You’ve connected TM1 to SAP Datasphere. Yet the consolidated report still doesn’t show your current planning figures. The reason is rarely technical; rather, it’s a matter of perspective: Almost every discussion about TM1 and SAP Datasphere focuses on only one direction – importing master and transaction data from SAP Datasphere into planning.
SAP Datasphere is SAP’s cloud-based data management platform and, for many companies, the central data hub for analytics and planning. A reporting-only integration only taps into half of this potential. It pulls master and transaction data into TM1 but does not write planning results back. As a result, SAP Datasphere remains merely a data hub for planning rather than the shared database for actual and planned values that the platform could actually be.
Why does the discussion about TM1 and SAP Datasphere revolve almost entirely around reporting?
SAP Datasphere projects typically begin with an obvious use case: master and transaction data from SAP ERP systems or SAP BW is processed in Datasphere and transferred from there to TM1. This makes current figures available for planning and forecasting. While this use case is important, it represents only half of the possible integration.
The other half is often overlooked in many projects: The planning results generated in TM1 rarely leave TM1 automatically. They are exported, processed, and manually imported into other systems – if at all. Anyone searching for TM1 and SAP Datasphere today will find mostly articles about reporting and data import, with hardly anything about the reverse process.
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We’ll clarify, free of charge, what a bidirectional integration could look like for your TM1 landscape. The technical proof of concept can be scoped as a starter package at a fixed price of €9,900.
What does this mean for other reports that access SAP Datasphere?
Power BI-style BI tools and corporate reporting often access SAP Datasphere directly, rather than TM1. As long as the planning results are stored only in TM1, these analyses will only see the master and transaction data imported from Datasphere – not the current planning figures. Any updates to the plan would have to be manually applied, with the associated time lag and risk of errors.
How does the bidirectional connection between TM1 and SAP Datasphere work from a technical standpoint?
Simply put: SAP Datasphere is the central data hub where data from various sources converges and is made available to other systems. Important: SAP Datasphere is not a standalone planning application, but rather the underlying data layer. TM1 reads the master and transaction data for planning from there – and then writes the planning results back to a separate area within SAP Datasphere. Both directions thus run through the same central platform, but with separate areas for incoming and written-back data.
Technically, the connection is established via the SAP Integration Suite – a standard toolkit from SAP for automated data exchange between systems. Through this, TM1 and SAP Datasphere communicate with each other continuously and automatically, in both directions. This completely eliminates the need for manual export of planning data. The existing standard building blocks speed up implementation but do not replace the care required in architecture and configuration to ensure a stable result.
Important for controlling and IT teams: TM1 remains technically unchanged. No new planning models are created, and the existing TM1 environment is not replaced. The bidirectional integration complements the existing landscape rather than replacing it. For most companies, it is precisely this automated write-back of planning results that represents the greatest added value of the entire integration.
What steps are recommended for a bidirectional TM1 connection?
The transition from pure reporting to a bidirectional connection can be approached as part of a clearly structured project:
- As-Is Analysis: Review the system landscape surrounding TM1 and the existing SAP Datasphere integration.
- Target Architecture: Develop a concept for bidirectional integration, including a dedicated area for the planning results written back to the system.
- Technical Proof of Concept: Technically test and validate the initial data exchange in both directions.
- Implementation & Testing: Build the business logic of the interface, including forecast and budget cubes, without changing the existing planning logic.
- Go-Live: Transfer to production following a test run covering a full planning cycle.
Why is BI2run the right partner for the bidirectional TM1-SAP Datasphere integration?
Most projects involving TM1 and SAP Datasphere stop at the reporting integration because that addresses the most obvious use case. BI2run deliberately goes a step further and connects TM1 to SAP Datasphere bidirectionally, with automated feedback of planning results via the SAP Integration Suite.
The integration can be implemented without rebuilding the existing TM1 models. Not every TM1 environment needs the full bidirectional flow right away. If the technical assessment shows that a reporting-only integration is sufficient for your use case, we’ll be just as honest about that.
- SAP Datasphere is a central data hub, not a planning tool in its own right – with separate areas for incoming, processed, and written-back data.
- The connection runs via the SAP Integration Suite, SAP’s standard toolkit for automated data exchange between systems.
- TM1 loads master and transactional data from SAP Datasphere and actively writes planning results back, continuously rather than through manual export.
- As a result, other analyses that access SAP Datasphere see current planning results without a separate export.
- TM1 remains technically unchanged, with no replacement and no redevelopment of the planning models.
- The technical proof of concept – demonstrating that the data exchange works in both directions – can be offered together with an as-is analysis and target architecture as a starter package at a fixed price of €9,900.
- BI2run bills any further integration work by person-day, depending on project scope.
Glossary: A Brief Explanation of Key Terms
Frequently Asked Questions About the Bidirectional TM1-SAP Datasphere Connection
What distinguishes a bidirectional TM1 connection from a connection used solely for reporting?
A reporting-only connection transfers data in only one direction, from SAP Datasphere to TM1. The bidirectional connection adds the return path: TM1 actively writes the planning results back to SAP Datasphere. This makes Datasphere a shared data hub for both imported and planned values, rather than just a reporting layer.
Specifically, what data does TM1 write back to SAP Datasphere?
Essentially, these are the planning results from the TM1 planning models – that is, forecast and budget figures. Which specific cubes and metrics are returned depends on the respective planning process and is determined on a case-by-case basis as part of the integration.
How does corporate reporting receive new planning results from TM1?
As soon as TM1 writes the planning results to the designated area in SAP Datasphere, they are available there to all systems that access Datasphere. A Power BI-style BI tool or a corporate reporting system does not need to retrieve the data separately but instead accesses the same database as TM1.
Does TM1 need to be modified for the bidirectional connection?
No. TM1 remains technically unchanged. There will be no replacement or redevelopment of the existing planning models. Only the interface between TM1 and SAP Datasphere will be updated.
How long does it take to set up a bidirectional connection?
The technical proof-of-concept – that is, demonstrating that data can be exchanged in both directions – can be offered as a starter package, along with an analysis of the current system and the target architecture, for a fixed price of €9,900. The subsequent full implementation depends on the scope of the project – for example, how many cubes are to be written back – and will be discussed on a case-by-case basis during a meeting.
Which systems benefit the most from the TM1 data that has been rolled back?
This applies especially to systems that do not access TM1 directly but instead access SAP Datasphere. These include Power BI-style BI tools and corporate reporting solutions, which use it to obtain up-to-date planning results without anyone having to manually update them.
