Coffee Break with Game-Changers, presented by SAP

Defying Gravity: SMEs Go Global

April 17, 2013, 8AM Pacific Time / 11AM Eastern Time – LIVE

Hosted by Bonnie D. Graham

Today’s buzz: SMEs

The big question: Should we pin our hopes for a vibrant global economy, sustainable innovation, and job creation on high growth entrepreneurs – aka small and midsized enterprises (SMEs)?

The experts speak.

Aviva Freudmann, EIU: “SMEs in developed and developing economies show surprising similarities in their goals and expectations. For all the challenges they face in their business environments, they are an exceedingly optimistic bunch…”

Bryan Pearce, Ernst & Young: “Last year, our 650 U.S. EOY finalists employed 700,000 people, grew revenues 48% over two years, and achieved 30% job growth. They’ve learned how to defy gravity.”

Carl B. Lewis, Vision33: “Some SMEs are enterprise business in disguise, expanding their operations into other countries by starting new and independent business units.”

Kevin Gilroy, SAP: “SMEs have to change their mindset regarding IT in order to excel: understand IT is their friend, not foe. It’s simple, not complicated.”

Join us for more of their insights on Defying Gravity: SMEs Go Global.

Learn more >>

On March 12^th, 2012, Jennifer Schulze from SAP’s Ecosystem and Channels Product Marketing Team was a guest on the radio show ‘Build Your Business’, which is hosted by Barbara Weltman.

Click on the link below to listen to Jennifer talks about Small Businesses and SAP Rapid Deployment Solutions:

Build Your Business with SAP

Jennifer Schulze – Marketing Director, Ecosystem and Channels Product Marketing

Jennifer has worked for SAP since 2000.  As part of the Ecosystem and Channels Product Marketing Team, Jennifer’s team is responsible for marketing products for small and medium sized businesses.  This includes SAP Business One for small enterprises and SAP Business All-in-One for midsized companies.  She has over 15 years of experience marketing business management systems.

For more information: http://www.sap.com/sme/index.epx

SAP’s stellar success in building its blue-chip large enterprise business has often overshadowed its considerable but quieter achievements in small and medium business (SMBs) markets. But SAP is not a household name in the SMB community. Even technology insiders are often surprised to learn that SMBs (or as SAP refers them, small and medium enterprises, or SMEs) account for the majority of SAP’s 197,000 customer base.

But at SAP’s first small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) summit, hosted at the company’s New York offices in late November, co-CEO Bill McDermott and other key SAP execs made it clear that SAP is intensifying its aspirations and endeavors with new programs and initiatives that reach well beyond its conventional solutions.

From SME Solutions to an SME Ecosystem

Over the last few years, SAP has steadily grown its SME business with its traditional solution offerings. For instance, year-over-year revenues have grown 20% for SAP Business One, SAP’s flagship ERP offering for small businesses. As discussed in The Progressive SMB: Customer Stories are Worth 1,000 Analyst Words, SAP has been particularly attractive to Progressive SMBs, who realize the increasingly direct connection between strategic IT investments and successful business outcomes.

The steady growth of SAP solutions has been admirable, but, as we learned at the SME Summit, SAP is casting a much wider net through a series of different initiatives that bring SAP’s big data, mobile and cloud capabilities to smaller organizations in a more accessible manner. Together, these are starting to take the shape of a growing SAP SME ecosystem. For instance, SAP is:

• Growing and enabling the traditional partner channel. SAP channel partners currently account for one-third of SAP SME sales. SAP intends to raise this to 40% by 2015. To help accomplish this, SAP is enabling more of its traditional partners (VARs, SIs, MSPs, etc.) with Rapid Deployment Solutions (RDS).  Currently, SAP offers 150 RDS solutions, which provide businesses with fixed cost, fixed scope preconfigured software, best practices and implementation services that give customers everything they need to get up and running in just a few weeks. RDS has proven to be very instrumental in driving SAP’s growth in the SME sector. In the past year, RDS deployments in SME have outpaced the 500%+ overall RDS growth rate over the prior year. The importance of building and enabling the channel cannot be underestimated: according to SMB Group’s 2012 SMB Routes to Market Study, over half of SMBs purchase business applications through indirect channels.

