SAPSAP in practiceStop 10 of 10
SAP interview questions
The questions SAP functional interviews ask most often across MM, SD, PP and finance integration, with answers you can build on.
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SAP functional interviews tend to test four things, usually in this order:
- Process: can you explain procure to pay, order to cash or plan to produce in business terms?
- Transactions and documents: do you know the T-codes, documents and movement types behind each step?
- Integration: do you know what each step posts in finance and which module it hands work to?
- Troubleshooting: given a problem (a blocked invoice, a missing material, a wrong account), where would you look?
A strong answer covers all four in a few sentences. “A goods receipt against a PO uses MIGO with movement type 101; it increases stock and posts inventory against GR/IR through account determination; if the material isn’t extended to the plant it fails, so check the material master” sounds like experience, not memorization.
Two habits help:
- Always mention the money: what the step posts, and to which account type.
- Use a real example: a document you created or an error you fixed. If you practised on Global Bike or a similar training system, say so and describe what happened.
The questions below cover the ones that come up most. Try answering each out loud before opening the model answer, then compare.
Words to use
- Movement type
- A three-digit key that controls a goods movement, such as 101, 261, 311 or 601.
- Integration
- How one module’s transaction automatically affects another, especially finance.
- Master data issue
- The most common root cause of SAP errors: missing or wrong material, partner or pricing data.
Scenario 1: “MRP isn’t creating a requisition for a material that’s short.”
Check, in order: the material is extended to the plant with MRP views; the MRP type plans it (not ND); the planning file has an entry and the run covered it; the procurement type is F or X; the demand is MRP-relevant (schedule line category CP, correct planning strategy); lot-size settings or a maximum stock level aren’t suppressing it; and MD04 shows the shortage you expect.
Scenario 2: “An invoice is blocked for payment.”
Find the block reason in the invoice: price, quantity or date variance beyond the tolerance keys (PP, DQ, DW in OMR6), or a missing goods receipt with GR-based invoice verification. Fix the cause (post the receipt, correct the PO price or get a credit note) or confirm the variance is acceptable, then release with MRBR so the next F110 payment run picks it up.
Scenario 3: “The goods receipt fails with an account determination error.”
The combination of chart of accounts, valuation grouping code, valuation class and transaction key has no account in OBYC. Check the material’s valuation class in the accounting view, then the BSX and WRX entries for that class. Explain the money: the receipt should post Dr inventory (BSX), Cr GR/IR (WRX).
Scenario 4: “A sales order was saved but nothing happens next.”
Open the incompletion log for missing data; check for credit, delivery or billing blocks; check ATP confirmation (no confirmed quantity, no delivery); check the schedule line category if production should have been triggered.
Scenario 5: “The invoice to the customer isn’t in accounting.”
Revenue account determination (VKOA) failed for the account key and account assignment groups. Correct VKOA, then release the billing document to accounting (VFX3).
Scenario 6: “The warehouse can’t find stock that MMBE shows.”
The stock may be in an interim storage type (902) because the putaway transfer order or warehouse task wasn’t created or confirmed, or IM and WM records differ after a one-sided correction. Check open transfer orders or tasks and interim quants.
A structure for any scenario
- Restate the business step affected.
- Name the transaction and document involved.
- State what it should post and hand over.
- List what you would check, starting with master data, then configuration, then the document itself.
S/4HANA questions
- “What is the Universal Journal?” ACDOCA: one line-item table for financial and controlling postings, so finance and management reporting share the same data.
- “What happened to MKPF and MSEG?” Material documents are stored in MATDOC; compatibility views keep old reports working.
- “Why is Business Partner mandatory?” One record for customers and suppliers with roles, synchronized by customer-vendor integration.
- “What is MRP Live?” MRP running in the HANA database (MD01N), much faster than classic runs.
- “What does advanced ATP add?” Product allocation, alternative-based confirmation and backorder processing.
- “What replaces SD rebates?” Condition contracts in settlement management.
- “What happens to classic WM?” Replaced by EWM (embedded or decentralized) or simpler stock room management.
