuccessFactors: Human capital management
• SAP Ariba: Procurement and supply chain
• SAP Concur: Travel and expense management

SAP S/4HANA

S/4HANA is SAP’s current-generation ERP, built on the HANA in-memory database:

Core modules:

• Financial Accounting (FI)
• Controlling (CO)
• Materials Management (MM)
• Sales and Distribution (SD)
• Production Planning (PP)
• Human Capital Management (HCM)

Key features:

• Real-time analytics
• Simplified data model
• Fiori user experience
• Cloud and on-premise options

SAP in Finance

SAP’s financial modules are comprehensive:

Financial Accounting (FI)

• General ledger
• Accounts payable/receivable
• Asset accounting
• Bank accounting
• Consolidation

Controlling (CO)

• Cost center accounting
• Profit center accounting
• Product costing
• Profitability analysis
• Internal orders

Treasury

• Cash management
• Liquidity planning
• Risk management
• In-house banking

SAP Strengths

Comprehensive functionality: End-to-end business processes in one system

Scalability: Handles massive transaction volumes

Industry solutions: Pre-configured for specific industries

Global capabilities: Multi-currency, multi-language, multi-GAAP

Integration: Tight integration between modules

Ecosystem: Large partner and consultant network

SAP Challenges

Complexity: Steep learning curve, requires specialized skills

Cost: High licensing, implementation, and maintenance costs

Rigidity: Customizations can be difficult and expensive

Reporting limitations: Built-in reporting often insufficient for finance teams

Implementation risk: Large SAP projects frequently run over budget and time

Data extraction: Getting data out for analysis requires technical expertise

SAP Integration with Go Fig

Go Fig connects to SAP systems to enhance financial reporting:

What Go Fig extracts from SAP:

• General ledger balances and transactions
• Cost center and profit center data
• Accounts payable and receivable
• Asset records and depreciation
• Controlling data (CO-PA, product costs)
• Custom tables and reports

How it helps:

• Pull SAP data into Excel without ABAP skills
• Combine SAP data with other sources
• Build reports faster than SAP’s native tools
• Create dashboards without BW/Analytics Cloud
• Enable AI analysis of SAP financial data

SAP Reporting Alternatives

SAP offers several reporting options, each with trade-offs:

Option	Pros	Cons
Standard reports	Built-in, no cost	Limited customization
Report Painter/Writer	Flexible	Technical skills needed
Query/QuickViewer	End-user friendly	Limited capabilities
BW/BW4HANA	Powerful analytics	Expensive, complex
SAP Analytics Cloud	Modern, cloud-native	Additional licensing
Go Fig	Excel-friendly, fast	External tool

SAP Data Extraction Options

Native methods:

• Transaction exports (SE16, etc.)
• Standard reports to Excel
• BAPI/RFC function calls
• SAP HANA direct access
• SAP Data Services

With Go Fig:

• Pre-built SAP connectors
• No ABAP development required
• Scheduled extractions
• Delivered to Excel or dashboards