Transformations from the digital assembly line

Thanks to a factory approach based on standard software from SNP, SAP user companies can implement transformations from the digital assembly line. Many companies are facing huge challenges: Some industries, such as the automotive and energy sectors, have to convert their business models to a completely new technological basis; in retail, there are rapid developments in online trading and supply chains; for the pharmaceutical industry, the fight against the pandemic is resulting in new challenges and opportunities; in the public sector, the investment backlog in the area of digitalization is becoming ever greater - this has become more visible than ever during the corona pandemic, especially in schools and universities.

These are just a few examples that illustrate that we as a society and in the economy are in a state of upheaval that is having a massive impact on the way we work and live and that is not stopping at anyone.

How are companies adapting to this situation? Some are repositioning themselves in part or even completely and reorganizing their corporate structures. Others are stepping up their merger and acquisition activities in order to divest business areas or tap into new opportunities and markets. For others, the focus is on consolidating their own "zoo" of IT landscapes and using new offerings to operate their own IT applications in the cloud. Companies that have relied on SAP for their core processes must simultaneously implement their transformation to S/4 Hana.

All of these activities have one thing in common: the business and IT transformations mean that SAP systems have to be separated, merged, moved to the cloud or migrated to SAP S/4, often in any combination of these. This also means that the data contained in the SAP systems has to be restructured, migrated, recombined and archived. No transformation without the right data in the right place.

Sustainable infrastructure

In the rarest of cases, the planned digitalization only results in a single project. As a rule, IT departments have to make several changes to their IT and SAP system landscape and set up projects for this purpose. Traditionally, these are well planned and then executed.

Depending on the project, SAP user companies then look for suitable partners and implement the projects more or less independently of each other using individual tools. This results in long-term, recurring and sometimes very costly projects without synergies through standards and learning effects.

Companies that have recognized this are now taking a different approach to mastering the permanent transformation challenges on the IT side: they are setting up their own transformation factories. This factory establishes a sustainable infrastructure for solving transformation tasks with three main objectives: Shortening transformation projects, minimizing risks and scalability of resources.

So what are the components of such a factory? The transformation factory is made up of three levels: an intelligent software platform, industrialized services and standardized methods and governance.

CrystalBridge

The basis for the Factory is CrystalBridge, a flexible and learning data transformation platform that guarantees a high degree of automation thanks to its ready-made content. In the analysis phase, the software supports the planning of transformation projects and decision-making based on an "X-ray image" of the nature and use of the SAP systems concerned.

The results achieved in this phase can then be seamlessly transferred to the implementation of the project, where the software ensures that the right data reaches the right target environment. Issues such as business downtime are relevant here in order to minimize system downtime during the go-live.

Building on this, CrystalBridge can be used to migrate data in a targeted manner, archive historical data and make well-founded decisions about which historical data only requires limited access and which is still relevant for processing. CrystalBridge also makes it possible to implement several transformation projects in a single go-live in order to reduce project runtimes, downtimes, test phases and the associated overall costs.

Service Layer

The second level of the factory consists of the service layer, which brings together the experts required for the transformations. This is where specialists with technical expertise come together with technicians, on-site support with scalability through nearshore and offshore resources and "fire fighters" who help out in critical project situations.

Many companies are particularly interested in bringing their own employees into the factory. This has several advantages: Firstly, it significantly improves the business case for a transformation, as fewer services have to be outsourced. Secondly, the company builds up its own expertise and takes its employees with it on the journey, and thirdly, it enables better control over purchased services from external partners.

In the Factory's "production lines", individual projects such as the transformation of a system to SAP S/4 or the carve-out of a business unit are implemented with the maximum possible degree of standardization. Of course, combinations are also possible - for example, consolidation of the SAP system landscape on the way to S/4 Hana or the carve-out of a system with a target environment in the cloud.

Even in more complex projects, the industrialization of processes in the individual project phases can lead to considerable acceleration and reduce risks thanks to well-established teams and procedures. In addition, the combination of the software platform with the corresponding expertise offers the flexibility to map individual requirements in the respective projects.

Which "production lines" are implemented for each user is an individual decision. Depending on requirements, for example, a factory can initially be set up for the migration to S/4 and the relocation of SAP systems to the cloud. At a later stage, the factory can be expanded with additional production lines for mergers and acquisitions or other activities based on the implemented methodology and existing capabilities.

Standards and governance

The third level of the factory is formed by standardized methods and governance. These ensure that a uniform project methodology is used. Standardized reporting and reporting systems ensure that everyone involved has access to the information they need, such as project progress or the elimination of errors.

CrystalBridge also provides support here with Mission Control, a guided procedure that reliably leads through all the steps of a transformation project, and uses quality gates to ensure that no activities are omitted. Mission control, e-learning, certified training and corresponding co-delivery models ensure that in-house employees and external partners are familiarized with the project. Other methods include accelerated roll-out sequences through the parallelization of projects as well as flexible project scenarios for go-live dates, big bangs and wave-based approaches.

Holistic concept

In summary, the Factory accelerates business and IT transformations with three levels: the CrystalBridge platform, the expertise gained from thousands of transformation projects and a standardized approach.

The Factory also gives customers a high degree of certainty that they can implement their transformation requirements with the necessary quality. This provides companies with a sustainable infrastructure for a "transformation from the digital assembly line" involving their own employees and the individual partner ecosystem. Companies that are currently setting up a factory are planning for significant reductions in the duration and costs of IT conversions.

Business Case

Due to the high degree of automation and the use of in-house resources, our customers' business case considerations assume potential savings of 30 to 50 percent on the IT side, while at the same time shortening runtimes. Large corporations planning a very complex transformation to S/4 even intend to shorten the overall duration of the changeover by years.

The business cases therefore pay off. Forward-looking planning, a holistic approach and bold decisions are required for implementation. On this basis, such synergies can be achieved while minimizing risks at the same time.