Analyst Principal-Functional, SAP BPC & Group Reporting

SUMMARY

The IS Business Planning and Consolidation (BPC) Functional Principal Analyst role is to support the operations of the organization’s SAP BPC system and to work with key business users and process owners in the Accounting/Controlling & the Finance organizations.  Specific responsibilities include the BPC system administration, support BPC Consolidations, BPC Reporting, BlackLine Account Reconciliation system administration and related financial reporting applications.  This support consists of the requirement analysis, design, configuration, training, and maintenance of the company’s investments in proprietary BPC, SAP Group Reporting in SAP S/4HANA and BlackLine technologies.

The IS BPC Functional Principal Analyst is responsible for providing functional subject matter expertise in designing, architecting and implementing the SAP BPC and S/4HANA Group Reporting modules for the following key business processes:

• Legal and Management Financial Reporting - Defining and implementing the Reporting Organization Structure and other key dimensions to meet statutory and management reporting such as legal entity reporting, segment reporting, business unit reporting, product line reporting, etc.
• Financial Planning & Analysis and underlying business processes such as Plan P&L using Sales & Operation Plan, detailed GL based Operating Forecast, Rolling Forecast and Annual Operating Budget, Flux Analysis and Capex Plan.
• Data Collection and integration with source multiple ERP systems, SAP and Non-SAP systems, as sources to upload the financial data in the financial reporting system.
• M&A Integration projects to onboard and integrate the acquired entities into the corporate financial reporting system.
• Extensive experience in designing, implementing and supporting the legal consolidations, segment consolidations for the multi-currency and complex ownership structures such as:  Non-Controlling Interest; Consolidation of Investments; Inter-company Eliminations; Minimum Liability Partnerships; Equity Investment Entities; etc.
• Understanding and hands on experience in implementing core components of SAP Financials module (FI-GL, FI-AR, FI-AP, FI-AA), including SAP FICO Organization Structure, Special Purpose Ledger, Profit Center and Segment Reporting, General Ledger Accounting and Month End Closing Activities in SAP such as Intercompany Reconciliations, Month End Cost Allocations, Profit Center Balancing, etc.
• Understanding and hands on experience of implementing SOX controls related to the Consolidation and Financial reporting system.
• Hands on experience in implementing and supporting Balance Sheet Account Reconciliation tools such as BlackLine, Floqast, etc. and the extraction of financial data from multiple ERP systems into the relevant Account Reconciliation tools.
• Hands on implementation experience with SAP BPC, SAP S/4HANA Group Reporting such as Data Modeling, Organization Structure, Business Rules, Script Logics and Custom Enhancements to meet the different reporting requirements for statutory and management reporting.
• Extensive experience in designing and implementing the extraction of financial data from the source ERP systems using SAP ETL tool - SAP BW, SAP BODS and SAP HANA SDT, etc.
• Extensive experience in creating ad hoc and template-based reports in SAP EPM / SAP BO Analysis for office reporting tool.

The IS BPC Functional Principal Analyst is also responsible for working with key business users and process owners in the Accounting & Finance, Financial Reporting and Financial Planning & Analysis organizations:

• To articulate leading practices and to identify opportunities to enhance and improve current processes
• To define project scope and project deliverables
• To manage and deliver projects
• To train and support users
• To apply proven communication and problem-solving skills to guide and assist users on issues related to the design, development, and support of mission-critical business applications

IS BPC Functional Principal Analyst will apply proven leadership skills to work colleagues in the IS FICO & BPC teams; IS SAP Functional SD/LE & MM teams; IS SAP Technical team; and the IT SAP Basis team.  This individual will also need to demonstrate leadership skills while working with contractors and third-party vendors to complete projects and to provide support.

The IS BPC Functional Principal Analyst will also be responsible for day-to-day procedures related to the identification, prioritization, coordination, monitoring, tracking, and resolution of SAP FICO, BPC system and associated Business Software Applications ServiceNow incidents and requests.  This individual will be considered as system administrator for SAP BPC, SAP S/4HANA Group Reporting, and BlackLine systems; and contribute to problem resolution by providing hands-on support and recommending systems modifications to reduce user problems. 

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

May include, but are not limited to, the following:

Application Support Responsibilities

• Establish and maintain communications with business sponsors and business owners to ensure user satisfaction is maintained.
• Manage and resolve support incidents and requests in compliance with annual Application support goals and service levels for area of responsibility in conjunction with the Business Unit and IS Management.
• Oversee operations and maintenance of SAP FICO, SAP BPC, BlackLine and other enterprise financial reporting systems for area of responsibility and work closely with the IS SAP Technical team, responsible for ABAP Development and other non-SAP application development, to ensure secure and reliable operations as well as Application Architecture consistency and integrity.
• Provide functional support and troubleshooting of system configuration for area of responsibility (and other SAP modules as appropriate).
• Monitor operation of critical Process and Applications.
• Review, approve and test software updates.
• Conduct research and make recommendations on Business Application products, services, and best practices for support services.
• Understand and follow Standard System Life Cycle Methods, Quality Assurance Testing and Sarbanes Oxley (SOX) Program Change Controls.  Coordinate and maintain change control and testing processes for modifications to the SAP Application (and other relevant Applications) environment.
• Ensure training materials and user skills are current and coordinate necessary user training.
• Coordinate response to and resolution of SAP FICO, SAP BPC, SAP S/4HANA Group Reporting, BlackLine and relevant Applications incidents and performance issues for area of responsibility. Handle level 3 system support calls that cannot be resolved by the help desk team.
• Any additional responsibilities or tasks as assigned.

