5 Leadership Tips for Successful SAP Project Management

By |November 14th, 2011|

All too often, I see SAP Project Management done improperly. As I have often said, I do not generally fault customers or clients who hire outside help for SAP project management. If they believed they had the answers, they wouldn't bother with contractors for guidance. Too often, I see SAP project management treated as project administration without much leadership. Just about anyone can be a checklist administrator. What is lacking from many SAP projects is the project management leadership to [...]

SAP Program Management Requires a Type of CMMI

By |November 7th, 2011|

Many are unaware that SAP provides a broad set of tools and resources for Program Management and the Capability Maturity Model (or CMM). Few are familiar with SAP’s broad set of supports for this purpose, such as the ASAP Methodology Phase 6 “Run” enhancement. This enhancement is loaded with key information that aligns with Program Management responsibilities and CMMI (Capability Maturity Model Integration) [FN1]. So, what is CMM (or CMMI as it is more properly referred to)? “CMMI (Capability M [...]

SAP IT Governance – Achieve Business IT Engagement

By |October 24th, 2011|

Proper SAP project governance is a function of the business in partnership with IT. With the exception of a few of SAP’s technical applications (such as parts of Solution Manager, HANA, etc.), the entire application suite is about business-- business transaction processing and business processes. If key business resources are not directly engaged in SAP project governance, you may never realize the SAP benefits you expect. This leads me to ask: What benefits you expect from an SAP implementatio [...]

SAP IT Convergence Beyond Business to IT Alignment

By |September 6th, 2011|

In the new global business age, organizations need to leverage technology organization expertise for business benefit more than ever. Too often, technology organizations focus on technology for the sake of technology, rather than for how it might improve products and services or how it might create more customer focus. In today’s competitive global economy, filled with international economic instability, no part of the enterprise can afford to move very far from what pays the bills. If your SAP [...]

Integrating Business Stakeholders as Part of SAP IT Convergence

By |August 29th, 2011|

A while back, I had a conversation with an IT executive from one of America’s largest companies. I was interested in his perspective as a hard-working senior level IT insider. We started discussing the role of IT and business as well as the future of business and technology. In the process, I relayed my passion for how IT needs to integrate with the business and how the future was going to change significantly (see e.g. What is the Proper Relationship for the CIO, CEO, and CFO?). From that disc [...]

Steps to Achieve SAP IT Convergence

By |August 22nd, 2011|

My last post on SAP IT Convergence is About Business Focused Integration provided an overview of Business - IT Convergence and why it is important. This week, we look at some of the key principles around creating SAP IT Convergence, including some steps on the path to convergence. ========================= What Is the Difference between Business to IT Alignment and Business - IT Convergence? Convergence and alignment have an important distinction. Business to IT alignment works to mature the IT [...]