• Recruiting partners to build micro-vertical solutions on Business One. The small business market is actually very fragmented. While all small businesses share some common needs, each micro-vertical has unique requirements and needs specific capabilities when it comes to business software. SAP is building a development-focused partner channel to zero in on the needs of each micro-vertical. For instance, SAP partner Orchestra is building specialized solutions on Business One for small businesses in the fuel, beer and food industries. OrchestraBeer was showcased at the Summit, and in this video interview, Ryan Hilliard, CEO of Hilliard’s Beer, a small startup with less than 10 employees, explains to me why he selected OrchestraBeer. Ryan plans to grow his business, and wanted a solution that would grow with him, and one over the lifetime of his business. But he also needed a turnkey solution geared to his business, and able to track specific metrics–such as batches and barrels of beer for visibility into his supply chain and production.

• Empowering startups with SAP HANA. At the Summit, SAP announced that it has powered over 150 startups in Silicon Valley with SAP HANA. These startups are using HANA as a development platform to provide SMBs with a new, user-friendly generation of real-time analytics and advanced predictive solutions. For instance, Vish Canaran, CEO of Liquid Analytics, talked about his company’s cloud-based, mobile analytics applications for iPhone, iPad, Blackberry and Android users.  As Vish explained to me in this video discussion, Liquid Analytics starts with the user experience to help optimize productivity. Liquid Analytics apps use gamification and predictive analytics to help make it easier, quicker and more fun for wholesale industry sales reps to place orders and set and meet sales goals. As noted in SMB Group’s 2012 SMB Routes to Market Study, the data fire hose is running at full blast and shows little signs of abating. But, the big gap in big data is painfully evident for small businesses: Just 18% have purchased/upgraded a business intelligence solution in the past 24 months, and only 17% plan to do so in the next 12 months. Solutions such as Liquid Analytics show promise to offer small businesses an accessible, user-friendly ways to harness big data for business good.

• Extending the Ariba network effect. As part of SAP’s recent Ariba acquisition, every SAP customer gets a free connection into the Ariba network (and any company, whether an SAP customer or not, can enroll as a Supplier on the Ariba Network). As revealed in our 2012 SMB Routes to Market Study, about one-quarter of SMBs sell goods and services to large enterprises. Since attracting new customers, growing revenues, and increasing profitability are perennial SMB challenges, we expect that SMB interest and involvement in big company supplier networks to heat up in 2013. As discussed in SMB Group’s Top 10 SMB Technology Predictions for 2013, access to the Ariba network is one opportunity that SMBs can leverage to compete for their share of the $300 billion dollars that large businesses spend annually on goods and services.

Looking Beyond Technology

SAP is also expanding its engagements with influencers, venture capitalists, governmental agencies and other vital SME catalysts. The Summit’s “Power of Small” panel featured speakers with wide-ranging perspectives and influence in the SME market, and underscored that SAP’s focus will go well beyond technology to include initiatives focused on policy, people, capital to help create an environment in which SMEs can thrive.

For example, Linda Rottenberg of Endeavor, who pioneered the examination of how high-growth business can transform economies, discussed the necessity of “mentor capital” for SME success. At the event, Bill McDermott announced that SAP has committed to help Endeavor select, mentor, and accelerate high-impact entrepreneurs on a global scale. Sunil Hirani of trueEX examined the effect of immigration policies on entrepreneurship in the U.S., and the importance of aligning governmental policies to help SMEs prosper.

Perspective

With these initiatives, SAP is tapping into a very important trend. As discussed in SMB Group’s Top 10 SMB Technology Predictions for 2013, Progressive SMBs, who invest more in technology and use technology for competitive advantage are also much more likely to anticipate revenue gains than peers whose tech investments are flat or declining. We also see this gap widening year over year, and expect that it will continue to do so.

Although not everyone at SAP may yet “get” small business, it was clear from the event that Co-CEO Bill McDermott does understand them, and also values the increasingly make or break role that technology plays for SMEs. SAP’s commitment to enabling partners to expose it technology in a relevant way, and its investment in the broader SME community were on display at this high-profile event, making it clear that McDermott wants to make SAP a household name among SMEs.  A lofty goal, to be sure, but one that SAP is very committed to aspiring to.

According to a recent

Continued divestiture activity as a consequence of corporates focusing on core operations may yield large carve-outs that are prime targets for PE.

A news release from PwC US on 2012 deal activity also cited divestitures as an important driver. In addition, middle market deals valued at $1 billion or less, including divestitures, accounted for 98 percent of deal activity through November. Both trends are expected to continue into 2013.

