Enabling the Information Age

Oracle Financials

Strategically Manage the Financial Operations of Your Business

k n o w l e d g e
o p p o r t u n i t y
s t r a t e g i c
Your business has unprecedented opportunities. You can penetrate new markets, implement new business
models, and exploit new technologies. But who turns these opportunities into successes? Your finance
organizationmore than ever before.
In todays complex business climate, your finance organization must be a leader. To thrive in
an increasingly competitive marketplace, finance must take charge of the financial analysis, decision support,
and long-range planning.
How do you transform your finance organization into a strategic force in todays fast-moving corporate arena?
With Oracle Financials. Our tightly integrated set of financial management solutions enables you to:
manage yo ur bus i ne s s gl o bal l y
l owe r admi ni s t rat i ve c os t s
c l os e your books f as t e r
i mpr o ve c as h manage me nt
make be t t e r de c i s i o ns
UNPRECEDENTED OPPORTUNITIES
i n T O D AY S B U S I NE S S WO R L D
1
Manage Y O U R B U S I N E S S G L O B A L L Y
2
National boundaries are irrelevant when pursuing
opportunity. Todays finance organizations face the
challenges not only of supporting global expansion,
but also promoting it. Oracle Financials help address
these challenges with a flexible solution that supports
the countries and regions where you do business today
and where you will do business tomorrow.
One Global Product
Oracles globalization strategy is simpleprovide one
global product that meets all local, regional, and global
requirements. Oracle supports both multinational and
national business practices by giving organizations
the ability to address regulatory issues in a wide range
of markets, as well as providing tools required to
help stay competitive in the management of their
worldwide operations.
Proven Global Functionality and Services
In a global economy, your business operates in many
countries, each with its own language and currency,
accounting method, and tax compliance considerations.
Oracle supports these differences, as well as routine
changes that occur in these areas, to ensure your
business is equipped to expand worldwide.
Operating in more than 140 countries, Oracle
has implemented a global infrastructure that delivers
support, education, and consulting services directly to
your worldwide operations. Five global support centers
provide assistance 24 hours a day, seven days a week,
and more than 10,000 consultants service our growing
global customer base.
Global Information Management
Success in operating around the world requires
more than statutory compliance and support for
common local business practices. True global financial
management focuses on helping you manage your
business on a global basis. This includes global access
to information, real-time consolidation of your business
information, and distributed access to data. In short,
our goal is to enable you to buy, sell, employ,
manufacture, and source anywhere in the world
based on your needs. Oracle is committed to your
global success.
Lower A D M I N I S T R A T I V E C O S T S
3
Oracle Financials drive the cost out of your
transactions by eliminating transaction entry where
possible and making entries efficient where necessary.
How? Through a combination of self-service
applications and process automation.
Self-Service Transaction Processing
Traditionally, companies have relied on trained
administrative staff to bridge the gap between business
systems and the people who need the information.
Oracle Financials self-service Web applications move
the information system to the owners and users
of the transactions. These applications are designed
as a zero-support model for expense reporting, asset
management, requisitioning, and HR functions.
Oracle Financials self-service Web applications are
designed with the occasional user in mind. They
retain the robust functionality of Oracle
Applicationswhile simplifying common transactions
and inquiries over the Web.
Infrequent users do not know your business rules, but
these policies must be enforced. Oracle Workflow,

