Implementing an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system as complex as a Cloud ERP can be daunting for any business. With modules covering virtually all your core business functions – from Accounting and Finance to Supply Chain and Manufacturing – the scope for customising Cloud ERP capabilities per your business needs is enormous. This very flexibility, however, can also complicate the implementation if not appropriately managed. In fact, according to Gartner, with limited planning and visibility, up to 75% of ERP implementations may come short of achieving their stated objectives!
It is where expert discovery and assessment come in while embarking on complex projects like SAP S/4HANA Cloud ERP implementation. Selecting the right implementation partner with extensive experience in discovering business needs and delivering projects in alignment can ensure that all bases are covered for a smooth transition.
This article highlights why expert discovery assessment is critical to set your Cloud ERP journey on the right footing and how you can pick a competent partner to maximise return on your digital transformation investments.
Understanding Your Requirements
It’s best to start with a clear picture of your organisational requirements. It calls for an unflinching assessment of your processes, pain points, objectives, and growth strategies. A thorough analysis by experts with relevant experience can reveal the gaps and opportunities to improve your operations.
The right partner will have pre-designed questionnaires and proven methodologies like SAP’s Digital Discovery Assessment to collect information across your departments. The insights will shape the solution design by mapping organisational needs with the relevant SAP modules and features. Expert discovery while bridging capability gaps also prevents over-customisation by identifying only those areas that need enhancement for efficient process functioning after implementing a cloud ERP like SAP S/4HANA.
Customising the Solution
A futuristic SAP enterprise solution like SAP S/4HANA Cloud offers extensive configuration options that address your industry and business-specific requirements. An experienced implementation partner can customise the system based on the findings from the discovery phase to ensure the best fit for your current and future needs.
For instance, if your business has complex manufacturing workflows as an automotive components manufacturer, the consultants and solution architects can add advanced production planning and detailed production scheduling functionality into your ERP stack. Expert customisation also minimises post-implementation tweaking to keep the core clean and reduces disruption to operations.
From deciding on the appropriate cloud deployment model (public or private) to exploring integration requirements, extensive discovery, and assessment acts as a compass for your implementation partner to steer critical decisions backed by their knowledge of SAP systems and your business imperatives. This solution blueprint is the guide for the flawless execution of all subsequent cloud ERP implementation steps for your business.
Managing Integrations
Proper integration with your existing business application ecosystem is one of the biggest challenges in ERP adoption, even for exceptionally agile systems like SAP S/4HANA Cloud. Here, expert discovery helps map connections and dependencies between SAP modules and external applications for smooth data flows.
As needed, your implementation partner can build APIs and interfaces to link SAP with other business-critical platforms like CRM, HCM, and analytics, as well as proprietary programs built to run your business operations. The result is a tightly integrated IT/business solution landscape catering to your unique needs. From payroll to email marketing, financial reporting to order processing – implementation based on in-depth discovery and assessment harmonises information exchange across systems, enabling greater visibility and control.
Data Migration
Based on your business size, an enormous volume of historical data from legacy systems must be migrated to the SAP Cloud ERP landscape for undisrupted operations. Visibility into the state of your data at rest and in motion helps your implementation partner use the right tools and techniques for secure and accurate data migration, preventing losses or corruption during the cut-over phase.
Your industry regulatory needs may require your operational data to be structured in specific ways before onboarding into the new ERP environment. Equipped with reliable insights from discovery and assessment, your experts can ensure data integrity by cleansing, transforming, and validating information flows to match the new data model. Their meticulous protocols adopted during migration as per the indicated needs lay the groundwork for analytics and reporting down the line.
Finding the Right Cloud ERP Implementation Partner
So, how do you find an implementation partner capable of expert discovery and assessment for the success of your Cloud ERP project? Here are some parameters you can use to evaluate potential candidates:
Industry Expertise
Look for SAP partners with extensive experience in your specific industry to understand nuances. Established partners also have best practices benchmark data, pre-configurations, advisories, and trained consultants to guide the deployment.
Cloud Focus
The partner must display competency across public and private clouds with certified SAP cloud experts, migration tools, integrated solutions, and global delivery models. It helps to review the available cloud-based offerings and support infrastructure before deciding on the partnership.
Local Presence
Along with global expertise, your implementation partner must have a local presence in your operating geographies for contextual understanding and on-ground support pre- and post-implementation. Cultural alignment also enables better communication and coordination throughout the process.
Methodology and Roadmap
Insist on a clearly defined Cloud ERP implementation methodology focused on your sector needs and business priorities. The availability of industry-based packaged offerings reduces the effort spent on rediscovering solutions. The roadmap should cover all relevant stages in granular detail.
Service Capabilities
End-to-end service across advisory, actual implementation and post-go-live support is preferable to ensure the smooth operation of your Cloud ERP system and on-demand availability of support as needed. Here, it’s essential to assess your partner’s capabilities around technical migrations and integrations, as well as change adoption and intelligence services for maximum ROI.
At Percipere, we understand that the proper cloud ERP implementation exists at the crossroads of partner experience, ingenuity, and an innate capability to take stock of your needs. Therefore, as a global implementation leader and SAP Gold Partner, we bring a trove of expertise carefully nurtured through nearly a decade of interaction with businesses of all sizes worldwide and understanding their technology challenge. It is possible, thanks to Percipere’s unique approach to expert discovery and assessment that uses a simplified framework to capture the requirements of your cloud ERP system stakeholders in detail.
To know more about how Percipere’s expert discovery and assessment can set your Cloud ERP implementation project for the right start and attain all its goals within just three months, reach out to us at [email protected] One of our experts will be happy to assist you!