Many of the deals in 2013, both in the U.S. and globally, will include a medium-sized business or will result in the creation of a medium-sized business. The rapid deployment of information technology can influence the success of these transactions.

For example, if the divestiture is a spin-out (also known as a spin-off), the new business may be required to transition from the parent company’s IT infrastructure within a short time frame. As part of the transition, the selection and implementation of an ERP solution will need to happen quickly and predictably. A subsidiary or business unit sold to another party, as opposed to being spun off, can face similar challenges.

A spin-out isn’t the only reason a midsize company can require a new ERP solution – or require one quickly. Other reasons include:

• Running on spreadsheets is no longer working.
• Your current software is splitting at the seams due to business growth or doesn’t enable you to react quickly to new opportunities.
• The software doesn’t support planned international expansion or a new business model.
• Your current ERP software is no longer supported.

For companies needing a foundational ERP solution quickly with low risk and maximum predictability during the implementation project, the SAP Business All-in-One rapid-deployment solution can be a great fit. An SAP partner will have you up and running for a fixed price and on a predictable project time frame. And as with all SAP Business All-in-One solutions, it’s built on the proven SAP ERP application enabling the solution to grow with you, no matter what size you reach.

To get started, use the SAP Business All-in-One solution configurator to choose the business processes to be supported by the software. You can select processes for finance, purchasing, manufacturing, product development, and more.

The solution configurator has predefined templates for the most used functionality for manufacturing, services, and trading (wholesale distribution) companies. The templates provide a streamlined starting point for adding or removing preconfigured processes from your selected solution scope.

After you have selected your scope, you can request an immediate cost estimate based on your selections and the expected number of employees who will use the solution. You will get a link to your configuration enabling you to share the configuration and cost estimate with other stakeholders in your company, or to revise your selections in the future.

During the scoping and estimation process within the solution configurator, you can request for an SAP partner to contact you. The partner will provide a customized demo and work with you to finalize the selected scope for your solution and how you want it deployed – on-premise or hosted. At that point, the project scope, implementation services, and cost are fixed.

Your partner will guide you through the purchase and implementation processes, giving you a predictable outcome that minimizes risk and unexpected costs. Full implementation can be completed in as little as 12 weeks, and in some cases, even more rapidly. SAP and its partners understand the quicker you are using the software to run your business, the quicker the software can deliver value for your company.

Now what if your business grows or changes over time? Your SAP Business All-in-One solution can change with it. You can configure your solution to support additional industry-specific processes. You can use the solution to manage operations in other countries. It supports multiple languages, tax requirements, and currencies as well as country-specific regulations. Plus, you can extend the solution beyond ERP with additional rapid-deployment solutions offering functionality to address specific line-of-business or industry requirements.

Selecting and implementing a new ERP system doesn’t have to be a drawn-out process with changing costs and project time lines. With the SAP Business All-in-One rapid-deployment solution, midsize companies can implement SAP Business All-in-One quickly with maximum predictability and lower risk. Your company doesn’t have to be a corporate spin-out to benefit from a rapid ERP project.

As more and more small and midsize businesses (SMBs) face the growing business usage of mobile devices, many find they don’t have the IT resources or capital budget to support it.  This post looks at those challenges and explores how business can benefit from outsourcing to a managed mobility services provider.

Mobile device management is creating big workloads and security headaches for IT departments across the globe.  The growing use of bring your own device (BYOD) has been challenging for those looking to empower employees while maintaining appropriate security.  The challenges include things like: telecom expense management, connectivity management, managing various device types, limiting the risk from stolen devices, limiting the risks from unsanctioned applications, configuring devices over the air, and restoring forgotten passwords.  Additionally, even though good BYOD policies can provide cost control and productivity benefits, they have the potential to introduce even more diversity that requires rigorous security and data management on those devices.

But this is not the only mobility challenge companies face today.  The true power of business mobility comes from a growing portfolio of mobile business apps that provide instant access to real-time data for decision making and capturing information in the field.  All these apps require deployment and maintenance on the many devices used in the workplace.  This kind of mobility environment requires a huge up-front investment in technology, training, and support.

The good news is you don’t have to suffer under the weight of this burden.  There is a better way for your small or midsize business to manage business mobility; it’s called Managed Mobility Services or MMS.  MMS is a cloud-based solution delivered by a carrier or solutions provider whose service offering is based on a robust mobility management platform.  MMS service providers include mobile network operators, telecom expense managers, system integrators, and dedicated MMS providers.

