Crystal Reports in reporting data from SAP

Good news

Company data generally resides in many places and systems, not only in SAP ERP. So far, building a coherent reporting platform for such data was connected with a necessity of SAP BW data warehouse implementation. It is not a limitation for big companies that develop their SAP environment rapidly.

However, the subsidiaries of multinational corpora-tions, where there is one, centrally managed system template and a minimum-changes policy applies, were disadvantaged in this situation. Making local changes to configuration, to which which SAP BW implementation is inevitably related, is usually not allowed in the subsidiaries.

Owing to deployment of Crystal Reports, the report-ing does not require SAP BW, and it is enough to allow access to data on the central SAP installation – without any changes to the configuration. This is good news for hundreds of Polish subsidiaries of multinational corporations. Crystal Reports enables them to build and develop a local reporting environment without interfering with the corporate SAP template.

In companies using SAP BW data warehouses, on the other hand, Crystal Reports can serve as a tool for publishing and facilitating data access from SAP BW in an attractive way, available through an intuitive user interface, containing many additional functions and interactive elements.

Data transparency

Crystal Reports is a world-renowned standard of data reporting. Thousands of users of different systems all over the world use Crystal Reports for generating financial statements, standard reports distributed via email or for “niche” activities such as printing address labels.

The tool allows to access data very quickly from almost any source and to deliver it in a form that facilitates easy interpretation or further processing.

Crystal Reports allows to build reports easily in a chosen format according to even the most sophisticated needs in this matter. Moreover, it is possible to choose a method of delivery of the ready-to-use report to the recipient: via email, mobile devices or a company portal.

Data sources for Crystal Reports

A full list of data sources connected with SAP ERP, which are available for Crystal Reports, includes the following:

• SAP tables – this type of data source allows to connect to the basic object that stores information in SAP system, which is a table (pool table, cluster table, view), and to download data to be presented in a report,
• ABAP functions – the functions can serve as a data source in a similar way that tables do, but they allow using complex operations on data, which extends their possibilities in relation to the aforementioned SAP ERP tables. They can be also used as ready sources for reports, making data preparation easier to process and analyze, and more attractive visually,
• SAP Query – a set of data based on a previously defined infoset, which is enhanced with additional abilities like ranking or statistical lists.

Furthermore, Crystal Reports, as a SAP ERP reporting tool, allows also to refer to data from previously created ABAP reports or SAP Query, and to present it in a more user-friendly form. This considerably speeds up the ability to apply this tool.

At the same time, Crystal Reports will allow to significantly expand the previous functionality of the reports and will make them more flexible and easier to use in comparison with reports written entirely in ABAP programming language.

Self-service reporting

Of the whole range of functions offered by Crystal Reports, the most important ones, which have the greatest added value for the users in everyday work, are worth mentioning. One of the values is the ability to create reports that are perfected “to the millimeter” and professional-looking. Owing to this, the information contained in the reports is more comprehensible for the user. It is easier to comply with the corporate standards in terms of the view and layout of data in reports.

A user-friendly and intuitive interface as well as a range of functionalities, which, after a short training course, will enable even the least advanced users to build advanced reports with no need to use any programming language whatsoever, are the features of Crystal Reports that draw attention.

The achieved self-service of business analysts is additionally supported by increased flexibility in working with data. Users ability to work interactively through report parameters, filtering, sorting or multi-media elements enhances efficiency of analyzing data and of quick finding the information significant for a particular recipient.

This, in turn, can be automatically related to a higher operational effectiveness of business analysts and information recipients.

Another significant feature is the ability to integrate the reports created in Crystal Reports tool with the IT infrastructure applications, already existing in the company, embedded in Java or Microsoft.NET, as well as ability to publish manager cockpits, created by SAP Crystal Dashboard Design (formerly known as Xcelsius), in Crystal Reports. The latter tool helps create visually attractive, animated dashboards with such elements as interactive scrollbars, clocks, value trees, sort and filter buttons, and even maps.

A user-friendly and easy to develop on its own data reporting environment is necessary in every company using SAP. Crystal Reports implementation will allow to deploy the most important reports and note first positive effects in just a couple of weeks. Trained users will be able to not only use visible and clear reports, but also to gain competence needed for further development of the reporting environment.