SAP Success Factors for Vendor Selection – Responsibility Matrix 1

By |October 11th, 2010|

After a short look at the peer-reviewed academic literature, Anil Bhagwani did a brief case study on ten failed SAP implementations and ten successful SAP implementations. From these, he continued to distill SAP critical success factors. For more vendor selection background, please refer to another study: SAP Implementation Partner or Company Selection Criteria. Common SAP Critical Success Factors (CSF's) Identified for Successful ERP Implementations The study author's perspective and summary o [...]

Successful SAP Project Team Composition – Technicians or Experts?

By |September 27th, 2010|

Continuing on the theme from a previous post about getting SAP expertise, do you need SAP Technicians or Experts? I want to take some time to review an academic study about gaining SAP ROI and reducing your SAP TCO. The study points out the type of SAP project team expertise to gain ROI and competitive advantage from your ERP project. If you want real return, real results, and real benefits, then you need real skill (see e.g. Screening and Interview Methods to Find the Right Consultant – Part 2 [...]

SAP Implementation Projects: Still Crazy After All These Years – Part 2

By |September 20th, 2010|

In a previous post, I pointed out my discovery of an anonymous blogger who is providing a blow-by-blow of his firm’s painful SAP implementation. (SAP: Loathe It or Ignore It, You Can’t Like It http://sapmesideways.blogspot.com/. )Since that post, I...

SAP Technicians or Experts

By |September 13th, 2010|

They say a good magician never reveals their tricks. Well, I’m no magician, so I will give you some insight. Lagging indicators (those affected by process improvements, cost-based ROI and TCO methods, and current ERP mindsets) are reactive. Leading indicators (those which directly affect the competitive business landscape) are proactive. SAP and ERP technicians are reactive. They can make system settings, they can help you to make a small tweak here or there, but they are tactical and tend to b [...]

Removing SAP Project Barriers to Realize ROI and Business Benefit

By |August 2nd, 2010|

As long as the application consultants’ limited understanding of your business drive your SAP implementation, it will only reflect their SAP capabilities. If you want more, then your project focus must become business driven rather than vendor and consultant driven. Frequently I see or hear SAP consultants, even those who claim to be “Platinum” level consultants, who really do not understand the extent of the capabilities of SAP as a business process and systems platform. Even though these Plat [...]

Series on SAP Competency Center or SAP Center of Excellence

By |July 21st, 2010|

  THREE-PART SERIES ON DEVELOPING AN SAP CENTER OF EXCELLENCE. You probably already knew that a "Competency center" is focused on SAP application support such as help desk functions, system stabilization, troubleshooting, etc. But did you know that a true "Center of Excellence" is focused on the business and business drivers? The key goal of a "Center of Excellence" is to integrate not just the application, but the application support staff into the business. Business Transformation from [...]