Oracles integrated workflow engine, automatically

enforces all of your business rules and policies. For
example, when your employee enters a requisition using
Self-Service Purchasing, Oracle Workflow automatically
inspects and validates the requisition and then routes
it to the appropriate manager for approval. Without
this administrative burden, your finance organization
can concentrate on increasing customer responsiveness.
Automating Processes
With Oracle Financials, you can automate your
procure-to-pay and order-to-cash cycles with features
like electronic data interchange (EDI), evaluated
receipt settlement (ERS), procurement card, and an
automated, configurable accounts receivable lockbox.
You will not only lower administrative costs, but also
gain access to better information that helps you to
operate more effectively and to build strategic alliances
with your trading partners and customers.
g l o b a l
i n f o r m a t i o n
s u c c e s s
With Oracle Financials, your finance managers
and directors can perform period-end close activities
quickly, no matter how complex your enterprise.
A quicker close reduces operational costs and improves
information access. Oracle Financials provide several
features that enable the shortening of the closing cycle.
Integrated Consolidation
Oracles Global Consolidation System (GCS) is
the industrys only integrated consolidation product,
giving you the ability to close faster and leverage
our desktop applications and decision support
systems at all stages of the consolidation process.
It provides the flexibility to automatically consolidate
multiple entities across disparate charts of accounts,
currencies, and calendarshelping you to manage
any consolidation, no matter how complex.
Oracles Global Intercompany System (GIS) improves
intercompany control, simplifies reconciliation, and
improves multiple ledger integration. This powerful
feature helps you manage your international
transactions and minimize time spent on manual
adjustments and reconciliation.
Desktop Integration
Oracle Financials provides the only integrated
full-cycle accounting in a spreadsheet functionality
allowing your finance department to budget, journal,
and report within a spreadsheet. This enables users
to work in a familiar environment taking advantage
of the full power of Oracle General Ledger.
The Oracle Request Center is a centralized report
management tool from which you can submit,
monitor, and publish reports to a spreadsheet, a text
file, or to the Web. You can use the Request Center to
manage financial, ad hoc, and standard reports and
listings. All reports run on the server for maximum
processing efficiency.
When you publish your reports to a Web page, you
can leverage the publish, subscribe, and pull-on-
demand report distribution model. Web publishing
eliminates manual report distribution costs and allows
you to provide information online and on time.
Imagineyour managers and directors can download
financial reports from your corporate Web site as soon
as your finance department makes them available.
5
Close Y O U R B O O K S F A S T E R
6
Improve C A S H M A N A G E M E N T
Your cash position can be the difference between success
and failure. Real-time management of this critical
resource enables you to better analyze information
required to optimize investing and financing strategies.
With Oracle Cash Management, you can globally view
your cash position across any currency, organization,
time period, or system.
Enterprise Bank Reconciliation
Oracle Cash Management provides comprehensive
bank statement reconciliation capabilities. You can
reconcile bank statements with payments in Oracle
Payables, receipts in Oracle Receivables, and journal
entries in Oracle General Ledger. You can also
reconcile with payments and receipts from other
systems using the Reconciliation Open Interface.
You can maintain accurate cash account
balances, identify and resolve exceptions, manage
bank errors, and monitor fraud by reconciling bank-
reported activities against your system transactions.
Your reconciliation process is streamlined with
automatic generation of reconciliation accounting
entries, automatic recording of bank initiated
activities, automatic reversal of rejected receipts,
and the ability to clear payments and receipts
before reconciliation.
Enterprise Cash Forecasting
Oracle Cash Management enables you to better
manage cash assets with an enterprise forecasting
capability that utilizes historical trends as well
as actual commitments across Oracle ERP systems.
In addition to seamlessly integrating with other
Oracle Applications, Oracle Cash Managements open
interfaces allow you to easily integrate with external
systems, giving you timely access to your global
cash information.
When you prepare a cash forecast, you can project cash
flows from Oracle General Ledger, Oracle Receivables,
Oracle Order Entry, Oracle Payables, Oracle Payroll,
and Oracle Purchasing. With the Forecasting Open
Interfaces distributed database support, you can also
generate a forecast that combines relevant transaction
information from both local and remote databases.
Oracle Cash Management provides extensive
multicurrency capabilities to handle foreign currency
transactions throughout your enterprise. You can
generate a cash forecast in any currency, and analyze
currency exposure by forecasting only source
transactions with a given transaction currency.
Make B E T T E R D E C I S I O N S
8
The difference between managed finance and
strategic finance is the ability to transform data
into decision-making information. Oracle Financials
maximize your decision-making capabilities by
ensuring that the right business information reaches
the right people, at the right time.
Strategic Enterprise Management
Oracle Activa, an Activity Based Management (ABM)
solution, is an enterprise application that gives multiple
worldwide sites the ability to create, deliver, analyze,
and monitor ABM information in a secure, incremental
fashion. Activa provides accurate cost information
to help managers improve profitability and resource
allocation at any level of aggregation. And, Activa
goes beyond traditional cost allocation to model the
complexity of all costs based on activities, materials,
resources, and product and service components. It is
