SAP Activate is the next generation SAP implementation framework that gives customers the freedom to get up and running quickly to innovate continuously with SAP S/4HANA Cloud. SAP Activate combines SAP Best Practices, guided configuration, and implementation methodology to get your organization onboarded onto SAP S/4HANA Cloud to run your business live.
In this SAP Activate blog series, which Sven Denecken kicked off, you will learn about the six phases in the framework: Discover, Prepare, Explore, Realize, Deploy, and Run. If you missed last week’s blog about the Discover and Prepare phases, you can read it here.
In today’s blog, I will focus on the implementation of SAP S/4HANA Cloud and the key milestones in the Explore phase. The Explore phase has significantly changed the way customer solutions are implemented, especially in the cloud. It focuses on validation of the solution functionality which is in the project scope and confirmation that the business requirements can be met with the standard business processes delivered in the product through the Fit-to-Standard analysis workshops.
Project teams driving efficient and rapid implementations understand the tradeoff between including additional features into their project scope vs. using standardized pre-delivered configuration. The benefit of using SAP S/4HANA Cloud is that thepre-delivered scenarios and processes in the solution represent an excellent way to validate the fit of standard processes in a customer’s business while leaving space for including unique differentiators that should be implemented using the extensibility capabilities of the solution. In the Explore phase of SAP Activate, it is critical for project teams to understand the processes available in SAP Best Practices, which teams utilize to standardize and avoid additional unnecessary efforts.
The Fit-to-Standard analysis is conducted in a series of workshops and allows for validation of predefined scenarios agreed upon and to make room for enhancements or additional configuration required (i.e. self-service configuration, expert configuration, forms, reports, business roles and other solution extensions). To prepare for this workshop, it is recommended that teams get familiar with the SAP Best Practices content, including the process flows, test scripts with sample data, and other documentation available in SAP Best Practices Explorer. Consultants should also evaluate the necessary adjustments to the sample data provided in the customer Starter System prior to running the workshops – for example, adjusting the organization names and master data to make the data applicable to the organization and users that will attend the fit-to-standard workshops.
During the workshop, consultants will do a “show and tell” for related business processes to show the customer business users how the processes run in the system (the team uses Starter system that was provisioned in Prepare phase). For example, a purchasing clerk at a global manufacturing customer implementing SAP S/4HANA Cloud is interested to see how the system will function, and how closely it will support their needs. The consultant runs through the end-to-end process of a purchase order from the initiation of the order from a user scenario to the finalization of the order and invoice from the customer side. The consultant toggles back and forth between the user roles to display the process of creating a purchase order to the completion of the task. These demos give the customer and project team an idea of how the system functions in various business scenarios. Consultants also ask questions that help them identify the needed configuration and potential functional gaps. Refer to the image below for overview of the steps the fit-to-standard workshops follow.
Fit-to-Standard workshops must be held in an efficient manner with customer subject matter experts to reduce backtracking later in the implementation and to enable the customer on the execution of the scenarios. Project teams must be focused and have an open mind to understand how the preconfigured and predefined processes offered in SAP S/4HANA Cloud can simplify the customer’s existing processes and can do so through a process described in a structured Guide for the Fit-to-Standard presentation. Business processes which align to the solution are standardized to eliminate major process mapping and design. Thus, allowing for teams to focus on value-added activities. Key questions and discussions on the existing customer processes need to be raised and addressed to understand how to fit those processes into the new solution. Customers and project teams have the option to adopt pre-delivered SAP Best Practices processes, setup integrations, and use in-app extensibility. If those options are not feasible due to the nature of the gap, the application can be extended. All these items are captured by the project team in a backlog, and then prioritized. For items that are classified as gaps, the project team performs further analysis to understand if the functionality gap is (1) going to be covered in upcoming release, (2) there is an existing extension that can be used, or (3) there is a need to undertake the effort to extend the application and integrate. The SAP Activate methodology provides guidance for all these cases.
