Business Benefits and Value Proposition of an EPM Center of Excellence

This guide defines a high-level, standardized approach to adopting Cloud EPM.

Every organization is unique, and each stakeholder has their own goals and mode of working. The best approach depends on the cloud maturity level and whether the organization is centralized or decentralized. For example, some companies come from an on-premise solution for EPM (like Hyperion) to their first Oracle Cloud EPM implementation. Others already have pockets of usage of Cloud EPM in the organization.

Here are some business benefits and value propositions for having an EPM CoE, categorized by the different stakeholders in the CoE.

Table 1-1 CoE Business Benefits

Stakeholder	Benefits and Value Proposition
Executives	EPM CoE is the tool to drive transformation, support change management, and ensure the highest return on the investment Cost savings, for example, for infrastructure Increased accountability and accuracy (no more debates about which numbers are right) Ability to spot trends in the market and the business Corporate reporting is now down to the push of a button Can identify leading and lagging indicators, seeing how a change in one area can impact another Can run more complex scenarios Can now analyze strategic and non-strategic business metrics Improved collaboration between Finance and operating functions such as sales, supply chain, and human resources, to ensure alignment of plans and planning assumptions
Financial Planning and Analysis group - KPIs are inter-related across business units and LOBs	Spend less time on low-value work, such as collecting data, and more time on partnering with the business units or lines of businesses Transforming the role of Finance from score keeper to influential business partner Everyone understands what KPIs are important to the organization and what KPIs they are responsible for Higher efficiency and accuracy of plans and forecasts Employees are freed up to add value after manual processes are automated Getting control of the process and making it more efficient; for example, looking at how different groups are reporting and improving the process
Controllers	Stronger governance and controls, especially when able to use Task Manager to centralize end-to-end consolidation and close activities, and to embed information in the navigations flow to help with onboarding new users Continuous innovation Best practice capabilities for improved process efficiency, such as better visualizations that can help identify anomalies faster Reduction in days to close per cycle Efficiency and standardization, such as helping to leverage narrative to clarify and standardize board-level reports Concentration of skills Automation of tasks related to the financial close process in order to reduce manual work and reduce errors, including tasks for consolidations, account reconciliation, process monitoring, and workflow Time savings The ability to provide better services to internal stakeholders Streamline the financial close process and enable more agility in supporting major initiatives such as mergers and acquisitions (M&A).
Operations	Increased sales and revenue forecast accuracy Ability to rapidly implement new offerings, evolve existing models, and determine priorities Standardization Better collaboration with Finance
Sales Executives	Increased forecast accuracy Evolve existing models and determine priorities Standardization
IT and Shared Services Center	Agility Managing costs Reducing silos The project allows you to constantly enhance older models. It's key to stay in touch with the development organization and on top of enhancements Leveraging the existing Shared Service centers to support the EPM CoE by continuing focus on productivity and expense management
Project Owner	Making processes more efficient, for example, by driving process reviews and identifying automation opportunities Standardization and consistency across business processes Cost savings, for example, for infrastructure, when multiple projects can alternate in using the testing or training environments Ensuring alignment to a connected EPM strategy

If you are working with an implementer, like Oracle Consulting Services or a certified EPM partner, they are also there to support you in your efforts to develop an EPM CoE and to get the most out of your investment in EPM. (Learn more about certification.)

For example, Oracle Consulting offers helpful resources.

Value Proposition and Additional Resources

For further benefits of implementing Oracle Cloud EPM, review the following stories by Oracle@Oracle and Oracle Playbook that highlight results:

• Oracle powers its business with Oracle Cloud
• The Oracle Playbook - Our Journey to the Cloud
• Releasing Earnings in 10 Days or Less means the Future is That Much Closer
• Adapt to a changing world; Reimagining Oracle’s Planning, Budgeting and Forecasting Processes for an Unpredictable World
• Operations at Oracle with Oracle Cloud EPM, Oracle@Oracle: Our Journey to the Cloud, including how to:
  • Achieve operational excellence, digital intelligence, and business influence
  • Get executive mandate for change, get foundations right, reduce customizations, avoid legacy, get early wins to build momentum, course correct, and stay agile
  • Maximize efficiency and effectiveness, make the smartest decisions quickly, outpace change, and delight customers and employees
• Five Reasons to Connect Your Enterprise Planning
• Outpace Change with Oracle Cloud EPM