SAP ROI — Enterprise Architecture & Business Solutions

ASAP Methodology Background

In the mid 1990’s SAP had gained a significant amount of bad press and publicity around several high profile project disasters that the company knew were completely avoidable. At that time Oracle, Baan, JD Edwards, and PeopleSoft all had sales people making the case that SAP was too expensive, too complicated, and took too long to implement. In response SAP released the ASAP Methodology in the mid-late 90’s (around 1996 or 1997) because of the number of SAP projects that were going over time, over budget, and were at risk. It has been refined, polished, enhanced, and adjusted with SAP’s supported R&D resources and efforts for about 15 years now.

The ASAP implementation methodology has leveraged the PMI (Project Management Institute) best practices around project delivery and the Carnegie Mellon CMMI (Competency Maturity Management Integration) approach for maturing the delivery process. The ASAP methodology also includes a number of ITIL (Information Technology Infrastructure Library) components in the Phase 6 Run and the ValueSAP portions of the methodology. Agile techniques are an option which can be “turned on” if you like.

The toolset includes an implementation “Roadmap” which is a WBS based project template. It has full explanations, templates, tools, resources, checklists, etc. Together with that the original version also included an MS Access, and then an MS SQL Database application for selecting your solution options which would then generate a list of processes, transactions codes, template BPPs, and a full SAP centered Blueprint document, etc.

Today all of that functionality is still available but it is housed in Solution Manager. The ASAP Roadmap is just ONE component of the entire ASAP Methodology. The Roadmap is focused on effective Program or Project Management for accelerated project delivery with high quality results.

My Experiences with the SAP ASAP Methodology

I was originally certified in the ASAP Methodology in 1998 while at Grant Thornton. In that time I have had the privilege of using ASAP on several projects and as the project manager on a few. One consistent result of using the methodology is that projects are delivered and they are usually delivered on time and on budget (although not always).

Every major SAP system integrator claims some methodology and nearly all of them are similar to, or variations of the SAP ASAP Methodology.

I have only ever seen significant problems with ASAP when a system integrator started to use the methodology and then abandoned it part way through the project. At one recent client I used it as the framework to support a LEAN implementation methodology. That LEAN methodology has served as an ongoing framework to significantly accelerate numerous rollouts at probably 25% of the normal implementation cost of other SAP projects.  This was driven by the client project manager and facilitated by using the ASAP tools. 

Starting with the ASAP Methodology

Even before the first consultant comes on board the ASAP methodology provides templates and resources to cover key project and program management areas such as

• communication planning
• decision making
• risk management
• project management master planning
• resource planning
• steering committee tools
• external links to best practice resources for reference (PMI, ITIL, Internal SAP, etc., etc., etc.).

Why ASAP Instead of a System Integrator Methodology?

First, I have nothing against the system integrator methodologies and some are very good with great resources. Unfortunately my experience has been while they have them, and may start with them, they rarely stick to them throughout the project. Since it is their methodology you have little or no insight to cross-check or validate their methodology use.  With ASAP it is yours to use as an SAP customer and you have full insight into it and control over its use.

One of the primary reasons for using the SAP ASAP Methodology is like all things SAP there has been a mountain of R&D spend, development, adjustment, and support. Every SAP client (large or small) who uses the ASAP methodology can avoid the “proprietary methodology lock-in” which the system integrators will walk out the door with. Another important reason is you own it as part of the standard Solution Manager offering. 

As you probably know Solution Manager is already a required part of your SAP landscape.  The SAP Solution Manager portion of the ASAP Methodology can house key items related to scope, configuration, documentation, the implementation roadmap, and all of the key deliverables. As the system integrator rolls off the project you have a centralized repository which is SAP specific for any future employees, support, upgrades, etc. You do NOT get that with a “custom” system integrator methodology which is probably based significantly on SAP’s ASAP Roadmap to begin with. Using an SI methodology you will NOT get the full configuration and development scope monitoring tools which Solution Manager contains either.

The entire ASAP Methodology is part of your application licensing and support you pay for. Why not at least take it for a test drive and see what it can do.

For more information on the SAP ASAP Methodology for SAP customers use your SAP OSS ID and log onto http://service.sap.com/asap .

Related Posts:

• SAP Service Delivery versus Value Delivery
• SAP Customer Responsibility for SAP Project Success
• Phase 6 RUN SAP ASAP Methodology
• How To Navigate the SAP Business Transformation Journey
• SAP System Vendor Project Success Criteria 1

Manage SAP Consultants

Over the years the most successful SAP projects I have participated in had strong client side leaders. They had some knowledge and understanding of how to deliver large, complex, or difficult projects. Not just SAP projects but large complex undertakings. Their ability to deliver projects came from their ability to manage, direct, and engage with project participants. They took the initiative to directly manage their own projects.

