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Many of you asked us in Product Engineering to share a recap blog on the features and tech of SAP Group Reporting Data Collection (GRDC), the SAP S/4HANA for group reporting's companion app. Here it is, we hope you'll find it useful. Please refer to the GRDC documentation for a complete description of all features and tech aspects.
In this blog you'll find the following information:
What is GRDC
When to use GRDC
GRDC technical architecture
When to use GRDC data mapping
When to use GRDC forms
GRDC product roadmap
What is GRDC --
GRDC is an app to help you collect financial data, non-financials and comments into SAP S/4HANA for group reporting - in the ACDOCU consolidation table. It provides two main features. With GRDC Data Mapping, you can automate the mapping, transformation and data load from SAP and non-SAP systems into ACDOCU. With GRDC Forms, you can enter data and comments manually in ACDOCU using pre-delivered forms, or by creating your own.
If you run SAP S/4HANA for group reporting in a standalone mode, you can collect all financial data, non-financials and comments from your subsidiaries with GRDC.
If you run SAP S/4HANA for group reporting in combination with SAP S/4HANA, GRDC helps you complement released data from ACDOCA, for example by collecting statistical information or splitting subitems. Also, GRDC helps you quickly collect data from companies you recently acquired and that are not yet integrated in your SAP S/4HANA system.
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GRDC technical architecture --
GRDC consists of a set of Fiori apps. These apps and the required services are hosted on SAP Business Cloud Platform (BTP). GRDC integrates with S/4HANA for group reporting – cloud or OP – via APIs. The usage of S/4HANA for group reporting is mandatory for GRDC, as all master data and financials figures are stored in S/4HANA. GRDC is a native cloud app, with a new release delivered every 2 weeks.
GRDC follows the “provider/subscriber” concept. The app is deployed and maintained by SAP in a “provider" subaccount. Through your subaccount, you "subscribe" to the app deployed on SAP’s provider account. The app is then customer managed. Check out for more:GRDC for SAP S/4HANA cloud and GRDC for SAP S/4HANA on premise.
-- When to use GRDC Data Mapping --
GRDC Data Mapping is a flexible ETL app including the ability to define mappings (source to target), run / schedule mapping jobs, and check results in traceability logs. Use it to:
Import data from remote systems from CSV source files
Import data from ECC
Import data from remote systems with Import API
Import ACDOCA data from remote systems
Import additional ACDOCA data for statistical information (e.g. aging information of AR/AP)
Copy missing consolidation units' reported data for non-material consolidation units
This use case is more automated as you don't need the intermediary CSV step. Implement Data Mapping's Import API in your remote system. Your remote system will push data to Data Mapping to map, transform, load data in ACDOCU. Check out for more:Import API.
Important note
In this use case, you need to implement / develop an application in your remote system. This application reads data from the data base, format it in CSV and push it through the Push API. Your remote system should allow the development of applications or extensions, as well as connectivity to GRDC data mapping (store login, password and connect to GRDC).
-- -- ACDOCA to ACDOCU in the same SAP S/4HANA system --
Use Data Mapping to transform and load ACDOCA into ACDOCU within the SAP S/4HANA system. For example, if you need to retrieve additional ACDOCA data for statistical information (e.g. aging information of AR/AP). Check out for more:Run a Mapping Job with an ACDOCA Table as Source.
-- -- ACDOCU to ACDOCU in the same SAP S/4HANA system --
Use Data Mapping to transform ACDOCU data within the SAP S/4HANA system. For example to copy missing consolidation units' reported data for non-material consolidation units, help run your step consolidations or supplement C/I control data. Check out for more:Create a Mapping with an ACDOCU Table as Source.
-- -- Check results in traceability logs --
-- When to use GRDC Forms --
GRDC Forms is the app where your consolidation units can manually enter financial data, non-financials and comments in SAP S/4HANA for group reporting. The app contains pre-delivered forms, and you can create your own. Use Forms to manually enter package / reported data, and complement ACDOCA released data (e.g. sustainability information, statistical information like aging information of AR/AP).
-- -- Pre-delivered business content --
You can use pre-delivered input schedules, such as Balance Sheet Accounts Detailed by Transaction Types (for example financial assets, fixed assets, current assets, non-current assets, financial liabilities, provisions or equity), Profit and Loss or inventory Profit (internal margin rate at seller, internal inventory detailed by partners at buyer).