Since the fit-to-standard approach is significantly different, we have asked experienced colleagues that guide our customers in implementation of SAP S/4HANA Cloud for their comments about what is important in planning and execution of fit-to-standard workshops:
“Experience shows that excellent preparation by completely working through test scripts and learnings provide the basis for efficient and successful fit-to-standard workshops. During the preparation and workshops team members should reserve a good amount of their available time. Consider peak seasons like financial closing when this is not possible – this should be reflected in the project schedule and resource plan.”
“The Explore phase for the cloud solution is different compared to traditional blueprinting from ASAP where we gathered the requirements and translate them into the system design. The Fit-to-Standard with SAP Activate begins with standardization and how do standard processes fit into your organization. There are initially no gaps, because we start with what’s available in the cloud solution first to fulfill the business needs. Customers may consider the solution to have gaps although it is a actually a backlog item. Customer teams who go through a quick Fit-to-Standard later realize there are points being raised which could’ve been avoided if they spent more time analyzing in the workshop. When time is dedicated to the process, the Realize phase will be shorter and will yield greater value in the future phases.”
Three key takeaways from the Fit-to-Standard analysis in the Explore phase include:
- Enter the Fit-to-Standard workshops with an open mind and involve subject matter experts in the discussions.
- Utilize the predefined configuration in the SAP S/4HANA Cloud solution to drive adoption of the standard, allowing your organization to innovate with every quarterly release of SAP S/4HANA Cloud.
- For solution enhancements or additional configuration which is required, prioritize items in terms of high importance to keep project timelines and expectations in on track. Think about multiple incremental releases to the business, rather than one big-bang deployment.
We will now cover the rest of the Explore phase activities in a short outline.
Next, project team confirms the integration of any non-SAP S/4HANA Cloud systems (i.e. SuccessFactors, Ariba, Fieldglass, etc.) can be executed. Prior to executing the possible integrations, settings within the non-SAP S/4HANA Cloud solutions need to be adjusted prior to integration setup. This process allows for a simplified and streamlined flow between the disparate systems so they can be integrated with one another for maximum value.
Additionally, the project team requests provisioning of the Quality System and provides the SAP Service Center with necessary details for activation of customer-specific processes and values (like organization structure, Chart of Accounts, etc.) that the team identified and confirmed in the Fit-to-Standard workshops.
The next activity includes testing preparation where the project team outlines the testing strategy including objectives, scope, the testing tool, defect coordination, and the required roles for testing. The project team also begins reviewing and mapping out the user access and security, key user extensions, and perform data load preparation activities for when the system is available. They also work on an end-user learning needs analysis and plan so the users can familiarize themselves with the new solution. The learning team will also be involved to prepare and deliver the learning content to the identified testers.
Finally, the Explore phase can formally close when the project team conducts deliverable sign-off following the prescribed quality gate activities. The next phase in the SAP Activate methodology is the Realize phase which includes receiving the systems, performing configuration in the Q-System, P-System setup, data loads, and delivery of key-user training.
What’s coming next…
Stay tuned for the next blog which will be released next week on Wednesday where we will cover the Realize phase of SAP Activate for SAP S/4HANA Cloud. To stay informed about new posts in this blog series, make sure to follow us via @SDenecken and @janmusil. The blog posts will appear in the SAP Communities space with tag #sapactivate, and will also be announced on the SAP Activate Methodology Jam group (request access here), the community of 20k people already actively engaged.
If this topic series interests you, we want to pre-announce the soon to be released e-book SAP S/4HANA Cloud: Implementation with SAP Activate which will become available in a few weeks from SAP PRESS.
Let us know your thoughts and feedback either in the comments to this blog series or in the SAP Activate Jam group(s).
We want to thank Esther V., Florian M., and Martin R. for contributing to this blog.
