Where do you Start with SAP Return on Investment or SAP ROI?

By |July 19th, 2010|

See Part 1 - SAP Implementation Is an Investment Not an Event How much is it going to cost, and how long is it going to take? That is the classic approach to SAP implementations. However, this approach is not enough today, as the marketplace is demanding more from their IT dollars. Now the marketplace has questions about measuring cost reductions, process improvements, and customer retention/acquisition. These are all important discussions. Your money has to work for you in your business-- and [...]

Lower SAP Application Support Costs – TCO – by Reducing Custom Solutions

By |June 21st, 2010|

Previously I explained the two primary types of implementations-- with SAP or any other ERP package, you will do business process engineering or software engineering. The differences in these two types of implementation approaches will have a major impact on your total cost of ownership (TCO) and your long-term application lifecycle costs. ------------------------------- Software Engineering or Business Process Engineering? https://www.iitrun.com/sap-implementation-focus-software-engineering-or [...]

Where SAP Is Missing a Key Business and Market Opportunity for Leadership

By |February 10th, 2010|

In reading through a post on the CIO Magazine blogs (“ERP Costs: 3 Signs Companies Are Wasting Less Money” [FN1]) on Panorama’s comparison of Saas with traditional ERP, Saas is not all it is cracked up to be. SAP has failed to capitalize on the genuine shortcomings of Saas ERP compared to on-premise ERP solutions such as SAP. Saas ERP is implemented over 35% more quickly (11.6 mo v. 18.4), but costs only 10% less to implement (6.2 v. 6.9 ann. rev). Even though CEOs may be slightly more satisfie [...]

Business and IT Alignment – Integrating Technology and IT Spend with Business

By |February 5th, 2010|

Aligning technology to business requirements is based on a few underlying assumptions that are often lacking from SAP projects. Those assumptions are 1) the business actually knows what their requirements are, 2) the project scope includes those requirements, 3) the right management and internal employees are committed and engaged, and 4) the system integrator you select has consultants with the required experience. Often, I see businesses fail to look beyond operational excellence areas of the [...]

CRM, ERP, BI, and IT Investment — Where Do You Find the Business Benefit?

By |September 19th, 2009|

  Most companies want to use CRM applications to "supercharge" their sales forces. They want higher customer retention and acquisition than their competitors, managing the sales pipeline and having better market insight. But few companies realize these goals. After going through some of the academic studies and literature about CRM implementation, evidence suggests that some companies see limited benefit from their CRM implementations, but they are not happy overall. These anecdotal accoun [...]

Realizing SAP Business Benefit

By |August 26th, 2009|

When implementing or upgrading SAP, too often I encounter vendors and consultants who believe they are more qualified than they actually are. Think of backyard mechanics who changed the oil on someone's cars and checked the tire pressure a few times, then somehow think that qualifies them to do engine overhauls on Formula 1 race cars. Similarly, why do you expect old-style implementation vendors and consultants to transform your business into a competitive powerhouse by only addressing cost-foc [...]