-- -- Define your own forms --
Create and organize forms and folders in the "Manage Forms" tile. You can create new forms or copy predefined forms to the custom folder and use them as templates to create enhanced forms. You can choose the dimensions you want to display. Drag and drop dimensions to the filters, rows, and columns and choose the order in which the dimensions appear.
You can enter formulas in cells, and use these formulas to run calculations, calculate amounts instead of entering them manually, and customize titles.
You can also provide guidelines that explain how to use the form, including, for example, links and screenshots. These guidelines are displayed in the Enter Package Data app to provide guidance when entering data in the form.
-- -- Formulas and Conditional formatting --
Use functions when creating formulas in your forms. You can create formulas using functions in the formula section of the cell view. You can use these formulas to run calculations, calculate amounts instead of entering them manually, and customize titles. Leverage a large variety of formula syntaxes, such as Date and Time, Engineering, Information, Financial, Logical, Lookup and Reference, Math and Trigonometry, Matrix Functions, Operator, Statistical or Text. Formula results can be saved to the Consolidation Journal Entries (ACDOCU) table. Check out for more:Formula Syntaxes.
Use the Conditional formatting to change automatically the background or font color depending on the value in the cell. If you select Apply Background Color, the background is green if the value in the cell is zero, OK, true, or valid. The background color is orange if the value is a warning, otherwise it's red. Similarly, if you select Apply Font Color, the font color changes to green, orange, or red. Check out for more:Automatic Conditional Formatting.
-- -- Collect comments --
Collect text information using comments. Comments are directly associated to the data. They can be short, which is what the dialog’s size encourages – or up to 10.000 characters long, if required in certain cases. Check out for more:Enter Comments.
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-- Create form-specific master data (ad hoc items) --
By using ad hoc items, you can use SAP Group Reporting Data Collection (GRDC) to create form-specific master data during the design of a form, and split existing numbers into additional categories, collect new numbers that exceed the scope of the regular consolidation data model, create forms where non-financial and qualitative data need to be collected. Check out for more:Ad hoc items.
Stephane, Thanks for the detailed blog. Can we use GRDC to do Master data Load also? For e.g Flat file from external non sap system to S4 GR for Operational CoA to FS Item mapping load.
Thanks a lot for the overview of GRDC it's very helpful.
If possible can you please elaborate more on the GRDC Data mapping use case around Run step consolidation
Hi Rushabh, thanks for the kind feedback and suggestion. We plan to write a series of Blogs/How-to-Guides on different GRDC data mapping use cases. "How to leverage GRDC data mapping to run a step consolidation" is part of the list 😉 Would you like to get an update when the blog is published, you can follow our Group Reporting community https://community.sap.com/topics/s4hana-group-reporting
Kind regards,
Stephane
Great overview. Can we use GRDC for row level comments entry i.e., separate column for comment entry in the form or we can just do cell level comment entry?
It is planned that questions and answers always have dedicated in-line answer cells, so e. g. a separate row or - like you proposed - a separate column.
From step 2, they can refer to selected row and column values, pointing to one cell like the comments do.
If you are not focused on the visual representation (extra answer columns) only, but also on the data reference, then your idea goes one step further, either
Hi Stephane, Thanks for detailed explanation. We are currently working on GRDC data load and completed CSV to ACDOCU approach but we stuck with Import API to ACDOCU approach. Can you please help us with the below questions that we have? 1. Our source system is on-premise and standard Import API is not available, so can we use Import API approach?
2. If yes, can we configure/enable Import API in source(remote) system as Push API to push data to GRDC data mapping? or is Push API, a new one that we have to create?
Great Blog Stephane. I have a question. We are looking to source the data for GR from BW using GRDC. It seems clear that we could use the CSV to ACDOCU approach as we can output a CSV from BW. However we would like something more integrated using the Import API to ACDOCU approach.
Is there any additional information on how to use this approach to integrate BW with GRDC?
We are implementing GRDC, and we have successfully configured our destinations in BTP and Cloudconnnector.
Currently, we are extracting data from ECC to S4Hana using the GRDC application. However, when scheduling the job in the Run Data mapping app, we encounter an issue where the dropdown menu for selecting the target instance in the traceability log is empty. : please find screenshot for your reference
Also, we are unable to download the traceability log for selected items or for all items, and similarly, our import logs are empty as well. I have attached a screenshot for your reference.
Thanks in advance
Regards,
Rajeshwaran
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