FAQs
SAP Activate – Explore Phase: Use Fit-to-Standard to confirm business process fit and identify gaps in your SAP S/4HANA Cloud Implementation. SAP Activate is the next generation SAP implementation framework that gives customers the freedom to get up and running quickly to innovate continuously with SAP S/4HANA Cloud.
What are the 4 phases of SAP activate methodology? ›
The six phases of the SAP Activate methodology are Discover, Prepare, Explore, Realize, Deploy and Run.
What is the explore phase in SAP HANA? ›
The SAP Explore phase is the third phase of the SAP Activate methodology – part of the SAP Activate Framework for SAP S/4 HANA implementation. The SAP Explore phase is arguably the most important step in the SAP Activate methodology. It is the phase that lays the foundation for the success of the entire project.
What is the discovery phase of SAP activate methodology? ›
The discovery phase is an important phase in the methodology because it sets the stage for the success of the following five stages. The six stages of the SAP Activate methodology are Discover, Prepare, Explore, Realize, Deploy, and Run.
What are the three components of SAP activate? ›
The 3 components of SAP Activate
SAP Activate consists of three different components: SAP Best Practices (Content), a Guided Configuration (Guided Configuration) and. the implementation methodology (Methodology).
What are the four components of SAP activate? ›
Content element of SAP Activate provide: Migration Content, Business Processes Content, and Integration Content. SAP Activate combines ASAP and Launch into one methodology. SAP Activate is a complete methodology for on-premise, cloud and hybrid landscapes.
What is the main activity of the explore phase? ›
In the Explore Phase, the project team reviews the solution scenarios to verify that business requirements can be met within the boundaries of the solution and project scope.
What are the activities in explore phase? ›
In the explore phase, the following major activities are carried out: Project management execution, monitoring, and controlling. Prepare and conduct solution validation workshops. Confirm solution fit to required business processes.
What are the 5 phase of SAP implementation? ›
The implementation of an SAP Project covers the following phases: Phase 1: Project Preparation. Phase 2: Business Blueprint. Phase 3: Realization.
What is the difference between ASAP methodology and activate methodology? ›
SAP Activate is a complete methodology for on-premise, cloud and hybrid landscapes. By contrast, ASAP was only designed for on-premise implementations. For cloud landscapes, SAP had a separate methodology called Launch.
In the prepare phase, the following major activities are carried out:
- Define project plan and goal with high-level scope.
- Get the executive sponsorship.
- Establish project standards, organization, and governance.
- Identify and quantify business value objectives.
- Validate the project objectives.
SAP measures academic performance based on three standards: cumulative grade point average (GPA), pace, and maximum timeframe. To be eligible for financial aid, students must comply with all three requirements.
Is SAP activate an agile methodology? ›
SAP Activate is AGILE way of delivering projects/product features. So basically, we need not wait to complete the development activity to gather customer feedback/UAT, but instead taking iterative approach and with each iteration gathering customer feedback and incorporating it into solutions much earlier.
Which is not part of activate methodology? ›
The Activate methodology for Intelligent Spend Management doesn't include a technical architecture and infrastructure workstream.
What are the 4 stages of system implementation? ›
There are four functional Implementation Stages: Exploration, Installation, Initial Implementation, Full Implementation.
What are the 4 components of the implementation process? ›
While the project plan for the implementation phase will have the same components as that for the process review, there are four elements that I want to address explicitly: project leadership, communication, education, and running a pilot. Let's have a look at each of these topics in detail.
Which are the 3 main system components of SAP HANA? ›
An SAP HANA system is composed of three main components: the host, the system, and the instance.
How many key deliverables are there per phase in SAP activate? ›
In SAP Active Methodology we divide the project into four phases as Prepare, Explore, Realize, Deploy. Each phase will have up to 10 key deliverables.
What are the components of SAP activate for on-premise? ›
The SAP Activate phases are: Discover, Prepare, Explore, Realize, Deploy, Run. The SAP S/4HANA implementation and specific methodology are extensively covered in the SAP S/4HANA roadmap. The methodology content is organized into a three-level hierarchy: phases, deliverables, and tasks.
