SAP Specialist: Process & System SME: Finance & Controlling, Systems and Project Accountant, Financial Business Analyst - Technology

Purpose:

• The SME is responsible for providing expertise in the end-to-end finance and controlling processes within the SAP system.
• The role will involve collaborating with cross-functional teams, including finance, accounting, IT, and other stakeholders, to optimize and streamline financial processes and reporting within SAP.

Nature and Scope of Work:

• Extensive experience working with SAP ECC, specifically in the areas of  finance and controlling.
• Experience in training end-users on SAP functionalities related to finance and controlling and providing post-implementation support.
• Strong knowledge of SAP modules such as Financial Accounting (FI) and Controlling (CO).
• In-depth understanding of end-to-end finance and controlling processes, including general ledger accounting, cost accounting, and profitability analysis.
• Detail-oriented with a focus on data accuracy, system integrity, and adherence to compliance and regulatory requirements.
• Serve as the primary point of contact and subject matter expert for all aspects of the finance and controlling processes within SAP.
• Provide guidance and support in the design, configuration, implementation, and optimization of SAP modules related to finance and controlling, such as Financial
• Accounting (FI) and Controlling (CO).
• Analyse business requirements, identify process improvement opportunities, and recommend solutions to enhance financial processes, reporting, and analysis.
• Collaborate with key stakeholders to gather requirements, develop functional
• specifications, and oversee the execution of system enhancements and customizations.
• Conduct system testing, coordinate user acceptance testing (UAT), and ensure
• successful implementation and rollout of finance and controlling initiatives.
• Provide input to training materials and share scenarios during training sessions to educate end-users on SAP functionalities related to finance and controlling.
•  Support end-users by troubleshooting and resolving system issues, including error analysis, root cause identification, and resolution.
• Monitor and analyse key performance indicators (KPIs) related to finance and
• controlling, identify trends, and propose strategies for improvement.
• Stay up-to-date with SAP module advancements, industry best practices, and
• regulatory requirements to provide expert guidance and recommendations.
• Serve as the primary point of contact and subject matter expert for all aspects of the finance and controlling processes within SAP.

AECI Mining - System and Project Accountant
2016/10 – 2024/02

• Ensure the financial information needs of the organisation are analysed on a frequent basis and financial systems are implemented to meet those needs
• Ensure system problems are defined, analysed and resolved
• Leverage and package information through the finance system in the organisation to better the company through the design and implementing processes and governance to support data quality (outside of FSSC)

Nature and Scope of work:

System integration across all platforms

• Ensure all processes related to systems are documented, stored and communicated to the relevant stakeholders
• Ensure all processes are standardised and roll-out systems processes
• Integration and management of ancillary systems (document management system, statement matching.com)
• Ensure all systems are functioning and utilised in the appropriate manner
• Ensure the correct functioning, of SAP BPC
• Partner with IT and business to design and test standards and solutions
• Ensure effective functioning of SAP System
• Ensure strong governance with automated limits of authorities and restriction

Business Warehouse (SAP) and EPM system management and enhancements

• Creation and documentation of processes to ensure single source master data
• Setting, Monitor and ensuring compliance with master-data framework
• Management of new BW and EPM projects
• Assist with the maintenance and management of the BW and EPM system
•  Specify requirements and provide quality control for report development and new requirements from business

• Ensure reports are developed in line with Group Finance Strategy
• Assist new users and existing users with new BW and EPM processes
• Co-ordinate service providers to achieve required objectives and deadlines
• Documentation of all existing and future system processes

Project initiation, implementation, evaluation & close-out

• Perform business case, project scoping, planning of project tasks, goals and implementation of any finance and non-finance systems project
• Determine resource requirements and understand who are the key stakeholders needed to achieve project goals
• Manage project stakeholders, risks, issues, finance, communication, quality and scope of projects
• Define project success criteria and communicate with stakeholders throughout the project lifecycle
• Manage stakeholder expectations throughout the project
• Oversee project evaluations and assessments of results
• Lead project closure procedures
• Support continual business improvement and change management

