New Solution Designed to Solve SAP Data Access Challenges

The new version of ACL Direct Link for SAP ERP and SAP CRM, an SAP-certified data extraction add-on for ACL Analytics (AN) and ACL Analytics Exchange (AX) helps professionals who are struggling to gain access to transactional SAP data necessary to test controls and ensure regulatory compliance under Sarbanes-Oxley and other financial requirements.

Apr. 17, 2014

Companies operating in an SAP environment now have a new tool designed to assist audit, risk, and compliance teams.

The new version of ACL Direct Link for SAP ERP and SAP CRM, an SAP-certified data extraction add-on for ACL Analytics (AN) and ACL Analytics Exchange (AX) helps professionals who are struggling to gain access to transactional SAP data necessary to test controls and ensure regulatory compliance under Sarbanes-Oxley and other financial requirements.

“This release has several enhanced, new features that will prove useful in our SAP environment and help us to be more efficient,” said George Gitson, Manager, Audit Analytics at The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company. “The SAP interface allows auditors and data analysts to tap into their complex enterprise systems with ease and deliver value-added insights more quickly.”

Designed for integration with ACL’s data analysis and audit and compliance management software, the new Audit and Financial Control turnkey solution includes analytic scripts that leverage Direct Link and data models tailored for SAP ERP. By combining this with consulting services, the burden on IT teams can be reduced through enabling direct self-service, SAP-certified data access to individuals within each department. In addition to empowering productivity via pre-packaged SAP expertise, users are able to:

Eliminate roadblocks typically associated with exporting data held within SAP systems
Expand the scope of audits for increased coverage and assurance
Uncover key information hidden in SAP data, reducing costs and increasing compliance
Generate faster results with less effort
Deliver credible governance, risk management, and compliance (GRC) by effectively leveraging analytics

According to ACL’s 2013 GRC Technology Pulse Survey of 2,200 audit, risk management, and compliance professionals, 66% of respondents are focused on internally-driven risk exposures for 2014, causing SAP ERP data to be considered a goldmine. Having the ability to easily access and analyze this information in order to identify trends, anomalies, and gaps in business processes helps reduce operational risks, minimize profit erosion, and mitigate fraud risk. However, many teams are unable to effectively extract insightful data due to a lack of expertise or powerful analytics program.

“There are countless barriers to effectively auditing SAP ERP data, such as delays with obtaining IT department assistance, difficulty in determining the most relevant data, and a lack of technology to analyze massive volumes of data,” said Keith Cerny, Vice President of Research & Development at ACL. “Our new offerings break down the walls for auditors, risk management, and compliance professionals, allowing them to directly access information that they previously would have had to obtain through IT.”