Three things you should note ahead of your SAP S/4HANA migration

In this week’s episode, The AP Arms welcomes two Xelix faces - Paris Baker, Lead Customer Success Manager at Xelix and Geyin Lee, Product Manager at Xelix. It’s a topical piece, all centred around SAP S/4HANA migration.

Watch the episode ▶️

A bit about Geyin...

Prior to Xelix, Geyin was in Tech Consultant and SAP Specialist roles, making her the perfect candidate to quiz on  S/4HANA. When Geyin isn’t working her magic Xelix’s Accounts Payable product suite, you’ll find her sampling authentic Thai food in The Salutation, Hammersmith (you may also find Paris there too, on Geyin’s recommendation!).

The S/4HANA journey 

In 2018, SAP announced that Enterprises using SAP ERP (ECC) will need to migrate to S/4HANA by 2025, a deadline later revised to the end of 2027, due to slow adoption. When speaking to Xelix customers, Paris and Geyin regularly hear many concerns about the pending changeover.

It’s crucial for businesses to get clued up on the migration, however the information available is lacking. When asked to rate the quality of the information out there about S/4HANA migration, Geyin rated it 3/10:

“Despite the announcement being in 2018, there is very little information out there about it at the moment, with most resources only providing high level overviews” she explained.

“When you google ‘S/4HANA migration’, what comes up is consulting or accounting firms pushing you to get in touch for more information. This often results in high stress around the migrations and explains why the timelines are constantly getting pushed back.”

Leaning on her previous SAP experience, Geyin shares her three top S4/HANA migration preparation tips…

Tip One: Choose the best approach for you - Greenfield, Brownfield or hybrid 

There are three different approaches to the S/4HANA migration: Greenfield project, brownfield project, or hybrid.

A Greenfield approach refers to starting the migration from scratch, requiring complete reengineering of your SAP processes and workflows. It’s also worth noting that any customisations you’ve implemented won’t be carried over during a Greenfield implementation.

A Brownfield approach lets you migrate to SAP S/4HANA without a new implementation and disruption of existing processes, building on existing elements of the SAP landscape, such as interfaces to suppliers and partners.

The hybrid approach is suited for those seeking to consolidate their current system into SAP S/4HANA, combining the strengths of both Greenfield and Brownfield implementation methods.

Neither method is wrong Geyin explains, but businesses need to base their decision on a few different variables such as time constraints, business processes and objectives, as well as the features they require.

“Understanding this is key because it sets the stage for the whole migration process”.

Geyin also shares that businesses should understand the implementation shouldn’t be looked at as an opportunity to tweak small things within SAP, instead it should be framed as an evolution of existing business processes and users should be prepared to be retrained.

Finally, Geyin explains the most important process to follow throughout the migration is keeping a clear trail of approvals in case auditors come knocking looking for evidence of specific activities. Keeping a record of this will reduce the likelihood of compliance failures.

Tip Two: Understanding the impact on data security and business process controls

“The adoption of S/4HANA brings new risks to business process flows” warns Geyin.

“This may require adjustments in future business controls since there will be a heavy reliance on new automated monitoring and controls”.

This is something many businesses lack, but there are some good tools out there to combat this.

“User access management within SAP S/4HANA may also present some vulnerabilities if it is not properly configured” Geyin explains.

“This could lead to segregation of duty risk or unauthorised system access, for example, a team member who has the access to raise a PO could also have the access to payment approval.

Therefore, accurate mapping between the Fiori app and the S4 migration codes is important to align user access and define user responsibilities.”

Tip Three: Getting your "data ducks" in a row

Finally, Geyin shares the secret to achieving optimal capability - having all your data in line before the migration takes place.

She explains getting external verification on the accuracy and completeness of data, or having a proactive data cleansing process in place is the best way to get those juicy real time insights S/4 HANA promises.

The cat is out the bag

As is the AP Arms tradition, we asked Geyin to caption the below image relating to something AP. From her experience working closely on the Xelix product and speaking to customers, she called upon one of her worst nightmares...   🥁🥁🥁

Watch the short video interview to get the full scoop. Huge thanks to Geyin for joining us at The AP Arms and sharing some brilliant takeaways. 

Interested in popping in? Let us know – as a new establishment ‘round here, we’re always looking to welcome more guests!