Application Development and Project Management Responsibilities (for IS Projects as assigned)

• Provide Project Management skills for related service requests for enhancements or projects.
• Lead assigned projects, monitor progress of deliverables, co-manage key project risks and issues, and monitor performance of implementation partners as appropriate.
• Lead and/or facilitate design sessions to review and/or configure new systems and features.
• Recommend best practices, improvements and solutions which would improve business efficiency, quality and/or processes while maximizing SAP BPC, SAP S/4HANA Group Reporting and BlackLine (or other Applications) functionality.
• Create/review and QA functional designs and specifications for configurations, extensions, security, reports, data conversions, outputs and interfaces.
• Transfer relevant applications knowledge and capabilities to the Business Unit organizations including the planning, organization, development, preparation, and delivery of documentation and individual or classroom training sessions.
• Provide services to ensure SAP FICO, SAP BPC, SAP S/4HANA Group Reporting and BlackLine implementation/customization activities are integrated with other SAP modules and other relevant Applications.
• Test and assist in the development and execution of the functional and acceptance test plans to ensure proper operation and freedom from defects.
• Assess the strategic fit of the initial design in terms of future projects or upgrades.
• Work independently, and/or as a member of a team, and/or as team lead when taking projects from original concept through final implementation.
• Define project scope and objectives.
• Develop detailed work plans, schedules, project estimates, resource plans, and status reports.
• Ensure project records are complete, accurate, and up-to-date.
• Conduct project meetings and provide project tracking and analysis.
• Ensure adherence to quality standards and review project deliverables.
• Manage the integration tasks while also tracking and reviewing project deliverables.
• Manage the schedule, scope, and delivery of new enhancements and projects that are requested for assigned processes.
• For new and enhanced process/systems requests: (1) meet with business unit to identify business requirements; (2) prepare a Statement of Work (SOW) to include scope of work, timeline, resource requirements, and estimated costs; (3) identify Project Manager and resources; (4) assist with the management of project related key risks and issues; (5) monitor project to ensure on-time and on-budget project completion within scope and customer expectations.  
• Monitor performance of implementation partners and contracted resources assigned to projects within assigned processes.
• Any additional responsibilities or tasks as assigned.

Process Improvement Responsibilities

• Establish and maintain communications with business sponsors and business owners to ensure business satisfaction that business goals, objectives and requirements are successfully realized.
• Recommend improvements and solutions which would improve business efficiency, quality and/or process while maximizing Financial Reporting and other Applications functionality.
• Assess the strategic fit for all proposed solutions in terms of future process requirements and system upgrades.
• Maintain the 3 - 5-year strategic plan for the assigned processes and application project portfolio.
• Provide services to ensure relevant SAP solution implementation/customization activities are integrated with other SAP modules.
• Any additional responsibilities or tasks as assigned.

Other

• Perform the primary thinking encompassed by this job description.
• Comply with all Company policies and procedures.
• Fully supports Company goals of continuous improvement and operational excellence at strategic and tactical levels including reviewing area of responsibility for improvement opportunities to initiate projects or communicate ideas to management as well as active participation on project teams.
• Any additional responsibilities or tasks as assigned.

EDUCATION, EXPERIENCE AND QUALIFICATIONS

• College diploma or university degree in the field of accounting and 8 - 10 years equivalent work experience. (CPA preferred)
• Possess 10+ years of SAP Application development experience.
• Possess 8+ years of BPC and Consolidation experience.
• Hands-on experience with SAP version ECC 6.0, S/4HANA.
• Hands-on experience with BPC/EPM Netweaver is must  Bachelor’s Degree or Certification (CPA, CA etc.) in the field of accounting and/or 10 years equivalent work experience required.
• Possess 8+ years of SAP BPC application configuration experience required.
• Hands-on experience with SAP BPC 10/10.1 NW version and BPC EPM reporting tool is required.
• Strong knowledge of accounting concepts, Consolidation function, Forecasting and Budgeting process. 
• SAP functional expertise in SAP BPC administration activities - BPC Modeling, Business Rules, Script Logics, BPC Security, Controls and BPF configuration.
• SAP functional expertise in SAP BPC EPM tool - Transformation files, Conversion files, Data Manager Packages, EPM functions, Creating Reports and Input templates.
• SAP functional competencies in SAP FICO - GL, AA, PS, AR and AP modules.
• Understanding of the SAP FICO coding block, key organization structure and other relevant fields used for the financial reporting.
• Additional skills in SAP general ledger (including new GL) and month end close activities
• Experience implementing SAP S/4HANA Group reporting is preferred.
• Possess basic knowledge of SAP development tools, interfaces methods and protocols.
• Understanding of SAP configuration methods, tools and techniques. Knowledge of Project Management Methodologies-ASAP and Agile methodologies.
• Ability to use business process analysis methods, flowcharting and documenting techniques.
• Good understanding of the organization’s goals and objectives.
• Knowledge of applicable data privacy practices and laws.
• Good written and oral communication skills.
• Strong functional and technical documentation skills.
• Good interpersonal skills.
• Ability to conduct research into IS operational issues, standards and products as required.
• Keen attention to detail.
• Proven analytical and problem solving abilities.
• Ability to effectively prioritize and execute tasks in a high-pressure environment.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is frequently required to sit; stand; walk; use hands to touch, handle, or feel; reach with hands and arms; and talk or hear.  The employee is occasionally required to stoop, kneel, or crouch.  The employee must regularly lift and/or move up to 10 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and ability to adjust focus.

WORK ENVIRONMENT

The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate as normally based in an office.  Some of the work may be required in the operating units which can require usage of required PPE including safety glasses, hearing protection, etc.  May also result in exposure to outside elements and may require usage of stairs and elevators. Travel including air travel or auto travel may occasionally be required.