SAP S4 HANA MDG Overview Part 1

This post will expand on SAP MDG along with its key modules and use cases. We will also go over an end to end tutorial on SAP MDG central governance using an example. In order to get an understanding of how SAP MDG emerged in the market & exactly what SAP MDG does at a high level. Check out my other blog post:

https://techconsultinghub.com/2022/02/10/what-is-sap-mdg/

In this article we will explore the following topics related to SAP MDG training:

• SAP S4 HANA MDGs Core Modules
• SAP MDG Central Governance Module Overview
• SAP MDG New Customer Process Example in SAP MDG Central Governance
• SAP S4 MDG Central Governance Recap

SAP S4 HANA MDG’s Core Modules

SAP MDG has broken out into 3 key modules:

• Central Data Governance: This is the first & oldest module of SAP MDG. This module deals with the process of creating, updating, displaying & deleting (CRUD) core master data objects with a focus on single object processing & limited options of multi object processing. The process allows for a staging data concept where the exact data object can be created, reviewed and changed in a staging mode in which the operational system can not use the data. Once the master data request process is complete it is activated in the system. The central governance module is further broken down into the following core areas
  • MDG-C/S/BP: MDG for customer, MDG for Supplier & MDG for Business Partner
  • MDG-M: MDG for Material
  • MDG-F: MDG for Finance (G/L, Profit Center, Cost Center, etc.)
  • Solution Extensions from Utopia
    • MDG for RFM (Retail & Fashion Management)
    • MDG for EAM (Enterprise Asset Management)
  • FI Contract Account
• Consolidation & Mass Processing: This module emerged as a native Fiori application that deals with the consolidation of data from multiple sources as well as mass processing. This uses a different framework than central governance but allows integration with the central governance module
  • Domains Relevant
    • Customer
    • Vendor
    • Business Partner
    • Material
    • Article (Utopia Extension)
    • EAM (Utopia Extension)
• Data Quality Management: This is the latest module to arrive with capabilities related to managing data business rules. These rules can either run ad hoc to evaluate existing master data or be integrated into the creation/change process for master data to ensure new data objects follow the data quality rules. This module also allows for “rule mining” the concept of SAP using machine learning to propose data business rules.

SAP MDG Central Governance Module Overview

The central governance module for SAP MDG solves the following common challenges of master data management

• A staging area for data maintenance that has the same basic master data requirements as the active master data object. This allows for the whole process of creating or changing master data to be processed without affecting any of the data being used in the transactional system until it has full approval
• Workflow process that allows approvals/additional data inputs/reviews moving across the relevant roles/users
• Enhanced data rules that allow advanced if then statements for master data validations & derivations
• Automatic replication process on activation of data from staging area to active area
• Integration capability with outside master data enrichment/validations such as Dun & Bradstreet/Vertex/Address Services (Google/SAP Microservices)
• Analytics & reporting available on the workflow process timing
• Flexible UI that can be adjusted based on step of the workflow
• Automatic duplicate check requirements & audit trail of change
• Utilization as a hub model or co-deployed, meaning either a dedicated SAP environment only for master data or MDG can use its staging tables to sit directly on top of an operational SAP ERP

Let’s walk through a quick example of the need to set up a new customer and the typical steps involved

SAP MDG New Customer Process Example in SAP MDG Central Governance

Let’s start with an overview of the process using a simple tutorial & afterwards dive into the specifics of each step. As a note until the final step of the process the data is in what’s called a staging area, meaning it is an exact replica of how the data will look when it is activated but it is not in the transactional system. For example, you would not see the customer available for a sales order during the creation process until it is fully activated

Step 1: Business Requests a New Customer in SAP MDG

Congratulations your business has a new customer that needs to be added to your SAP system. The first step is that a user will log in to SAP MDG, search to see if the customer already exists & after confirming the customer does not exist navigate to the new customer creation page and fill in the required information such as name/address etc. The required fields for this initial step are decided during more detailed design of the SAP MDG workflow process. Typically the minimum information required is the name, address, type of customer (account group) & which sales area and company code are relevant for the customer. Additionally, SAP MDG has what are called change request fields that can be populated

1. The Description of the change request (in this case creation of a new customer)
2. Priority of the request
3. Due date for the request
4. Drop down of typical request reasons

After completing all this information you can check your request & then either save for later or submit. Once the request is submitted the requester can no longer make changes to the request, it has moved to the next step of the workflow

Step 2: Customer Master Expert in Sales Reviews/Adds Sales Data to Request

The workflow will automatically determine the next role in the process (the technical backend of this process is a topic for a future blog post). In this example the sales data reviewer role will see a change request pending in their inbox

The sales data reviewer role would click on one of the change requests that are pending which would open up a screen for the sales data reviewer to review the request. In this screen the user has the option of finalizing their processing or sending back to the requester for revision. Typically this user would input additional information in the sales area of the customer & additional partner function details required.

After adding reviewing & adding the additional relevant sales data the workflow moves along to the finance team

Step 3: Finance Customer Master Expert Reviews & Adds Financial Data to Request

The workflow automatically determines the relevant finance customer master data expert and their is a change request in their inbox. As a refresher from the previous step, I have provided a screenshot of the inbox screen

After selecting the relevant change request the request will open and allow the finance role to review the change requests data provided by the first two roles & add additional financial related data. Typically this is the company code related information. Additionally, they can review the overall general data and banking data from a finance perspective. Similar to the previous role, there are the options of finalizing the processing or sending back to the requester for revision

In this workflow let’s assume the finance role added the relevant information (the UI can be customized per step to only allow certain data to be edited) and continues with finalizing processing. This brings us to the final step in the workflow.

Step 4: Master Data Reviews the Overall Request in Read Only Format

The final step in this example workflow process is that a master data user will review the overall record for completeness & adherence to master data standards. They will ensure any applicable attachments that are required for new customer creation are included. They will also ensure there are no duplicates before finalizing the processing and ensuring the customer is activated in the underlying SAP S4 system and syndicated to relevant systems. In this final step, it starts the same as the other reviewers by reviewing their change request inbox. For example below

Afterwards they click on the change request and are able to review the request (typically in read only mode) & they have two actions available. Approve, which would activate and syndicate the new customer or reject and send the request back to the requestor with feedback.

After clicking on approve, the customer will go from being in an inactive staging area within the SAP MDG application to being able to be used in transactions such as a sales order.

SAP S4 MDG Central Governance Recap

As a recap of our example, there is the ability in SAP MDG central governance to create a request for a new customer using the same backend data requirements as if creating the customer directly in the system but instead is entered into a staging area. The staging area allows the customer to move throughout a workflow with different users adding to the same data record. While the customer is in the staging area downstream processes such as sales order creation can not find this customer. However, within SAP MDG if you are searching or within the duplicate check staging area customers are checked as well as active customers. During this workflow process there is the possibility to adjust the UI that each step in the workflow sees. For example, if you wanted only the sales related data editable for the sales reviewer that can be controlled in configuration. Additionally, business rules can generate additional data validations and derivations using a rules engine with if then statements to have the cleanest possible data with the least manual intervention. There are options in the workflow for approving or rejecting and providing a rejection reason along with comments as to why a request was rejected. Lastly there is native reporting in fiori to review the length of time for a customer to go from initial submission to final approval.

Hope this helped you grasp the central governance workflow process, check out the upcoming blogs to learn about consolidation & mass processing & data quality management modules. To always be in the loop on the latest articles, and further your SAP MDG training subscribe below!