MMS is ideal for small and midsize businesses that want faster time to value without the cost and risks of implementing and maintaining a mobility infrastructure and staff capable of supporting the business.  But picking the right MMS solution is critical.  Pick the wrong one and you can be stuck with limitations as your mobile needs grow.  Here are some criteria to consider when picking a service:

• Does it provide a complete mobility management platform from a global software vendor?
• Does it include a device and application management solution to manage all mobile devices and applications?
• Does the application management software provide extensive capabilities such as group policy-based app management, “zero touch” app configuration and features like automated and remote updates, a self-service application portal, and certificate management for single sign-on to back-end data systems?
• Are there device agnostic “off-the-shelf” mobile apps that you can rapidly deploy?
• Does the service include a mobile enterprise application platform (MEAP) for building enterprise-grade, device-agnostic mobile applications?
• Does the software provide advanced data synchronization to enable mobile apps to connect to any back-end database?

Picking the right service provider matters too.  Providers differ in what they offer for security and infrastructure management, service and SLA management, and reporting.  For example Verizon offers a cloud based managed mobility service built around the managing the entire lifecycle of smart phones and tablets.  The service provides cross-company wireless spend reporting, defines, enforces, and maintains strategic mobile policies, secures and manages Google Android and Apple iOS devices.  If needed they can design, develop and deploy applications, and even verify mandatory applications are adopted by the appropriate users.  Other providers offer similar, but not all, services.  So make sure you have a clear set of objectives before shopping.

Does all this sound like more than what you need?  You may want to consider starting simple with a cloud-based mobile device management service.  Smaller providers like Systech Integrators are taking advantage of low cost IT infrastructure (like Amazon Web Services) allowing them to offer the same on-premise enterprise mobile device management solution that larger enterprises use only in the Cloud with subscription based pricing.  This enables employees to use the device they want at work, while enabling IT to quickly and cost-effectively provision infrastructure with no up-front capital investment.

Mobilizing your business may not be as challenging as you might think.  An MMS can help you rapidly mobilize the business without complexity and high cost.  Together with efficient app management, a life-cycle approach to device management and more effective mobile expense management you can significantly reduce long-term operational costs.

Put yourself in control during these times of uncertainty.  If you do, you’ll grow your business and begin to see more clarity than ever.   Here are some ways to achieve this.

Your customers should be the heart of all you do.  Face it- they have more choices today than ever.  Make sure that they know you value them so they keep coming back to you.  You want them to know implicitly that you are willing to move mountains to make them happy.  Suggest to them how they can excel in ways they might never have considered and become a partner in success together.  If you do this, they will help you grow through their loyalty.  If you don’t, a new vendor/company is just a click away.  Don’t give them reason to shop somewhere else.

Modest Growth is respectable growth.  If you stick by this mantra, it will help you deal with unexpected change.  Hiring now might mean paying a relative to help out short term; that’s growth too.  Given the economy is still in recovery mode, this is not the time to expand rapidly.  Rather, it is likely the time to recoup and regroup.  This means building sales first, acquiring new customers in innovative ways and accumulating enough cash flow to weather possible tough future times.

Accept that you need to put in the time up front to see the efforts pay off down the road.  A friend of mine who is a small business owner has spent countless hours making new forms, as well as entering customer and pertinent tax data in the past months.  Why?  Not because he enjoys giving up weekends and evenings.  The reasoning is simple: long-term it will help save him time on a regular basis- like when tax time rolls around.  It’s a painful process today, but the benefits will pay off handsomely down the road.

Know when to let go.   There are regulations everywhere and it’s not getting any easier to navigate them all, or the many new ones coming.   Small businesses are feeling the pressure more acutely as each one has a direct impact on their business model.  According to the NFIB Research Foundation Study, regulations force project cancellations, abandonment and significant adjustment to project plans.  How does a small business owner tackle them to stay compliant while still focusing on their company?  The best option might be to outsource this task, or bring in someone on a short term basis to tackle it for you.  After all, this is a moving target and maybe getting an expert in short term will give you one less thing to worry about.