Develop and maintain master data strategy, governance and control

• Develop and implement master data strategy and framework, with key focus on products (outside of FSSC).
• Design and maintain MDM (Master Data Management) governance structure, policies and processes
• Provide support and advice to the business in the compilation of SAP master data forms
• Develop, maintain and implement controls over MDM
• Review with AECI Group IT – User Access profiles and resolve conflicts
• Assist with SAP ECC6, BW and EPM user profiles for AEL and Detnet South Africa

Master data management

• Execute all regular transaction processes necessary to maintain operations records and databases
• Assist in implementation, testing, and validating of data in software systems
• Audit data on a regular basis to ensure data integrity and quality, including cleaning, transforming and validating.
• Train business as necessary on data operational activities
• Escalate data issues needing process re-engineering
• Assist in preparation of data reports, training materials, business presentations, publications, marketing collaterals, and other educational materials
• Manage timeous and accurate review, approval and maintenance of master tables (e.g. product master data tables, BOM’s, routings, work center, etc) across AEL
• Develop and advise on master data fields to enhance business analytics and measure strategic measures across the organisation
• Serve as technical expert on assigned area’s applications, including code, interfaces and data flows

Training on new system developments or changes

• Co-ordinate all training activities for changes or new additions to finance systems
• Develop, manage and continuously review the training process in conjunction with the Training Manger
• Ensure all enhancements or changes the System and Project Accountant are working on are communicated and trained
• Ensure all users are trained on systems

Business Controls and Governance

• Implement corporate governance procedures, risk management and internal controls
• Keep abreast on legal and regulatory issues relating to financial and management accounting matters and ensure compliance
• Prepare, coordinate and assist with external / internal audit information requirements and address audit queries related to the systems
• Ensure all internal audit findings are closed out in a timeous manner
• Ensure system changes are performed in accordance with IT change control procedures
• Comply with Safety, Health and Environment standards

SAP B1 management & enhancements

• Management of B1 enhancements
• Assist with maintenance, and system upgrades
• Standardisation of processes used across all B1 systems
• Ensure the system conforms with FSSC requirements
• Co-ordinate with FSSC to identify weaknesses in B1 and implement new / enhanced controls
• Co-ordinate B1 service providers and ensure projects are completed according to agreed timelines
• Scoping of new B1 projects with FSSC and outsource providers

Financial Business Analyst - Technology
2015/05 – 2016/10

Purpose

• Provide a comprehensive management accounting service to the Entity/Unit/Cluster and support the Financial Controller.
• Assist the Unit Head in tracking financial performance and enabling informed decision-making.
• Coordinate and enhance Unit-level accounting policies, budgeting, forecasting, and strategic planning processes.

Dimensions

• Contributed to financial oversight of:

  • Sales revenue budget: R8.1 billion

  • Technology fixed cost budget: R111.3 million

  • Technology capital budget: R20 million

• Supported operations across:

  • 4 sections and 30 cost centers

  • A workforce of 120 employees within the Technology division

Principal Accountabilities

• Ensure compliance with Capex policy, monitoring returns, cash flows, and spending vs. plan
• Strengthen business analysis capabilities and enhance financial decision-making
• Design and implement automation for non-standard financial and management reporting
• Monitor and analyze monthly, quarterly, and annual financial projections and trends
• Support budgeting and strategic planning through SAP BPC, SAP EPM, and SAP BW
• Respond to on-demand financial requests (e.g., revenue analysis, business cases, financial splits)
• Support Financial Shared Services Center in booking daily corporate transactions
• Advise on corrections and process improvements to Shared Services Center operations
• Reconcile and report on headcount movements; provide corrections to Shared Services
• Stay current on accounting standards and coordinate technical updates with Group Reporting
• Monitor and manage system/process changes affecting financial disclosures
• Oversee Accounts Receivable processes; validate credit applications and limits against reports and sales forecasts
• Ensure full compliance with corporate governance, compliance policies, and financial controls
• Adhere to Safety, Health, and Environmental (SHE) standards and procedures
• Support and refine procurement processes; provide guidance and implement process corrections
• Develop and recommend cost allocation rules to support effective business cost assessments

Operations Cost & Management Accountant
2009/03 – 2015/04

Purpose

• Deliver a comprehensive cost and management accounting service to the AEL business.
• Support the Operations and Projects Accounting Manager with financial insights and related services.
• Manage the company’s costing system and ensure master data integrity and relevance in reporting.