industry independent and works in discrete and flow
manufacturing processes, as well as in service companies
and Government agencies.
Financial Analysis
Oracle Financial Analyzer provides an integrated,
complete solution for multidimensional trend analysis.
It enables you to automatically retrieve information
from your financial systems; analyze information and
trends from key business dimensions; answer ad hoc
requests efficiently; and identify areas for profit
improvement. Finally, because Oracle Financial Analyzer
is integrated with Oracle Financials, you will derive
a rapid return on your decision support investment.
Business Intelligence System
Oracles Business Intelligence System (BIS) is an
integrated reporting, decision support, and corrective
action system targeted to managers, business analysts,
and executives. The value of the BIS lies in its ability
to summarize data for key roles in an organization,
presenting the information intuitively and simply. The
overall framework allows executives and managers to
set objectives for key business conditions, such as cash
flow, earnings per share, product quality, and more.
These business conditions can be perpetually evaluated
behind the scenes, and the conclusions delivered
through electronic mail, browser notifications, and
other data devices.
Enterprise Information Publishing and Integration
Finance and administration disseminate more
information than any other group in your enterprise.
With Oracle Financials, you can distribute time-critical
information throughout the enterprise, without the
cost or administration associated with hard copy.
Your corporate intranet becomes the backbone of your
information distribution strategy.
9
Proven, Reliable Technology
The strength of Oracle Applications lies in our
adoption of Oracles industry-leading technologies.
Year after year, the international marketplace endorses
our architectural components as best in class.
Oracle Applications continue to be first to integrate
the new technologies into advanced business practices,
such as Internet Commerce, Self-Service, Analytical
Reporting, and Data Warehousing. These practices
enable you to compete more effectively by entering
new markets quickly, accessing information more
easily, and making faster decisions.
You can rely on Oracle to provide a low-risk path to
rapid technology adoption, allowing you to spend your
IT energy on achieving your unique strategic goals.
Think of Oracle as your technology insurance.
Responsive to the Enterprise
Your software architecture is pivotal to meetingand
affordingthe ongoing demands of your users. Too
often, poor choices lead to an inability to respond
quickly and easily.
Oracles software architecture is built upon open,
industry standards. Only Oracle allows you to extend
Oracle Applications with the same technology you use
to develop and deploy your other enterprise
applications.
Oracles architecture also provides the high
performance, flexibility, and extensibility that allows
you to be responsive to your enterprise. Oracle
Applications enable a lower cost of operations,
support thousands of users, and offer a better return
on investment through rapid implementation and
longer software life. Our flexible architecture allows
you to easily integrate third-party products and
custom development.
Extending Your Reach
You can no longer think only about the isolated needs
of your operational departments. To be more efficient,
you must link your business processes and systems to
your business and service partners. Oracle Applications
include specific Internet and intranet capabilities
enabling self-service and business collaboration.
Oracles Internet Computing Architecture provides the
framework to reach broader user communities while
keeping costs under control. Easily and at low cost, all
user populations can access Oracle Applications with
a familiar Web browser. With Oracle Applications,
you can bring new users online quickly and connect
them with critical business information from
anywhere in the world.
Technology D R I V E S B U S I N E S S V A L U E
Oracle Financials enable you to
address five critical areas facing most
financial organizations today:
implementing effective global financial
management, lowering administrative costs, closing
the books faster, improving cash management, and
making better decisions. Success in todays complex
business environment demands a complete global
finance system to streamline business operations.
Complete Global Systems
The corporate world demands sophisticated
multicurrency accounting in a distributed global
environment. Oracle Applications support the business
practices of over 2,850 multinational organizations.
Financial Planning
The heart of successful financial planning is the ability
to analyze budget and actual amounts, yet traditional
finance systems lack robust budgeting capabilities.
But, our systems arent traditional. With Oracle General
Ledger and Oracle Financial Analyzer, you can perform
powerful top-down, bottom-up, and distributed
budgeting and forecasting at both the corporate and
departmental level.
Financial Analysis
Financial analysis requires information not only for
executives, but for anyone who wants to make better
decisions on a daily basis. With Oracle Financial
Analyzer, all authorized people in your organization
can find the data they need, drill down as necessary,
and see the results in seconds, without waiting for MIS
assistance or even corporate accounting. The analysis
can be as sophisticated as you want because our
online analytical processing (OLAP) tools support full
multidimensional analysis far surpassing conventional
reporting tools.
Financial Consolidation
Oracle Applications are flexible and easily accommodate
the frequent changes commonplace in organizations
today. You can use the Account Hierarchy Editor, a
powerful drag-and-drop tool, to graphically restructure
your organization. Whatever organization you set up,
you can automatically consolidate your different
business entities, regardless of differences in currencies,
calendars, or charts of accounts.
10
Success I N T O D A Y S E N V I R O N M E N T
Expenditure Management
Todays competitive world demands
operational efficiency with strong
management controls. Tight integration
among Oracle Purchasing, Oracle Payables, and Oracle
Assets,

