We all know that migrating to a new ERP system can be a costly undertaking for any business, no matter how big or small. However, every company operating in the modern-day environment requires a robust ERP system for better efficiency and agility.
This makes SAP S/4 HANA the ideal ERP system for migration because of the advanced features and functionalities. That is not to say that SAP HANA migration is inexpensive because SAP does not shy from charging the required charge for their advanced functionalities. Fortunately, there are certain ways through which one can reduce the cost of this migration. But what are these ways? Let us find out.
- Purchase the License Only When Completely Ready: An organization has to consider many different factors before migrating to SAP S/4 HANA Cloud. Things such as building an ideal landscape, getting used to the features and functionalities of the new system, and even coping with the challenges of downtime. This presents many different challenges, and purchasing an SAP HANA license before sorting these issues can further amplify the complications.
One might end up hastening the migration efforts to adhere to the licensing pressure and hampering all the efforts in the process. Additionally, suppose the license does not augment the migration, then one might end up wasting an entire year in confusion. Therefore, it is recommended to sort these issues out before purchasing an SAP HANA license, which will significantly help control costs.
- Understanding the Costs of SAP S/4 HANA: Everybody knows that migrating to SAP S/4 HANA is not a cheap undertaking. In most cases, the real cost can overlap the estimated costs by significant proportions. This problem is further amplified because migration costs are difficult to calculate. After all, many different variable factors can influence these costs.
Therefore, in our recommendation, the best thing to do is take some time to understand the specific areas where the valuable money is being spent. This helps an organization better understand the different types of competencies they can avail themselves of by paying different costs. Organizations must also ensure that their migration partner is putting in necessary efforts to reduce the overall migration cost. This can enhance the cost-effectiveness of the business in the long run by significant proportions.
- Enhancing the Efficiency of the SAP S/4 HANA Migration Process: Predicting the time required to complete the SAP S/4 HANA migration can be very challenging. This is because the migration process can be influenced by many different internal and external variable factors. In general, it takes about six months to complete the entire process of migrating to SAP S/4 HANA. However, the point here is that businesses must look for ways to shorten that duration.
One must carry out an extensive study to understand different migration approaches, including Greenfield migration and Brownfield migration. This will help one determine the ideal approach for their migration and make required efforts to hasten that process without compromising on the quality of the migration. Hastening this process will reduce the migration cost significantly, but one needs to ensure effectiveness as this could backfire otherwise.
- Carrying Out Thorough System Audit: The best thing about SAP S/4 HANA migration is that we are not required to complicate it unnecessarily. When one chooses the right migration partner, the entire process of migrating to SAP S/4 HANA can be affordable, safe, and mature simultaneously.
However, the primary cost-intensive challenge is that organizations need to hire a team of professionals to audit the code, create reports for the same, and provide necessary recommendations. This makes it imperative to access the landscape and get a detailed idea of the steps involved in the process. Further, make sure to access the project’s scope and pick the ideal vendor for the project. This enables the organization to choose the most cost-effective solution for SAP S/4 HANA migration.
- Consider the Return on Investments (ROI): As mentioned earlier, SAP S/4 HANA migration is an expensive undertaking that can provide many benefits to the organization. However, it is important to calculate and consider the returns brought in by these competencies. Organizations can leverage the embedded feature in SAP Business Suite that enables one to calculate and optimize the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO).
Therefore, organizations have different factors such as reducing the volume of data, higher throughput rates, competencies of the new UI, and the increase in flexibility. Considering these benefits will help one better understand the amount of return on investments that will be driven through these perks enabling one to reduce costs wherever possible.
- Consider the Hardware Costs: There are many different strategies that one can deploy to reduce the hardware costs when migrating to SAP S/4 HANA. This means that organizations must be competent enough to opt for the ideal models as opting for something outdated can result in increasing the overall cost of SAP S/4 HANA migration.
Businesses must check out all the available alternatives and opt for more cost-effective hardware than the alternatives available in the market. One suggestion from our side would be to opt for reconditioned hardware and run it on SAP S/4 HANA like LaaS in the cloud.
Final Thoughts
There is no doubt or debate with the fact that SAP S/4 HANA migration can be very expensive for almost any type of organization. Therefore, it is highly recommended to keep these tips in mind when migrating to SAP S/4 HANA for leveraging a cost-effective approach. These pointers will ensure a smooth and cost-effective migration to SAP HANA S/4 without much hassle.