Many of these leaders had something else in common, they understood you can become overly reliant on consultants to deliver a project –, it creates an artificial sense of security.

One project and leader in particular stands out from my past because of the attitude about SAP project delivery. That project’s senior leader used a phrase about consultants I found a little insulting but have since learned to appreciate. He had a “rented skills” attitude about consultants and frequently referred to us in that way. Along with that attitude he and the senior leadership of the company chose very strong leaders from within the company ranks to manage each module or key area of the project. And by strong leaders I mean REALLY strong leaders. During the course of the project a number of consultants were replaced when they did not perform up to the company’s expectations. That project was probably one of the best delivered projects I have ever seen:

• It had one of the largest SAP scope and functionality footprints.
• That project’s first phase replaced nearly 60 homegrown legacy systems.
• It was delivered ON TIME and WITHIN BUDGET.
• It met every business requirement.
• It was delivered across international company codes and business units (including foreign trade).
• And for similar sized companies, with similar scope, similar time frames, etc., it was delivered for probably 10 – 20% of similar projects.

That project was very different because the level of automation and how smooth the go-live went, and even the post-production support issues were far fewer than any other implementation I had participated in.

I participated in this implementation’s post production support as the SD lead and to help with reporting for about 6 months after we went live. They had slightly more support issues than many companies have with “stable” SAP implementations. This senior leader went on to become CTO and nearly all of the company’s leaders involved in that SAP project went on to senior level leadership positions.

How Clients Can Effectively Manage SAP Consultants to Deliver Results

The background I just provided illustrates one of the most important factors necessary for successful SAP project delivery. The Ivey Journal published by Harvard Press about “Leading Consultants to Exceed Expectations” (PDF file) went into detail on this issue. The key is in aggressive client management of SAP projects for companies that want meaningful results and value.

For me this involves a few critical components:

1. Develop a project or team set of values and expectations for project delivery. The expectations should be focused on action and execution.
2. Provide a training course to client participants on the latest SAP ASAP methodology. It can be made available through Solution Manager or as a stand-alone HTML download from the SAP Service Marketplace.
3. Define clear boundaries, tasks, and roles for all project participants. No one should have to try to figure out what they are supposed to be doing.
4. Every client project participant should be trained in how to manage and work with consultants. Use RACI charts to help manage consultants.
5. Every client project participant should be spelling out the specific tasks, assignments, and expected completion of deliverable for each project participant.
6. Each person on the project, whether contractor or employee, should have clearly defined deliverables, tasks, and criteria for success.
7. The client project participants should capture and regularly discuss lessons learned on dealing with consultants, including challenges and soliciting ideas on managing them.

Client and consulting leaders should accept responsibility for the delivery and execution of those they are responsible for. Be on guard for excuses, deflection, and blame-shifting. At times these are common consulting tactics to hide a skill, talent, or capability gap.

One key thing to consider is that any decent SAP consultant who has managed to deliver SAP project results can be difficult to manage at times. Because of their type “A” personality tendencies they need input and awareness of anything within their domain of influence. To manage high performing consultants the use of a RACI chart cannot be underestimated. Because of these tendencies project managers must activity work to solicit their input and feedback, and well as keeping them in the loop on what is happening in the project. If you fail to do this you are setting yourself up for trouble and unnecessary conflict. This is why a RACI chart is a useful tool on an SAP project.

For an overview of the key SAP project success factors, including allocating responsibility, please see this table which provides an overview of success factors:

Critical Vendor Management Success Factors for SAP Project Success

For a detailed explanation of each of these success criteria you may wish to review the series which analyzed them from the consulting selection point of view:

• SAP System Vendor Project Success Criteria 1
• SAP System Vendor Project Success Criteria & Factors 2
• SAP System Vendor Project Success Criteria & Factors 3
• SAP System Vendor Project Success Criteria & Factors 4
• SAP System Vendor Project Success Criteria & Factors 5

Related Posts:

• SAP System Vendor Project Success Criteria 1
• SAP Service Delivery versus Value Delivery
• Phase 6 RUN SAP ASAP Methodology
• Why Use the SAP ASAP Methodology?
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Managing SAP Project Conflict

If you are determined to gain and then maintain SAP project momentum you will see stress.  Part of the requirement for momentum includes asking people to reach for stretch goals which can challenge (and deepen) their capabilities but also causes tension and even conflict.