along with Self-Service Expenses and

Purchasing, eliminates paperwork and redundant data
entry; all related data is automatically routed through
the system. Use automatic purchase order creation,
evaluated receipt settlement, automatic tax
withholding, and automated invoice and payment
processing to improve your operational efficiency.
Maintain management controls through multilevel
payment holds and 2-, 3-, or 4-way matching.
Billing and Cash Collection
The global marketplace demands support for multiple
currencies, international tax methods, and other global
business practices. Oracle Receivables handle your
global business requirements, including multinational
payment methods, recording of local, regional, and
federal taxes, and issuing letters of credit.
Within this framework, you can achieve significant
automation with your billing and cash collection
processes. For example, you can process receipts
automatically using Oracles lockbox transmission,
bills of exchange, or direct debit.
Cash Management
Oracle Cash Management provides a comprehensive
solution for multinational, multicurrency bank
reconciliation and cash management via open interfaces
that allow tight integration with Oracle, non-Oracle,
and external systems. Additionally, our integrated cash
forecasting capability can help you obtain accurate,
timely information on your enterprises cash situation
so you can better forecast where cash will be going and
more efficiently manage your cash projections.
Asset Management
Maintain an accurate property and equipment inventory
and ensure that you always choose the best accounting
and tax strategies for your asset base by using Oracle
Assets. Reduce overall operating expenses with careful
administration of equipment leases.
11
12
Manufacturing
Engineering
Bills of Material
Master Scheduling/MRP
Capacity
Work in Process
Quality
Cost Management
Process Manufacturing
Project Manufacturing
Flow Manufacturing
RHYTHM Factory Planning
RHYTHM Advanced Scheduling
Supply Chain Management
Inventory
Order Entry
Purchasing
Product Configurator
Supply Chain Planning
Supplier Scheduling
Strategic Enterprise Management
Activity Based Management
Balanced Scorecard
Financials
General Ledger
Financial Analyzer
Cash Management
Payables
Receivables
Fixed Assets
Projects
Project Costing
Project Billing
Project Time and Expense
Activity Management Gateway
Project Connect
Project Analysis Collection Pack
Human Resources
Human Resources
Payroll
Training Administration
Time Management
Advanced Benefits
Front Office
Sales and Marketing
Field Sales Online
Sales Compensation
Service
Customer Contact Center
Call Center and Telephony
Internet Commerce Server
Applied Technology
Business Intelligence System
Applications Data Warehouse
Workflow
Alert
EDI Gateway
Self-Service
Customers
Suppliers
Human Resources
Expenses
Purchasing
A Comprehensive, G L O B A L B U S I N E S S S O L U T I O N
Oracle Applications, an integrated suite of more than
45 software modules for manufacturing, supply chain
management, financials, projects, human resources,
and front office, deliver the ability to automate an
entire enterprise.
Today more than 6,000 customers in 76 countries use
Oracle Applications. Available in 29 languages, Oracle
Applications let you operate in multiple languages and
currencies, support local business practices and legal
requirements, and handle business-critical operations
across borders.
Oracle Applications
The Next Step For more information on how
Oracle Applications provide better information
and better processes, call your local Oracle sales
representative today. Or check out our web site.
http://www.oracle.com/products/applications
Oracle Corporation is the worlds leading
supplier of software for information
management, and the worlds second largest
software company. With annual revenues of
$7.1 billion, the company offers its database,
application server, tools and application
products along with related consulting,
education and support services, in more than
140 countries around the world.
For more information about Oracle, please
call 650.506.7000. Oracles World Wide Web
address is (URL) http://www.oracle.com/.
Oracle is a registered trademark, and
Enabling the Information Age, Oracle
Financials, Oracle Alert, Oracle Workflow,
and Oracle Web Employees are trademarks or
registered trademarks of Oracle Corporation.
All other names may be trademarks of their
respective owners.
Oracle Corporation
World Headquarters
500 Oracle Parkway
Redwood Shores, CA 94065
U.S.A.
Worldwide Inquiries
Phone: +1.650.506.7000
Fax: +1.650.506.7200
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Fax: +1.650.506.7200
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Copyright 1998. Oracle Corporation
All Rights Reserved
Printed in the U.S.A.
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