Struggling SAP Users Lagging in Their Steps
In the ever-evolving digital landscape, SAP, a leading enterprise software solution provider, is steering its customers towards its cloud-based future. The company predicts that its cloud business will reach parity with its on-premise business by 2018, signalling a significant shift in the industry.
However, adopting new technologies and becoming innovative won't happen overnight, nor will it always be easy. For existing SAP customers, understanding the migration path to S/4HANA is crucial. With the right help and support, customers can at least make sure that it's right for them to adopt new technologies like S/4HANA.
SAP has been actively acquiring and developing new technologies in recent years, including Ariba and SuccessFactors. The automated nature of cloud can lead to quicker adoption and potentially reduce costs. Cloud upgrades can take away some of the potential disruption associated with upgrades and migrations.
SAP's business suite has been significantly overhauled earlier this year, with S/4 HANA being fully built on the advanced in-memory HANA platform. The key factor for SAP customers is understanding what their return on investment will be and how it will benefit the organization. Customers must be fully comfortable with the business case for cloud before making the leap.
Seeking support and knowledge from SAP, its partner ecosystems, and user groups can help customers understand SAP's long-term plan. The right help and support can make the process of adopting new technologies and becoming innovative more manageable for customers.
SAP's S/4HANA migration roadmap centers on a strategic choice of migration path, a detailed and tool-supported data migration process, and disciplined project governance. Businesses preparing for migration should clarify their strategic goals, rigorously plan data migration using SAP Migration Cockpit or table-based techniques, and apply best practices frameworks to achieve a smooth transition and realize S/4HANA’s benefits effectively.
The migration process involves selecting the migration approach that aligns with business strategy, preparing data methodically, and using SAP-endorsed tools and processes to ensure smooth technical and operational transition. The four key migration approaches are Greenfield, Brownfield, Bluefield, and Landscape Transformation. Each approach has its benefits and drawbacks, depending on company goals, process maturity, and readiness for change.
Migration uses iterative, tool-driven phases, including data preparation, extraction, transformation, pre-validation, system readiness, data load, and post-load validation. Two key technical methods are table-based migration for flexibility and volume and posting-based migration to maintain transactional integrity for open items. Complex migrations often combine both methods with ongoing synchronization handled via SAP's retrofit process to keep source and target systems aligned during the cutover period.
SAP Migration Cockpit is a standard tool that guides users through migration with preconfigured migration objects, automatic mappings, and validation checks to reduce manual effort and errors. It supports two data-load methods: staging tables and direct transfer. The choice depends on data volume, source system compatibility, and project complexity.
Businesses should engage in Fit-to-Standard workshops to define what data and processes migrate, freeze configurations close to go-live to reduce risks, and utilize frameworks like Syniti’s 8-step strategy emphasizing automation, collaboration, testing, and secure reconciliation to minimize downtime and ensure business-ready data at go-live.
Successful migrations require governance that fits the business’s transformation readiness, capacity for change, and whether internal or external resources will lead. Planning includes addressing evolving business models 3-5 years ahead, accounting for competitive advantages or process efficiencies.
In conclusion, SAP's S/4HANA migration roadmap is designed to help businesses make informed decisions about adopting new technologies. Customers should not wait for answers to come to them but should actively seek support to make informed decisions about adopting new technologies like S/4HANA. By following SAP's migration roadmap and best practices, businesses can ensure a smooth transition and realize the benefits of S/4HANA effectively.
Technology's automated nature, as seen in SAP's cloud-based solutions, can potentially reduce costs in finance and business operations within the industry. As SAP advances its cloud business, understanding the migration path to SAP's new technology, such as S/4HANA, is crucial for companies in choosing the right investment that benefits their organization.
