SAP is a fully integrated software solution that helps enterprises of all sizes manage their business operations, intelligence, decision-making, and digitization. SAP’s flagship enterprise resource planning (ERP) software products, SAP ERP Central Component (ECC), and S/4HANA have become the standard for managing and executing business strategy, with 77% of the world’s transaction revenue occurring through SAP.
There is so much to learn when it comes to SAP. It can be an overwhelming undertaking. SAP implementation services can help ease the transition with SAP cloud solutions as more and more businesses are leveraging digital transformation. SAP implementation services provide end-to-end support with planning, designing, building, deploying, and continuously improving SAP solutions in a low-risk environment with skilled professionals in all SAP processes.
What Are SAP Implementation Services?
The process of defining an implementation strategy for a company-wide resource that integrates multiple systems and processes is a colossal endeavor. SAP implementation services describe a service provided by a team of developers to help companies create an efficient work environment for all users by reducing errors, redundancies, and data loss when undertaking an SAP implementation project. SAP has capabilities that revolutionize global business with data-driven solutions, but it must be appropriately implemented through careful planning, knowledge, and skills.
Why Are SAP Implementation Services Important?
SAP implementation services give organizations the support they need to deploy SAP solutions that allow their company to grow successfully. Business management software is no longer enough to protect, store, analyze, and implement crucial business data. Research says 80% of data professionals agree that organizations going through a rapid digital transformation need to use reliable solutions to protect their assets from data breaches during migration.
Digitization and the adoption of business technologies have increased the competition across several industries across the globe. To survive this new landscape, organizations must continuously evolve and adapt to changing expectations and processes. Organizations are growing bigger daily, and so are their business functions. SAP implementation is vital for an organization’s continued ability to handle the logistics and technicalities of business operations and data management.
What Are the Steps Involved with SAP Implementation Services?
The process of SAP upgrades and implementations is highly complex, and we hardly have the space to go into all the details here. However, there is a basic structure to be followed to achieve optimal results from their data migration. Below is a list of steps that an SAP implementation service provider will go through to support a secure and successful SAP project implementation.
1. Preparation
The first step in implementing an SAP project involves specifying your organization’s requirements, elements, and boundaries. Processes and workflows that need to be moved should be identified, and the scope, objectives, and priorities should be considered. This stage also includes the planning of personnel assignments and an initial event timeline.
2. Blueprint
A business blueprint includes the modules essential to the SAP and any necessary mapping of business processes that must coexist during the implementation process. Space and time for workshops, meetings, and opportunities to discuss the goals of the SAP project implementation should be provided so that everyone involved can be on the same page from start to finish; where the organization is starting from and where they will be once the SAP implementation is fully realized.
3. Realization
The work of processing an SAP project is done during this stage of the implementation. Any customizations or solutions that need to be developed to meet the business’s specific requirements will occur according to the first two steps. The implementation team uses these factors to build, test, and define the SAP landscape.
4. Final Prep
After the testing and realization phase of production has come to a close, the final product is coming together during the final prep. Everyone who is associated with the SAP implementation should be trained according to new processes. Any other steps that need to be taken pre-migration when it comes to system requirements and team requirements must be ironed out before the system can go live.
5. Go-Live
This is the most critical stage of SAP implementation. All involved team members need to be prepared to put their maximum attention to all processes to implement them smoothly. Although going live may only take a day or so, the process of monitoring the system for any hiccups is imperative in the first few weeks so that potential issues can be resolved quickly and with as little downtime as possible.
Tips for Choosing an SAP Implementation Partner
Over the years, SAP landscapes have become very broad and complex, and internal IT teams often reach their environmental limits. When this happens, organizations have two options, either increase resources internally or outsource some SAP operations, such as implementation services, to a partner. The option of seeking external assistance is attractive because it’s a flexible, cost-effective, and highly scalable solution.
The success of your SAP implementation is a direct result of the service provider that you choose to work with. Organizations must evaluate their options based on competencies in areas such as SAP S/4HANA experience, industry experience, and competencies specific to SAP integration and implementation.
1. Flexibility and support
When seeking a reliable SAP partner, they must meet your industry-specific requirements and have the agility to match your timeline. They should be able to provide you with a solid and supportive team of experts that can customize their services to meet your organization’s unique needs and ROI goals.
2. Certifications
The complexity of SAP software implementation requires intimate, technical and functional knowledge. A service provider with an SAP certification has met the strict requirements that are put in place by SAP’s Center of Enterprise, so you can trust that they are skilled in the capabilities that your organization needs to provide high-quality SAP implementation services
3. Understand their strengths
Finally, before settling on an SAP implementation service provider, please do your due diligence and understand the specific strengths they have to offer. Organizations should ensure that their next SAP servicer has an adequate amount of knowledge about your business and your goals, as well as the capability to bring those goals to fruition. A well-informed operational service level agreement (SLA) helps both the client and the provider understand what activities and expectations are in place and helps guarantee results.
Conclusion
A good SAP implementation strategy includes careful planning, testing, and migration. Keep in mind that SAP transformations and implementations rarely go according to plan. Because of this unpredictability, it can be highly beneficial for organizations to seek an SAP implementation service provider that thoroughly understands your goals and timeframes and has a deep technical understanding of SAP.
Building, designing, and tuning an SAP landscape requires many levels of understanding and expertise and can take months to years to properly implement. But in the long run, SAP implementations are vital in streamlining the process of providing a competitive edge that accelerates organizational growth. To learn more about SAP, visit our SAP insights page, where you can access SAP whitepapers, webinars, datasheets, and much more.