Outsourcing SAP Operations
1st Edition
Published on 28. September 2009
Book
Hardback
379 pages
978-1-59229-284-4 (ISBN)
Description
This book is your A-to-Z guide to outsourcing your SAP operations. It explains every aspect relevant for decision-makers to decide if, when, what. and how to outsource production support.
The author carefully ponders all outsourcing models - from outsourcing targeted SAP solutions to complete landscapes. He explains the pro's and the con's of every option, and helps you to understand the risks and the potentials. Case studies from large SAP organizations illustrate the different models and help you in making decisions easily and quickly.
More details
Person
Author
Yosh Eisbart began his SAP career in 1995 as a consultant for Ernst & Young (now Cap Gemini). Today, he's Director of the SAP Service Line/SAP Consulting Services at Comsys, an IT service provider and consulting firm with headquarters in Houston, TX. During his 14 years of SAP consulting he's worked on numerous SAP implementations across the globe and - with only few exceptions - every project has leveraged outsourcing in some capacity. Yosh is intimately familiar with the decision-making process, application, pro's/con's, engagement arrangements, relationship construct, etc. Yosh has been involved in both the decision on whether to employ this alternative (in numerous forms), and how it actually operates.
Yosh also published on the topic of outsourcing and others multiple times (among others, for SAP NetWeaver Magazine) and speaks at conferences.
Content
... Foreword by Bridgette Chambers, ASUG CEO ... 15
... Preface ... 19
... Introduction ... 27
1 ... Who -- Determining Whether Outsourcing is Right for Your Organization ... 35
... 1.1 ... Corporate Culture and Executive Influence ... 37
... 1.2 ... SAP Components Best-Suited for Outsourcing ... 38
... 1.3 ... SAP Components not Best-Suited for Outsourcing ... 41
... 1.4 ... Limits of Full-Time Employee Hiring/Quick Hit Temporary Project Work ... 43
... 1.5 ... Organization Size ... 43
... 1.6 ... SAP as Software: Its Complexity, Integration, and Inherent Challenges ... 46
... 1.7 ... Summary: The Perfect Organization Best-Suited for SAP Outsourcing ... 47
2 ... Why -- Potential Reasons why Outsourcing Might Make Sense for Your Organization ... 49
... 2.1 ... Cost ... 49
... 2.2 ... Objectivity ... 50
... 2.3 ... Expertise ... 51
... 2.4 ... Inherent Standardization Advantage ... 54
... 2.5 ... Specific SAP Initiatives ... 57
... 2.6 ... Focus on Internal Core Capabilities ... 63
... 2.7 ... Reasons Why NOT to Outsource your SAP Operations ... 65
... 2.8 ... Summary ... 66
3 ... What is SAP Outsourcing? The Various Flavors ... 67
... 3.1 ... Baseline: The Various Flavors of SAP Outsourcing ... 67
... 3.2 ... Specific SAP Outsourcing Models ... 79
... 3.3 ... Summary ... 90
4 ... When -- Timing and Transition ... 91
... 4.1 ... Choosing the Proper Timeframe ... 91
... 4.2 ... Timing for Post-Production Support Outsourcing ... 92
... 4.3 ... SAP Methodologies' Impact on Timing ... 95
... 4.4 ... Managing Change ... 99
... 4.5 ... Control Advisory Board ... 103
5 ... Implementations and Upgrades ... 107
... 5.1 ... ASAP (Focus) Methodology ... 107
... 5.2 ... Outsourcing by ASAP Phase ... 111
... 5.3 ... Using SAP Solution Manager during Implementations ... 123
... 5.4 ... Using the Custom Development Management Cockpit (CDMC) for Upgrade Preparation ... 135
6 ... Production Support ... 139
... 6.1 ... SAP Production Support Models ... 139
... 6.2 ... SAP's Run SAP Methodology and its Advantages ... 144
... 6.3 ... SAP Enterprise Support ... 148
... 6.4 ... SAP Business Processes and Technical Areas that Work Well for Outsourced Production Support ... 151
... 6.5 ... Tools to Optimize your Production Support Center ... 153
... 6.6 ... Managing Work Effort ... 163
7 ... Global Delivery ... 171
... 7.1 ... The Basics ... 171
... 7.2 ... Center of Excellence (COE) ... 175
... 7.3 ... The Rise of the Customer Competence Center and the Center of Expertise ... 178
... 7.4 ... Summary ... 182
8 ... Engagement Construct ... 183
... 8.1 ... Primary Models ... 184
... 8.2 ... The Role of Key Management ... 196
... 8.3 ... Conclusion ... 201
9 ... Selecting a Partner ... 203
... 9.1 ... Understanding What You Need (not Want) ... 204
... 9.2 ... Overview of Various SAP Partner Types ... 204
... 9.3 ... Establishing Baseline Criteria ... 207
... 9.4 ... The Selection Process Lifecycle ... 213
... 9.5 ... The RFX -- Structured Deliverables Used in the Selection of a Partner ... 218
... 9.6 ... SAP Accreditations ... 226
... 9.7 ... Screening Process ... 231
... 9.8 ... Alternative Sourcing Models ... 234
... 9.9 ... Exit Strategy ... 239
10 ... Large Enterprise ... 243
... 10.1 ... Unique Large Enterprise advantages and their Maximization ... 243
... 10.2 ... The Role of SAP in the Large Enterprise World ... 248
... 10.3 ... Strong SAP Alignment ... 250
... 10.4 ... Bleeding-Edge SAP Technology ... 251
... 10.5 ... Large Enterprise Consultant Modeling ... 253
... 10.6 ... Summary ... 255
11 ... The Midmarket Space ... 257
... 11.1 ... Unique Midmarket Challenges ... 258
... 11.2 ... The SAP Super-Super User Alternative ... 263
... 11.3 ... Stretching your SAP Dollar: Outsourcing Options ... 265
... 11.4 ... Summary ... 273
12 ... The Value of IT Standardization ... 275
... 12.1 ... Why bother with standardization? ... 276
... 12.2 ... Implementing Strong IT Practices -- IT Process Frameworks, Industry Standards, and Other Tools ... 277
... 12.3 ... A Simple, Common Sense Approach to IT Process Standardization and Improvement ... 283
... 12.4 ... Standardization in SAP Environments ... 290
... 12.5 ... IT Processes -- Where to Start ... 292
... 12.6 ... Other Tools for IT Process Standardization ... 297
... 12.7 ... Summary ... 300
13 ... The Role of the Integration Manager ... 303
... 13.1 ... The Integration Manager: A Definition ... 304
... 13.2 ... An Integration Manager's Persona: Characteristics and Attributes ... 306
... 13.3 ... The Role of the Integration Manager and the Relationship to the Control Advisory Board ... 307
... 13.4 ... Necessity versus Nicety ... 311
... 13.5 ... The Integration Manager from your Offsite Partner ... 313
... 13.6 ... The Integration Manager's Counterpart: The Offsite Delivery Support Manager ... 315
... 13.7 ... Summary ... 315
14 ... Service Level Agreements ... 317
... 14.1 ... Establishing SLAs ... 318
... 14.2 ... SLA Supporting Tools ... 323
... 14.3 ... SLA Guidelines and Determining Factors ... 325
... 14.4 ... Summary ... 329
15 ... Conclusion ... 331
A ... Sample Request For Information Document ... 339
B ... Sample Request for Proposal ... 347
C ... Sample Statement of Work ... 361
D ... SAP Screening Process ... 369
E ... The Author ... 371
... Index ... 373