SAP Landscape
Your Path to SAP Transformation with Syntax
Discover how to modernize your SAP ERP landscape and implement transformational change with Syntax’ SAP consulting services.
4 Steps to a successful SAP Landscape Transformation
Companies need command of their digital ecosystem in order to compete in today’s changing digital landscape. Enterprise Resource Planning. ERP – the unsung digital hero – is quicky being promoted from financial and materials management to data and transactional steward ecosystem.
Syntax works with a broad range of enterprises and has developed a four-step approach for companies wishing to modernize their ERP landscape.
- Assess whether change is necessary
- Define the value of changing
- Determine the what needs to change with focus on minimal viable scope
- Define how to change
What challenges are you facing with your current SAP Landscape?
In order for business leaders to reclaim command of their digital ecosystems they need to first gain a comprehensive understanding of their current business challenges and operational requirements.
Does your current core SAP solution satisfy your current business needs? Will it sustain you a year from now, 3 years from now?
See below for common scenarios which can be helped thru SAP modernization efforts.
My organization is still running on SAP ECC
If you are operating on SAP ECC on premises or leveraging adjacent solutions in the cloud with a hyperscaler, you may find yourself familiar with some of these challenges:
Time-consuming maintenance processes
SAP ECC is a highly customizable solution that can be integrated with many third-party applications. Training users as well as managing, monitoring and updating all of your businesses solutions will require a considerable investment of time.
Lack of internal resources
While your current SAP staff is entangled in maintaining an excessively complicated SAP ecosystem, securing a future talent pipeline is getting more difficult, since the new generation of SAP consultants are not familiar with legacy systems such like ECC.
Risk of losing operational sustainability
Those currently running SAP ECC on enhancement pack 5 or lower will no longer be on maintenance as of 2025 which means that legal updates, support packages and technical components will no longer be delivered. Only Customer Specific Maintenance will be provided and solving newly discovered problems may include extra fees.
Potential security risks
New and enhanced security feature sets that are delivered in S/4HANA are not available for SAP ECC. Failing to meet the 2027 migration deadline will incur additional security threats since no guarantee for technical support of newer Database, Operating Systems, or additional components will be provided.
Discover the weak spots of your current SAP landscape with this short self-assessment survey.
My organization is on SAP Business ByDesign
SAP Business ByDesign is a SaaS solution particularly well-suited for small and midsize businesses. Shortcomings of ByDesign are mainly related to its ability to scale with your business past a certain threshold. If your company has grown recently or is planning to expand in the near future, you may have noticed some of the following challenges:
Limited scalability
SAP Business ByDesign was planned to cater to the needs of small to midsized businesses, but once your business crosses that threshold from mid-size to higher the constraints of this system may become evident. There are relatively few add-ons available to extend it and its high standardization may turn into a disadvantage for a business who wants to transform into a $200M + company.
Mismatched expectations
The solution can be a good option as long as the business processes of the product closely correspond to a company’s specific functional requirements. While particularly strong in finance and accounting, SAP ByDesign may not provide you with adequate support in other functional areas as your business challenges change and you grow.
High dependency on extensions
SAP Business ByDesign requires additional add-ons and extensions to match the technical capabilities of S/4HANA Cloud, which has many of these built in its core product, eliminating the need to monitor the updates separately and the risk of possible disruptions.
Prospects for the future
With SAP’s main focus on S/4HANA Cloud, it can be expected that the new applications and modern technologies will mostly be implemented with SAP S/4HANA in mind, narrowing down the scope of support for older solutions (including security and compliance updates).
My organization is on S/4HANA on-premises
Operating on SAP’s flagship ERP solution means that most of the hard work has been done. Nevertheless, the main challenge for every business is not to secure the status quo but to unlock the company’s full potential and find a sustainable competitive advantage. As an S/4HANA on premises user, you might be noticing some areas with potential for optimizations:
Contracting complexity
Contract lifecycle management can be a costly and time-consuming process. Moving to S/4HANA Cloud provides an optimization opportunity with software licensing, managed services and infrastructure contracts grouped in one bundle.
Security gaps
Cloud infrastructure is more secure in comparison to on-premises infrastructure. In the cloud businesses can quickly add on new resources, test new features, and deploy new applications with quick flexibility.
Improved Flexibility
Cloud infrastructure allows businesses to be more agile and flexible in their operations, whether that be introducing or removing new applications and testing the impact of applications on your systems.
Innovation gaps
When it comes to securing access to new technologies, on premises environments are still one step behind compared to cloud-hosted ERPs. New SAP premium offerings are focused on cloud users, providing businesses with out-of-the-box generative AI and carbon accounting solutions.
SAP Landscape Transformation: How will your business benefit from modernization?
Depending on the specific needs of your business, your path to ERP modernization may be very different. For some businesses, it will be enough to get extra application management support (SAP AMS), while others will require assistance in moving to a hyperscaler or optimizing a multi-cloud ERP infrastructure. Still, the benefits of your SAP landscape transformation will often be similar:
Reduced complexity
Modernizing your SAP landscape will mean you will automatically reduce your number of applications by embracing a more standardized process. You will be forced to look at your business and reflect what processes you really need and how to do things in the best possible way.
Lower costs
Optimizing the number of SAP licenses that you need, reducing pressure on personnel costs through automation and adopting a clean core strategy will allow you to improve your current profitability and protect you from unexpected expenses in the future.
Secured access to innovations
A well-optimized, modern SAP infrastructure will not only perfectly match your business operation processes as they are now. It will also be a self-scalable solution, leveraging full potential of cloud-native technologies as they evolve.
Security and compliance under control
Your ERP is the most critical solution for your business. Making sure you operate on the most up-to-date SAP solution supported by regular security and compliance patches and having a clearly defined security strategy will keep your customers data safe.
How can Syntax support you on your path to SAP Landscape Transformation?
Let us help you lay out the plan to remedy specific shortcomings of your current SAP landscape and support you on your path to becoming a data driven company open for growth and innovation.
SAP Client Health Check
A 90-minute consultation lead by experienced SAP consultants. Identify where your SAP solution is falling short, and how to bridge the gap between where you are today and where you want to be.
SAP S/4HANA Readiness Plan
S/4HANA migration planning and business case methodology provides a structured way to approach your migration and helps you get better prepared for the transition to the cloud.
Cloud Migration Advisory Services
From assessment of all technical aspects for cloud migration (software, hardware and networks) to development of an individual migration plan and detailed cost estimation.
Syntax
Wheelhouse
Syntax Wheelhouse is our operational services offering designed to help businesses plan, manage, monitor and support their mission critical application in their new cloud ERP environment.