The advantages of SAP MDG Finance solution are extensive:  

• Centralization of financial master data, establishing a “single source of truth.” 

• Workflow functionality integrated within SAP MDG-F streamlines processes for creating and modifying master data, eliminating the need for additional ticketing systems. 

• Establishment of clear governance structures through standardized processes. 

• Implementation of factors like dual control principles and business rules enhances master data quality, crucial for compliance adherence. 

Standardized processes

In complex companies with several legal entities, numerous local master data processes can lead to significant discrepancies in data quality, balance sheet structures, and hierarchies across different regions. Nevertheless, maintaining close coordination with central accounting becomes indispensable, particularly during tasks like consolidating annual financial statements or using lean ledger approaches. 

A fundamental aspect of SAP MDG Finance is its capacity to standardize processes. For example, central accounting can be directly involved from the outset of G/L account creation. The following illustration shows an example of a workflow as it might look in practice. 

Clear governance structure 

The introduction of standardized workflows presents companies with an opportunity to define clear responsibilities and role profiles for each step of the process. For instance, ensuring the authority of a central controlling team over the numbering logic of cost centers can be achieved by mandating that the creation of any new cost center receives approval from the central controlling department.  

In this regard, it is often beneficial to consider establishing a centralized master data organization. While roles like data owners may not directly participate in workflows, they play a crucial role in establishing standards for various master data objects. These standards, in turn, are vital for end users who populate the individual master data fields within the workflows. Camelot has successfully promoted the establishment of central master data organizations in a large number of projects. Read more about Camelot’s data governance approach here. 

Master data quality 

Several factors contribute to increased master data quality.  

One of the most important aspects is the dual control principle. During the approval of a change request, at least one person must approve the change, depending on the process design. In this way, one or more control instances can be installed. 

Another aspect to consider is the implementation of business rules, which encompass various types. 

• Mandatory fields must be filled out by the applicant; otherwise, the change cannot be sent for approval.  

• Derivation rules: Based on the input in a given field (x), a value can be automatically derived for another field (y). For instance, a specific country can be derived from the company code and filled in automatically, streamlining the change request process and reducing time consumption. 

• Validation rules: The system is capable of conducting automatic validations, such as ensuring that a G/L account number consists of a specific number of characters. 

• Default values: Certain fields can be pre-filled at the start of the change request, such as the English language. 

• Restrictions: Instead of free text fields, it is often advisable to only provide the user with a list of values to choose from to ensure that a field is filled by default. 

• UI layout: Unused fields can be hidden or only displayed in a specific process step.