Dimensions

• Financial oversight includes:

  • Sales revenue budget: R3.8 billion

  • Fixed cost budget: R1.0 billion

  • Capital budget: R200 million

• Operational coverage includes:

  • 20 production plants across 3 sections

  • 30 cost centers

  • Workforce: 1,400 employees

  • Over 1,500 active Bills of Material

Principal Accountabilities

• Manage the full absorption costing and Theory of Constraints (TOC) reporting systems
• Develop, maintain, and monitor the costing system to ensure accurate product costing and data integrity
• Ensure master data accuracy in SAP related to product costing, bills of materials, and routings
• Build models to analyze operational volumes vs. targets and budgets, and report on cost impacts
• Analyze capacity utilization across operations to identify efficiency and cost implications
• Monitor and report on fixed costs vs. targets and budgets, with variance analysis on product cost impact
• Actively contribute to identifying cost-saving opportunities across the business
• Use the costing system to provide visibility into product and business area profitability
• Develop product pricing models based on updated and accurate cost data
• Support strategic and commercial decision-making as part of the Operations Finance team
• Assist with forward financial projections, latest view reporting, and business case preparation
• Adhere to Safety, Health, and Environmental (SHE) policies and company accounting standards

Nature and Scope of Work

• Responsible for the full product costing and management accounting function across the company
• Perform periodic generation of product cost standards and actuals, and report on results
• Analyze, interpret, and comment on cost results and their business impact
• Serve as a core member of business planning and profitability analysis
• Act as a subject matter expert in costing with hands-on experience in SAP, BW, and Excel, contributing to systems development and reporting enhancement

Purpose

• Report and review of stock and production related transactions
• Produce, validates and maintain product costing
• Provide accurate product costs, material and overhead rates
• Adherence, compliance, control and implementation of financial and internal controls and procedures

Dimensions

• Impacts upon a OPEX budget of R87 million, a material cost budget of R208 million, a capital budget of R12 million, affecting 9 production lines across 2 sections, 34 cost centers, current workforce of 210 people. The number of active bills of material is in excess of 11000. Total annual sales are R303 million & trading profit R11 million.

Nature And Scope of Work

• Responsible for product costing for new and existing products
• Generation and maintenance of bills of materials
• Generation and maintenance of routers
• Calculation and update of material cost 
• Determination of overhead absorption rates
• Derivation of scrap and wastage factors for inclusion in product costs
• Design and maintenance of costing and raw material pricing models

Responsible for stock control

• Provide controls to ensure accuracy of stock management system
• Stock Control cost/revaluation/coding
• Design and implement relevant systems to monitor and report all deviations

Responsible for variance analysis

• Analysis and interpretation of material price and usage variances and overhead recoveries
• Reporting production variances to the relevant managers regularly
• Purchase price variance review and analysis
• Implementation of systems to allow for reporting of production and variances

Responsible for month end activities

• Monthly reconciliation of various ledger accounts
• Stock recons and costing 
• Finished goods, slit and coil obsolescence/age provisions
• Revaluation calculation and release
• Volume rebate provision calculation
• Transport in stock calculation for branches
• Stock count surplus if there is anything to be suspended for investigation
• Overhead in stock movement release
• Transferring steel PPVs to income statement if necessary
• Assisting with the generation of monthly board pack schedules
• Assist with the OPEX and raw material budget and forecasting
• Assist with Budget and Strategic Plan requirements 
• Assistance in the forecasting process
• Review of overhead recoveries and rates

IT

• Design and implement reports to provide relevant information to allow for control, reporting and decision making
• Costing system enhancement and automation

General

• Administration back-up and support as required by Commercial Director
• Assist with the half year and year end reporting

Purpose

• Act as a business partner to ensure the optimisation of the financial performance of the operations function.
• Ensures an accurate, timely operations budget process and accurate, timely operations reporting with analysis.
• Designs and monitor the operations scorecards including specific KPIs
• Provides and validates operations information on product costing.

