At a glance
RAKEZ (Ras Al Khaimah Economic Zone), one of the Middle East’s largest economic zones, partnered with High Insight to transform and modernize its enterprise planning and reporting landscape using SAP Business Data Cloud.
The solution is unified workforce planning, revenue forecasting, OPEX, CAPEX, financial statements, and reporting into a centralized and automated operating model. By establishing seamless integration with SAP S/4HANA and SAP SuccessFactors, RAKEZ reduced planning cycles by 60%, improved forecast accuracy by 70%, and raised process automation levels to 90%.
The challenge
RAKEZ supports thousands of businesses across a diverse range of industries, requiring robust financial governance, timely access to performance information, and high forecasting accuracy across multiple operational departments.
Prior to the initiative, RAKEZ relied on a combination of manual activities, disconnected planning models, and fragmented reporting processes. Workforce planning, revenue forecasting, and operational expenditure management were conducted in silos. Teams spent extensive time gathering data from disparate sources, reconciling assumptions, and assembling management reports, leading to delayed decision-making and limited visibility into the key drivers behind financial results.
The key objectives were to:
- Replace fragmented planning spreadsheets with a unified enterprise planning platform
- Connect workforce, revenue, OPEX, CAPEX, and financial statement planning
- Integrate planning seamlessly with SAP S/4HANA and SAP SuccessFactors
- Accelerate the overall enterprise planning and forecasting cycle
- Increase forecast accuracy through driver-based planning capabilities
- Implement automated workflow-based approvals and interactive dashboards
- Provide management with continuous, real-time performance visibility
The High Insight Approach
High Insight brought its specialized domain expertise in SAP Planning, Reporting, and Analytics to design and deploy an integrated enterprise planning solution powered by SAP Business Data Cloud.
The engagement focused on transitioning disconnected planning activities into an interconnected architecture that establishes a single source of truth. High Insight worked closely with RAKEZ’s finance and business teams to evaluate existing models, implement driver-based forecasting logic, integrate core enterprise systems, and deploy live executive dashboards.
The project was delivered in two structured phases over an eight-month period to ensure steady user adoption and maintain seamless business continuity.
The Solution
The solution supported a comprehensive range of budgeting, forecasting, and financial planning requirements, including:
- Workforce Planning and Forecasting
- Revenue Planning
- Operational Expenditure (OPEX) Planning
- Capital Expenditure (CAPEX) Planning
- Financial Statement Planning and Reporting
- Workflow-Based Approval Processes
- Interactive Executive Dashboards
- Seamless Integration with SAP S/4HANA and SAP SuccessFactors
Business Impact
Reduced Planning Cycle Timelines
Enterprise planning cycles were reduced by 60%, enabling finance teams to complete budgeting and forecasting activities significantly faster.
Enhanced Forecast Accuracy
Driver-based models and integrated planning increased forecast accuracy by 70%, giving leadership greater confidence in forward-looking projections.
High-Level Automation
Reached a 90% process automation rate, minimizing manual spreadsheet reconciliation and administrative data entry.
Real-Time Visibility
Executive leadership gained continuous visibility into revenue trends, workforce costs, capital investments, and overall business performance via interactive dashboards.
End-to-End System Connectivity
Unified operational and financial data through direct integration with SAP S/4HANA and SAP SuccessFactors.
Client perspective
“Establishing an integrated planning environment has transformed how we manage enterprise forecasting and performance. With automated workflows and real-time visibility across our financial and operational drivers, our leadership teams can make faster, better-informed strategic decisions.”
