Taking time to review existing business processes to determine what efficiencies can be gained is a way to take S/4HANA from a new system with a deep learning curve to a competitive advantage.
Our data suggests that business process considerations are the single-biggest factor in the selection of either a greenfield or brownfield implementation approach.
Change management and integration are both processes that work best in the midst of a production run, but change management is more about altering the people and process rather than the interface issue.
Getting users comfortable with a new interface
Getting users to adopt or alter optimized business processes
Mid-implementation
Post-implementation
This could lead to problems doing proper fit-gap analysis and a struggle to produce effective ROI within a reasonable time frame.
Of those consultants who have participated in a greenfield S/4HANA implementation, 64% report that streamlining business processes was the key factor in their implementation approach.
On the other hand, 69% of those who have worked on brownfield migrations indicate that maintaining existing business processes was one of the main reasons customers selected brownfield as their path. No matter the approach you choose, business processes is a key factor in your decision.
When it comes to skipping versions, many consultants are confident there are no significant issues with foregoing rolling updates. Given the importance placed on the business processes, the lower emphasis on technical consistency is not surprising.
Objective Business Process Analysis, in the context of large scale migrations, is a specialized skill set often not found internally at companies.
While it’s important to have both functional and technical skills as part of your internal team, the ability to map out business processes correctly, utilizing prior S/4HANA implementation experience, are assets a company can access via independent consultants or third party providers.