One author says conflict is “a situation of competition in which the parties are aware of the incompatibility of potential future positions and in which each party wishes to occupy a position which is incompatible with the wishes of the other.” [FN1] 

In plain English, conflict happens when there are competing expectations and priorities.  Put another way, I want what I want and you want what you want and the level of our conflict depends on just how much each of us wants “it”.

Without hands on, active SAP project management it is likely that stress and conflict will destroy your SAP project momentum.  Active SAP project management is not about micromanaging people or their activities but rather finding the right balance around task execution and delivery while working through the stress that will arise.  As a project manager part of your key responsibility is to work through conflict to maintain momentum.  At its most basic project SAP project management is like babysitting adults who at times act like squabbling children (and I’ve been guilty of childish squabbling as well at times!).

Key Phases of SAP Project Stress Which Can Create Conflict

In relation to physical and life stress Canadian Physician Hans Selye (1907 – 1982) proposed 3 stages of stress in his 1956 book “The Stress of Life”: 

• Alarm
• Resistance
• Exhaustion

On an SAP project the alarm or panic stage occurs when you attempt to create a rapid project delivery pace.  The resistance stage occurs when the alarm does not slow down or stop the momentum that is gaining. Exhaustion or “checking out” can occur when the stresses and pressures of an overly aggressive timeline continue beyond what the project participants are able or willing to deliver.  A good SAP project manager must carefully evaluate and then manage the source(s) of alarm and resistance.

The key to good SAP project management is to maintain a sense of urgency that is strong enough to keep momentum high but no so urgent or so stressful that it causes people to burn out or check out.

There is a healthy level of tension which is needed to keep momentum going but knowing where that line is requires a project manager to be directly engaged with the project participants.  Even though it is critical to gain and then maintain momentum at times you also have to know when to ease up to allow the stress level to moderate. 

It is equally important for a project manager to know whether the alarm and resistance are from unskilled project participants who are trying to hide their lack of experience, or from unrealistic demands, or from the project as a whole. 

At First Most People Try to Deal With SAP Project Stress in a Productive Manner

Regardless of the reason for the stress, and ultimately what the conflict is, most people do attempt to mitigate the initial source of the stress.  The research shows they may:

1. apply extra effort to compensate for the greater demands,
2. they may attempt to overcome the stress by fixating on the task(s) which create the stress, or,
3. they may become anxious, worry, and then avoid the tasks.

If a project manager is skilled and recognizes these signs they can quickly intervene and help to alleviate the source of the stress.  Although it is critical for momentum to keep a forward looking perspective throughout the project there are times it is more productive to pause, reflect, and allow stress levels to lower.  When you see tension and stress building to an unhealthy level it may be time for a special recognition of how much progress has been gained to help people regain a sense of perspective and give them a chance to “take a breath.”

A good SAP project manager must carefully evaluate and then manage the source(s) of alarm and resistance.

Knowing when to back off the gas and recognize accomplishments and when to press the gas and push ahead is the most difficult skill for any project manager to develop.  It is like a professional race car driver who must know when to step on the gas, when to let off, when to apply the brakes, and when to step back on the throttle.  A project manager who is able to perform that balancing act demonstrates their experience and their people skills.  This requires direct engagement with the project participants on a day to day basis. 

This type of engagement by the SAP project manager needs to be in the project participants’ work environments, not just in planned meetings where people may not be as candid or forthright.  That direct engagement requires the project manager to serve as an active umpire, counselor, decision-maker, expediter, and all around gopher to help coordinate many of the integration activities. 

A Good SAP project manager GENUINELY UNDERSTANDS that their success depends on every other project participant’s success and will directly engage in activities which help promote the success of project participants.  Sometimes this means giving some project participants the opportunity to be successful on a different project  :)

As a final thought, an SAP project manager who needs a separate “integration manager” should be more carefully considered.  It may be necessary but do you really need a Microsoft Project administrator or a meeting monitor or do you need a manager for your project?  Needing an ”integraton manager” may be a way to avoid the day to day involvement that is critical for SAP project success.

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[FN1]  Capozzoli TK. Conflict resolution-a key ingredient in successful teams. Supervision (60:11), 1999, pp 14-16

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• 5 Leadership Tips for Successful SAP Project Management
• SAP Project Manager – SAP Program Manager, Lessons from the Trenches
• 5 More Leadership Tips for Successful SAP Project Management
• SAP System Vendor Project Success Criteria 1
• Some Reasons SAP Projects are Over Budget and Over Time