At the end of 2027, SAP will stop supporting SAP Business Suite. Some companies can prolong the support by migrating to SAP S/4HANA. If it seems that 2027 will not come soon and you can continue to use the old version of the system, you are mistaken.
SAP experts from the LeverX Group studied the issue and concluded that it is necessary to move to S/4HANA as soon as possible, and here’s why.
Why Should You Move to SAP S/4HANA Now?
An essential driver for moving to SAP S/4HANA is the termination of support for ERP systems released before SAP S/4HANA. As the end of service approaches, the price of migration services is expected to increase. Moreover, with all companies rushing to tech companies that provide such services, migration time can increase significantly.
The second factor is SAP S/4HANA’s embedded analytics. Thanks to SAP S/4HANA analytics tools, the system collects and processes data from different sources much faster, which gives organizations a more precise way to make decisions.
However, these reasons are not the main ones. Digital transformation remains the main reason companies choose SAP S/4HANA. Let’s find out why.
The Importance of Digital Transformation
Society is constantly facing various challenges, whether a pandemic or political conflicts, which directly affect the functioning of the market. Adapting to any conditions helps stay afloat and make money amid market fluctuations.
There is a direct relationship between your company’s flexibility and its digitalization: the more technologically advanced a company is, the more chances it can maintain and even increase its competitiveness in challenging times. Enterprises for which digital transformation is the main driver for moving to SAP S/4HANA will benefit much more. Why?
As the company grows, so does the amount of data that the company accumulates. As your company develops, many processes occur: new customers come in, the company merges with other companies, releases new products, etc. Most organizations neglect to delete unnecessary data because of the additional cost. This results in your systems containing large amounts of outdated and unstructured information.
The essential advantage of digital transformation is the opportunity to remove irrelevant data from the system, transfer historical data, and build a single data source for making rapid decisions across all divisions.
The Covid-19 Impact on Digital Transformation
Many experts agreed that Covid-19 was not an obstacle but an incentive for digital transformation. According to a survey, nearly 70% of European leaders agree that the pandemic has accelerated the pace of their digital transformation. Let’s discover which processes were mainly affected during the technological transformation.
Supply Chain Optimization
Covid-19 has caught retailers by surprise: many companies faced shortages by failing to forecast demand correctly. Therefore, retailers have realized the importance of transparency and flexibility in their logistics processes. The digital transformation of supply chains is a direct path to timely response to market changes. Estimating demand for specific products and managing inventory with AI-powered ERPs and inventory management systems is simpler.
Flexible Remote Work Organization
With a shift to online, companies felt the need в flexible access to corporate ERP systems. SAP S/4HANA, for example, is a cloud ERP solution. Because remote working and administration are built-in by default, the cloud significantly benefits those striving for an innovative solution to adapt to a new remote working model.
Automation and Optimization of Business Operations
Another challenge companies faced during the pandemic was productivity maintenance. Companies have turned to self-service apps for customers and employees. Such apps allow employees to solve tech issues remotely, and built-in chatbots promptly provide consultations to customers.
Thus, by moving to SAP S/4HANA, an American Airlane company has managed to manage costs in real-time, and embedded analytics has helped them to receive valuable insights for decision-making. Although the analytics saves only 1% of overall expenses, it saves $300 billion per year, which is a significant ROI.
By starting your digital transformation right now, you will outpace your competitors who have decided to wait until the end of the ERP system maintenance. A reliable technology partner can support you on the technological transformation journey and help you become an intelligent enterprise.
LeverX Group has been helping businesses across industries become smarter with SAP and other solutions for 19 years. Book a free consultation with experts now!