What is the difference between SAP c4 HANA and SAP S4 Hana? ›
Differentiation: SAP C/4HANA vs.
The distinction between C/4HANA and S/4HANA is relatively simple: while C/4HANA focuses on customer experience (CX) and customer relationship management (CRM), SAP S/4HANA is the latest ERP generation. C/4HANA can be used "stand alone" or in close combination with S/4HANA.
For activating a new Business Function, user can perform the following steps below:
- Create a backup of your system. ...
- Log on to the development system with your SAP_ALL authorization.
- Disabling all the batch jobs.
- Closing the system for all other users.
Activate is SAP's S/4HANA implementation toolkit.
It employs both Waterfall and Agile elements and is far more prescriptive than either of its ancestors. Also, unlike the older approaches, Activate is applicable to On-Premise, Cloud and Hybrid implementations.
What is fit to standard? ›
'Fit-to-standard' is the implementation approach advocated by SAP to enable faster adoption of S/4HANA. It consists in using the best practices in the industry to create a clean core solution for the business so it can function properly using SAP systems.
What is the exploration phase? ›
The goal of the Exploration Stage is to collaboratively determine which practice or program is the best fit by examining the degree to which a particular practice or program meets the school, district, or state's needs from the perspective of students, staff, families, and community partners.
What are the steps in active methodology? ›
SAP Activate Methodology has 6 Phases to it:
- Discover.
- Prepare.
- Explore.
- Realise.
- Deploy.
- Run.
Building Structures, Light and Shadows and Exploring Water each comprises a few examples of Focused Exploration challenges that demonstrate different physical science features of the topic.
What is the importance of exploring or explore phase in design thinking? ›
The explore phase encourages designers to get out of the building and talk to users, learning about their lives, their emotions, and their needs. By the end of your exploration, you will have seen the world through your users' eyes and developed insights towards a solution that fits their needs.
What are discovery activities? ›
Discovery Activities . Includes an independent review of relevant project documents, identification of gaps, and interviews with various stakeholder groups and team members.
What are the stages of SAP implementation? ›
8 Steps For a Successful SAP Implementation
- Establish a Team of Experts. ...
- Define Business Needs and Objectives (ROI) ...
- Realign Business Processes. ...
- Establish a Business Blueprint. ...
- Implement Your Business Blueprint. ...
- Complete Final Preparations. ...
- Conduct Live Production Operations. ...
- Establish a Post-Production Support Team.
Regardless of the specific implementation methodologies followed by the systems integrators and client organizations, different phases of the project more or less remain the same. Typical phases of SAP implementation projects include design, build, test, and deploy.
The six-part ERP implementation phase lifecycle includes discovery and planning, design, development, testing, deployment and support.
What are the phases and deliverables of SAP Activate methodology? ›
Now let's look into the 6 phases of SAP Activate Methodology,
- Discover.
- Prepare.
- Explore.
- Realize.
- Deploy.
- Run.
SAP Activate is a successor of the ASAP and SAP Launch methodology. SAP introduced SAP Launch methodology one year ago for SAP cloud based solutions.
What are the benefits of SAP activate methodology? ›
Enable greater agility in SAP S/4HANA implementation using SAP Activate Methodology. SAP Activate methodology plays a crucial role in enabling agile implementation of SAP S/4HANA solutions by allowing enterprises to leverage a set of tools, templates, and best practices that are flexible and collaborative.
In which phase do we confirm solution design in SAP? ›
Explore phase (SAP Activate for on-premise - solution new implementation) The purpose of this phase is to validate the solution delivered to the customer based on the standard process documentation.
Which is the first phase of SAP ASAP methodology? ›
The first step in the SAP implementation process is project preparation that is, setting up an efficient roadmap, as per the business requirements and functionalities.