Configuration-level questions
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Where are invoice tolerances set? | OMR6, by tolerance key (PP, DQ, DW and others) |
| Where is automatic account determination for MM? | OBYC, by valuation class and transaction key |
| Where is the pricing procedure determined? | OVKK, from sales area, document and customer pricing procedures |
| Where is revenue account determination? | VKOA |
| Where do you open MM periods? | MMPV (and OB52 for FI) |
| Where is the planning strategy set? | Strategy group in the material master’s MRP 3 view |
Using your practice experience
Interviewers value specific experience. Instead of “I know MIRO”, say what happened: “In my Global Bike exercise, an invoice for 100 units was blocked for quantity because only 80 had arrived; the GR/IR account showed a 510 difference until the remaining 20 were received, and then I released the invoice.” One concrete story like this shows more understanding than a list of T-codes.
When you don’t know
Say what you do know and how you would find out: “I haven’t configured that, but I’d expect it in the IMG under the pricing settings, and I’d check the condition type’s access sequence first.” Interviewers test reasoning as much as recall, and an honest, structured answer beats a confident guess.
Practise out loud
Take each stop on the SAP line, explain its process in two minutes, then answer its interview questions without notes. Record yourself once: the gaps you hear are the ones the interviewer will find.
Interview kit
Practise it out loud
Answer each question yourself before opening the model answer.
I’d answer SAP questions in layers: the business step, the transaction and document, what it posts in finance and which module it feeds, and what typically goes wrong. For example, a goods receipt is MIGO with movement type 101: it increases stock, posts inventory against GR/IR through OBYC account determination, can trigger WM putaway, and fails if the material isn’t extended to the plant.
What is the difference between a purchase requisition and a purchase order?
A purchase requisition (ME51N) is an internal request, often created by MRP, with no commitment to a supplier. A purchase order (ME21N) is the legally binding document sent to a supplier, with agreed price, quantity and delivery date. Requisitions are converted into orders once a source of supply is assigned.
Explain movement types 101, 261, 311 and 601.
101 is a goods receipt, for example against a purchase order or production order. 261 is a goods issue of components to a production order. 311 is a transfer posting between storage locations within a plant. 601 is the goods issue for a customer delivery, posted at post goods issue.
What is a three-way match, and what happens if it fails?
At invoice verification (MIRO), SAP compares the invoice with the purchase order (price and quantity agreed) and the goods receipt (quantity received). If differences exceed the tolerance limits, the invoice is posted but blocked for payment, and it must be released (MRBR) once the cause, such as a missing receipt or a price error, is fixed.
What are a purchasing info record and a source list?
An info record stores supplier-specific data for a material, such as price, conditions and delivery time, and can be created automatically from POs. A source list defines which suppliers are allowed for a material in a plant and period. Together they let SAP propose sources automatically.
What is the GR/IR clearing account?
A bridge account between goods receipt and invoice. The goods receipt credits it and the invoice debits it, so after both, it balances. A remaining balance means goods were received but not invoiced, or invoiced but not received, which is reviewed and cleared at period end.
What is a sales area?
The combination of sales organization, distribution channel and division. Every sales document belongs to one, and customers, prices and many settings are maintained per sales area.
How does SAP determine the price on a sales order?
Through the condition technique: the pricing procedure, determined by sales area and document and customer settings, lists condition types in sequence. Access sequences search condition tables for valid condition records for each type, and the net price is calculated step by step, including discounts, freight and tax.
How does SAP know which G/L account to post a goods receipt to?
Automatic account determination in OBYC: the material’s valuation class plus transaction keys such as BSX for inventory and WRX for GR/IR point to the G/L accounts. For sales revenue, VKOA plays the same role.
What is the difference between standard price and moving average price?
With standard price (S), stock is valued at a fixed price and differences from actual cost go to price difference accounts; it’s common for manufactured goods. With moving average price (V), each receipt updates the stock value at its actual price; it’s common for purchased goods.
What are the main differences between ECC and S/4HANA?
S/4HANA runs only on the HANA in-memory database, uses a simplified data model (MATDOC for material documents, the Universal Journal ACDOCA for finance and controlling), makes Business Partner mandatory for customers and suppliers, offers Fiori as the main interface, and adds faster processes such as MRP Live and real-time analytics.
Connected stops
Where this idea feeds in, or gets its inputs from.
Sources and further reading
- Magal, S. R. & Word, J. (2012). Integrated Business Processes with ERP Systems. Wiley.
- SAP Help Portal. SAP S/4HANA documentation.