Over the last few years, organizations have been increasingly interested in adopting SAP S/4HANA Cloud as the backbone for their transformation initiatives. However, transitioning from a legacy on-premise ERP to our cloud ERP is not a matter of delivering imagined expectations but providing what the business needs today while leaving room to evolve in the future.
Every business comes with its own challenges and goals – that’s why SAP S/4HANA Cloud is not implemented with a one-size-fits-all approach.
However, with the design authority service, companies can ensure the implemented solution is scalable, flexible, and aligned with the unique business strategy of each customer. The strategic service from SAP can support critical design decisions that can result in a smooth implementation and maximize the value of the cloud ERP.
Understanding the Value of Design Authority
The design authority service can provide a structured framework for decision-making, risk management, and quality assurance throughout the transition process.
One of the key advantages is establishing a design review board – a space where design decisions are rigorously evaluated and challenged. Every decision is aligned with clearly defined goals so the business can identify risks early in the process, avoid performance bottlenecks, and integrate all systems – from SAP to third-party solutions – reliably.
In return, organizations can confidently transition and optimize the value of the cloud ERP over the long term with:
- Commitment, where SAP experts immerse themselves in the organization’s challenges and situations
- Ownership that leads to accountability for decisions and outcomes
- Responsibility for delivering consistent reliability and dependability when completing tasks and fulfilling commitments
The service spans across their entire transition effort, providing:
- Design oversight: The implementation of SAP S/4HANA Cloud is aligned with the organization’s strategic goals and business requirements based on a thorough review and approval of design proposals, architecture diagrams, and technical specifications.
- Standards and best practices: Consistency, reliability, and maintainability of the system design and development are prioritized across different projects and teams.
- Risk management: SAP solution architects assess and mitigate risks associated with SAP design decisions, considering scalability, security, performance, and compliance with industry regulations.
- Collaboration: Close collaboration of various stakeholders – including business users, project managers, architects, developers, and IT operations teams – helps ensure SAP S/4HANA Cloud meets business needs and technical requirements.
- Quality assurance: Appropriate testing, validation, and documentation are carried out throughout the development lifecycle.
- Continuous improvement: Monitoring and evaluating the effectiveness of SAP design approaches and practices enables the identification of improvement areas and implementation of changes as necessary to help optimize performance, efficiency, and innovation.
Tailoring the Journey – Greenfield, Brownfield, and Everything in Between
A well-planned implementation and careful management are critical to the success of an optimized investment in SAP S/4HANA Cloud. For that reason, one of the first decisions organizations must make when transitioning to SAP S/4HANA Cloud is choosing the right implementation strategy.
During this early phase, organizations need the flexibility to choose between a more technical conversion (brownfield) or a fully cloud transition (greenfield) that allows them to rethink their process landscape completely. But more importantly, they should also be able to explore a broad range of options between those two extremes. They include shell conversions with a larger volume of reused processes and a mix-and-match strategy with a high level of process redesign.
The design authority service can be pivotal in guiding customers toward the best path for their unique circumstances. Tailoring the journey to a company’s specific conditions and needs helps ensure the adoption of the right technologies and the fast creation of business processes for the future.
Take, for example, a large multinational enterprise that recently transitioned to SAP S/4HANA Cloud. Faced with an aging legacy system and complex business processes across multiple regions, the company relied on SAP’s design authority service to choose a hybrid strategy. By combining elements of both greenfield and brownfield approaches, the company could streamline operations while maintaining critical legacy functions.
Creating a Best-in-Class Design
Once the journey is chosen, the design authority service helps organizations consider several critical factors early in the transition initiative to help ensure the cloud ERP is scalable and flexible enough to grow alongside the business.
One crucial consideration is adherence to SAP standards and best practices. When organizations deviate too much from standard functionalities, they expose themselves to increased costs and complexity. By closely following SAP guidelines, companies can enjoy smoother upgrades and integration with other SAP and third-party systems while enhancing overall efficiency and reducing operational risks with a clean core.
By seeking this guidance from the service’s experts well before the transition, organizations can proactively address – and remove – design-related performance bottlenecks.
For instance, SAP and third-party systems can be integrated to deliver a continuous flow of data and processes, which is critical for long-term performance. Systems can be arranged to work together harmoniously and provide accurate, timely data across the enterprise.
Even after going live, the SAP team monitors and evaluates the solution’s effectiveness, making necessary adjustments to optimize performance. This can lead to an implementation of SAP S/4HANA Cloud that remains relevant and efficient as business needs evolve.
Additionally, organizations are also kept informed about future standard functionalities. By staying current on SAP’s future developments, they can make better strategic decisions and plan their IT investments wisely. Moreover, future capabilities are better aligned, keeping SAP solutions relevant and effective as new features and updates are released.
Catalyzing Meaningful Transformation
SAP S/4HANA Cloud is designed to be a living system that evolves and scales as business needs change and new technologies become available. With the technology, businesses, and industry expertise that the design authority service offers, organizations can be sure that their cloud ERP solution will continue to deliver the capabilities they need to stay competitive in an ever-changing landscape.
Want to learn more about the design authority service from SAP? Check out the SAP Services and Support overview brochure.
Dirk Dreisbach is chief business enterprise consultant for BTS Consumer Products and Retail Industries for SAP Germany.
Alexander Klammrodt is premium engagements lead for SAP Switzerland.