What is the main activity in the realize phase in SAP? ›
During the Realize phase, the project team uses a series of Agile sprints to incrementally configure, test, and confirm the entire end-to-end solution and to perform legacy data uploads.
What are the 3 standards that you need to meet to maintain financial aid SAP good standing? ›
Good Standing
The student meets the minimum GPA, Pace, and maximum time frame standard and, if otherwise eligible, can receive financial aid.
What does SAP stand for standard? ›
SAP stands for 'Standard Assessment Procedure'.
What is SAP standard system? ›
An SAP system consists of SAP instances. An SAP instance is a group of processes that are started and stopped at the same time. In a standard system, all instances of the SAP Identity Management system and of the SAP NetWeaver AS Java with the additional deployables run on one host.
SAP Activate consists of three different components:
- SAP Best Practices (Content),
- a Guided Configuration (Guided Configuration) and.
- the implementation methodology (Methodology).
The discovery phase is an important phase in the methodology because it sets the stage for the success of the following five stages. The six stages of the SAP Activate methodology are Discover, Prepare, Explore, Realize, Deploy, and Run.
What are the 6 phases of SAP activate? ›
The six phases of the SAP Activate methodology are Discover, Prepare, Explore, Realize, Deploy and Run.
What is SAP best practices for SAP S 4HANA? ›
The SAP Best Practices for SAP S/4HANA (on premise) are tailored specifically to accelerate and simplify the adoption of SAP S/4HANA for faster time to value, by providing preconfigured content for core business processes with a role-specific, responsive, and simple user experience.
How many phases are there in SAP phase model? ›
Maintenance requests and orders are processed according to nine phases. All maintenance orders of the Reactive Maintenance and Proactive Maintenance order types are processed with additional planning, approval, preparation, scheduling, and execution steps that are also reflected in additional system statuses.
What are the rollout phases in SAP? ›
In general, executing an SAP rollout involves four phases: requirements gathering, design, testing, and deployment.
What are the phases of SAP rise? ›
The six phases (Discover, Prepare, Explore, Realize, Deploy, Run) provide a quick method to assess the overall progress of an intelligent enterprise implementation. Deliverables – An outcome that is delivered by executing one or more tasks.
How many types of implementation are there in SAP? ›
There are two common methods of SAP implementation that are Big Bang implementation and phased project implementation.
What is SAP activate methodology? ›
SAP Activate Methodology is a modular and agile framework helps project teams with detailed steps need to be delivered in each phase through the project by providing accelerators which makes work easier to accomplish task of a deliverable and workstreams which span across various phases.
What is the objective of explore phase? ›
In the Explore Phase, the project team reviews the solution scenarios to verify that business requirements can be met within the boundaries of the solution and project scope.
What are the phases of a rollout? There are four phases of a rollout. These are initiation, planning, execution, and wrapping up. The planning part is the most crucial phase simply because it needs lots of coordination and detail-oriented working.
What are the steps in SAP implementation? ›
8 Steps For a Successful SAP Implementation
- Establish a Team of Experts. ...
- Define Business Needs and Objectives (ROI) ...
- Realign Business Processes. ...
- Establish a Business Blueprint. ...
- Implement Your Business Blueprint. ...
- Complete Final Preparations. ...
- Conduct Live Production Operations. ...
- Establish a Post-Production Support Team.
Procedure
- In the SAP Management Console navigation view, open the tree structure and navigate to the system node you want to start.
- From the context menu of the system node, choose Start .
- In the Start SAP System(s) dialog box, choose the required options.
- Choose OK . The SAP MC starts the SAP system instances.
Table of Contents
- Processing Open Items.
- Overview of the Payment Run Procedure.
- Selecting Banks and Planning Available Amounts.
- Entering Payment Parameters.
- Creating the Payment Proposal.
- Editing the Payment Proposal (Online)
- Payment Release List.
- Running the Payment and Payment Medium Programs.