Dimensions

• Full responsibility for the industrial control team & production day store staff (Total of 3 direct reports and total staff complement of 20).Reports on a fixed cost budget of R131 million, a variable cost budget of R480 million, a capital budget of R58 million, affecting 14 production lines across 5 sections, 53 cost centers, current workforce of 400 people in manufacturing. The number of active bills of material is in excess of 100. Total annual sales are R1105 million & trading profit R52 million.

Nature and scope of work

• Responsible for budgeting (including budgets and official estimates)
• Co-ordinates the whole cost of sales and industrial fixed cost budgeting process 
• Ensures availability and accuracy of the budgeting tools
• Assist in preparation of budget presentations re cost of sales and industrial fixed cost
• Communication of final budget data to industrial team and loading of budget information in IT system

Responsible for Cost of sales

• Overall monitoring of the process, including month end procedures
• Timely and accurate supply of cost of sales figures
• Standard costing provide standard information
• Maintenance of master files which impact on cost of sales
• Responsible for monthly reporting
• Maintenance of master files which impact on cost of sales
• Timely and accurate reporting of data to Danone Group
• Variance analysis of all KPIs with detailed explanations
• Responsible for special reporting
• Provides and validates KPIs used for performance bonuses
• Provides and validates KPIs used for special reporting: losses, productivity as designed by management
• Responsible for action plans and optimisation of financial performance
• Translate strategic plan into specific budget and action plans
• Realise the adequate financial analysis to steer the action plans
• Monitor the process and progress of the action plans
• Challenge the functional managers through benchmarking and ad-hoc financial analysis

Responsible for internal controls

• Maintenance and custody of all finance procedures related to operations
• Implementation of internal control actions as defined in the internal control plan
• Monitor internal controls enforcement through checks and audits
• Manages the industrial control team & production day store staff
• PDR process for team members
• Follow up on development actions
• Manages the production day store function
• Ensure proper control of all raw materials issued to production and returns to main store

IT

• Monitor the performances of the IT tools linked with the operations
• Make recommendations to improve IT performances and integration related to

operations

• On request provide cost information for product development

Purpose

• To provide strong functional support for the relevant plant areas in explosives manufacturing.
• To develop more comprehensive management information for the explosives manufacturing team through the plant accountants activities by establishing consistency across plant areas.
• Co-responsible with operations accounting manager for the governance of explosives manufacturing plants and ensure company standards, accounting policies and ethics are met.
• Provide accounting services to manufacturing leadership team members.
• Train manufacturing leadership team members and staff and plant accountants in effective cost management by fully utilizing SAPR3.
• To provide financial services to the product managers and the manufacturing leadership team.
• To co-ordinate and manage the operating expense program and capital program for explosives manufacturing including budget process and latest views as and when required.
• To assist the operations accounting manager and to play a role in helping to mend the manufacturing leadership team and the operations teams into an effective cross-functional team from an accounting point of view.

Dimensions

• Functional responsibility for plant accounting staff. Reports on a fixed cost budget of R214 million, a variable cost budget of R372 million, a capital budget of R30 million, affecting 17 production plants across 3 sections, 32 cost centers, current workforce of 1453 people in manufacturing. The number of active bills of material is in excess of 2000. Total annual sales are R2210 million & trading profit R280 million.

