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Posted May 28, 2021

GyanSys Design Thinking: SAP S/4HANA Innovations in Finance - Universal Journal

Universal Journal in S/4HANA

SAP S/4HANA introduced the concept of Universal Journal, bringing heterogeneous ledgers represented in legacy SAP ERP systems into a unified orientation of a single source of truth. Reconciliation efforts differ depending on business context and reporting purposes. This may result in inherent mistrust due to a lack of Financial Reporting and multiple locations where data may reside.

Universal Journal allows for faster decision-making with a complete financial view of the business and helps accelerate end-close activities. It also allows organizations to optimize workflows, increasing throughput with an in-memory footprint, while reducing manual processes and reconciliation of multiple ledgers, including:

  • Reconciliation between Subledger – Fixed Assets and General Ledgers
  • Reconciliation between Profit Center vs General Ledger
  • Reconciliation Special Purpose Ledgers, PCA, and General Ledgers
  • Within Profitability Analysis – Reconciliation between Account-Based CO-A and Costing-Based CO-PA
The following diagram is a quick view of the landscape of ledgers and their evolution to the current S/4HANA offering of Universal Journal.

Universal Journal brings together a collection of heterogenous ledgers relevant to business data and transactions, unifying master data and application components into one single source of truth across Financial Accounting (General Ledger), Controlling Asset Accounting, and Material Ledger that was once separate from each other.

In comparison to the legacy ERP Chart of Accounts, GL Account Type unifies the data derivation at the General Ledger code block and posts to Universal Journal. As a result, S/4HANA eliminates data maintenance redundancy and inconsistencies in GL line-item level data derivation.

If you are considering a move to S/4HANA, Universal Journal, will not only bring together flexible reporting and multi-dimensional accounting across P&L and Cost Center/Material Groups but will also help your organization stay perpetually current with the latest innovations from SAP.

How to take advantage of Universal Journal?

GyanSys is a leader in providing Design Thinking strategies around the Chart of Accounts leveraging our proven accelerators and the adoption of SAP S/4HANA with minimal risk and business disruption. Connect with us for a no-cost assessment to get started! info@gyansys.com

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