Planning pundits highlight performance at first-ever financial forum

Almost 200 employees and contractors from across the company’s seven business lines attended a planning, financial control, and governance forum to share valuable in-house commercial knowledge.

The Financial Planning and Performance Virtual Forum was recently hosted by the Hawiyah NGL Recovery Plant Department (HNGLRPD), which hailed the event as the first-ever companywide gathering related to planning and performance.

The presentations were designed to improve organizational controllable cost tracking, business plan development, realized benefits reporting, forecast estimation, and the efficient use of SAP dashboards.

A money moment

Ahmed A. Al Arfaj, an engineer with the Loss Prevention Department, started proceedings with a financial moment on the importance of disclosing financial information, classifying and handling sensitive information, and the illegality of insider trading.

Abdullah A. Al Hadhrami, a planning and program operations supervisor with HNGLRPD, presented a comprehensive financial and business acumen session for chief position holders, planners, and engineers, covering topics including the planning and budgeting cycle, and the major components of business plans.

Managing budgets

HNGLRPD has developed a comprehensive three-year program for planning and performance management (P&PM) analysts to support plant activities by managing and controlling budgets.

Esmael M. Al Anazi, a P&PM analyst with HNGLRPD, demonstrated the financial governance system to control operational expenditures. Al Anazi detailed the new maintenance work order SAP workflow review, verification, and approval process by P&PM analysts for items above $50 million, emphasizing the importance of maintaining plant reliability, cost savings, and effective resource utilization.

Important processes

Ahmad A. Al Moghathawi, a P&PM analyst with the Yanbu’ NGL Fractionation Department, presented best practices in the strategic planning process, stressing the importance of the process in achieving an organization’s strategic goals.

Maintaining funds

Homoud Y. Al-Kulaiban, a P&PM analyst with the South Ghawar Gas Producing Department, spoke about financial planning and forecast estimation. The estimation is an outline each organization draws up by providing anticipated financial fluctuations to maintain adequate funds throughout a calendar year, he said.