Nature and scope of work

• Leading the activities of the plant accounting team in AEL.
• Providing direction to their work, transferring skills and knowledge on value adding in an MRP 11 manufacturing environment, and help developing the plant accounting staff.
• With the support of plant accountants review and analyze actual business performance 
• bringing significant aspects to the attention of the operations accounting manager, plant
• management, manufacturing leadership team and operations director explaining possible causes of performance and recommending corrective action.
• Provide summarized financial reporting for the manufacturing leadership team and the 
• operations accounting manager.
• Identify and investigate accounting problems, solutions proposed, if accepted, implemented and evaluated.
• Responsible for any ad-hoc assignments assigned to/by the manufacturing leadership team and the operations accounting manager.
• Review, maintain & ensure completion of report card measures for manufacturing including gain share calculations.
• Annual budgets and latest view processes facilitate and co-ordinate.
• Ensuring that daily, monthly, quarterly and annual accounting requirements including but not limited to the following are performed by the plant accounting team in AEL:
• Variance analysis to budget/latest views monitored verified and completed.
• Processing of weekly and month-end production settlement and follow up of significant variances.
• Ensuring that weekly and monthly cycle counts are performed for all inventory items held in all storage locations and follow up of significant variances.
• Verification of accuracy and validity of supplier invoices cost allocations and appropriate authorization.
• Ensuring that Bill of materials and routings are reviewed as and when required as per budget requirements.
• Ensuring that all accounting transactions including provisions are processed on a weekly/ monthly and quarterly basis. 

Previous Roles:

Plant Accountant
August 1996 to August 2002
Detonator Factory (AEL)

To provide Detonator Department with a management accounting service, by supplying accounting information in an innovative and creative manner to enable them to achieve:

• The departmental business goals
• Effective cost management
• Effective decision making
• My responsibilities were as follows:
• Management accounting services supplied:
• Management accounting information interpreted and supplied timorously. Correlates inputs from plant management and translates it into departmental cost forecasts. Managers and plant supervision trained in the interpretation of accounting information on SAP R3.Financial and cost advice given to plant and departmental management. Ensure that both fixed and raw material costs are accurately allocated. Variances are identified, investigated and reconciled. Assist in are accurately allocated. Variances are identified, investigated and reconciled. Assist in maintaining departmental products bill of materials. Maintain SAP HR3 salaries and wage allocation. Controlling the departmental capital budget. Ensure month end activities are completed timorously.
• Annual budget prepared:
• Plan and organise budgeting process within Department. Correlate individual budgets to compile departmental budget. Ensure accuracy of budget calculations. Monitor Bill of Materials to ensure correct allocation of variable cost to products. Ascertain the budgeted cost per product.
• Ensure all external inputs necessary for accurate budget is received.
• Ad-hoc accounting investigations carried out:
• Identify and investigate accounting problems. Solutions proposed, if accepted, implemented and
• evaluated. Assist Business and Plant Managers in product profitability analysis. Ensure stock
• cycle counts are carried out on an ongoing basis. Investigate stock adjustments due to cycle counts.
• Accountant for Shocktube Industries. Responsible for all accounting procedures up to balance sheet. (Brilliant Accounting)

Accounts Officer
February 1994 to July 1996
Detonator Factory(AEL)

To assist Plan Accountant in providing an effective accounting service to Detonators Management by processing the daily accounting information to enable him to:

• Do the necessary inputs in the company system
• Provide accurate accounting information
• My responsibilities were as follows:
• Accumulation and processing of daily accounting information.
• Month-end work.
• Assist in the preparation of the annual budget.
• Ad-hoc accounting investigations.
• Act for Detonators Accountant in his absence.
• Experience Gained
• Budgeting
• Variance explanations
• Investigate accounting problems and propose solutions
• Implementation of solutions
• Production process

Other Experience:

CBI – Elandsfontein Circuit Breaker Manufacturer - Perpetual Stock Taker (Temporary)
January 1994 – February 1994
Responsibilities:

• Checked stock accuracy in the main magazine
• Conducted inventory verifications and reconciliations

Joane’s Trading General Dealer -  Trainee Manager (Part-Time)
February 1993 – December 1993
Responsibilities:

• Assisted with wage processing and basic accounting
• Supported procurement and purchasing activities
• Participated in general shop management and daily operations