Maneuver with skill.  The steps being taken to spur growth of small businesses can most appropriately summed up in one word: confused.  On one hand, they may appear beneficial.  However, when looking closer, are they?  The corporate tax rate is slated to drop to 28% from 35% to spur growth.  On the flip side, any small business over 50 employees is going to need to provide health insurance.  Will what’s saved in taxes go to health insurance costs?  Some companies might choose to stay at 49 employees just to save costs.  However, that’s not a good long term strategy.  A better one might be to hire your relative, bring on short term contractors or even move out of state.  Managing your business will require looking at it holistically – with the adeptness to change fast and be able to have the right buttons to turn on/off easily.  These buttons could be ones like hiring that 50^th employee, outsourcing production, or even forgoing investment in new equipment.

Become a Balancing Expert: As a small business owner, you need to not only continue to run your business effectively, but also continue to master new things coming.   Many of the answers you find on your quest for certainty and clarity may be found in unlikely places- from peers who’ve made mistakes you can learn from, your own mishaps, or even from that part time expert you had to hire to help you navigate the new health care laws or business regulations.  Whatever you do, don’t sit back and hope for clarity or an easy break.  It’s not likely to come soon in this dynamic business climate.  Put yourself in control instead.

About the Author:

Jennifer Schulze is a small business owner in San Francisco, California.  She also helps companies manage their small business challenges at SAP, where she markets software that aids small and midsize companies in running better.

Sources:
http://www.nfib.com/research-foundation/surveys/growth-study?utm_campaign=Research&utm_source=Releases&utm_medium=Releases&utm_content=growthstudy
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/24/obamacare-small-business-health-care-survey_n_2011039.html
 

HANA, SAP’s in-memory computing engine has factored into SAP conversations for a couple of years now. Often HANA and in-memory computing are associated with “big data”, and hence associated with big companies. So the introduction of a HANA product for SAP Business One, SAP’s Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) solution for small to midsize enterprises (SMEs) might not resonate immediately. And yet SAP has not one, but two Business One products for SAP HANA:

• SAP Business One Analytics, powered by SAP HANA
• SAP Business One, version for SAP HANA

Given 79% of its customers are SMEs, SAP must know this segment of the ERP market, particularly the lower end, which is the target market for Business One, does not buy or implement technology for technology’s sake. There must be a perceived business value. Read on to discover when, why and how either or both of these offerings can bring value to the small business running Business One.

What are These Two Versions?

SAP Business One Analytics powered by SAP HANA is currently available while SAP Business One version for SAP HANA is still on the (future) horizon.

SAP Business One Analytics powered by SAP HANA

Back in June, SAP Business One Analytics powered by SAP HANA was in what SAP calls its “ramp up” phase.  This phase sits between the beta version and generally available (GA). During this stage, the software is delivered to a limited number of customers. Once a significant number of those customers have gone live, the product exits ramp up and becomes generally available. Currently there are 24 live customers, with 20 additional implementations underway.

Analytics for SAP Business One includes predefined content (reports and dashboards) and provides interactive analysis based on an online analytical processing (OLAP) data model (also predefined). You can also create your own ad hoc reports using Crystal Reports. Enterprise search is also provided, allowing structured and unstructured free text search. Think of it as a Google search that crosses the boundary between your enterprise applications and the public domain of the Internet.

Customers running SAP Business One Analytics powered by SAP HANA continue to run the (transactional) ERP solution on their existing Windows servers using the Microsoft SQL database. The Analytics will run on a separate appliance, a Linux-based server where the SAP HANA database will also reside. Pricing will vary based on the actual configuration of the hardware and SAP does have a special pricing model for the SAP SME HANA products, but there will be an investment required. But before you assume that level of investment is out of your reach, talk with the SAP Business One partner that supports you. SAP has gone to great lengths to keep the price tag within reach for the SME.

SAP Business One version for SAP HANA

The second product, which went into ramp up in late September 2012, is SAP Business One, version for SAP HANA. A beta version was demonstrated during SAPPHIRENOW in Orlando on May 16, 2012, also demonstrating that SAP HANA is not just for the big guys. It is expected to be generally available late 2013. Think of this as SAP Business One with “HANA inside.”

This version will allow both the transactional and analytical processing to be run on the same server, both of which will be super-charged for speed.  While normally associated with “big data,” HANA is as much about speed as it is big data. And with speed, it is normal to add more and more data, reaching beyond that which is normally stored in enterprise applications. Think about the enormous potential of useful but unstructured data that is floating out there via the Internet.

While generally a database is optimized either for transaction processing (e.g. ERP) or analytics, can one solution be optimized for both? SAP says, “Yes, with SAP HANA.” However, even though both will run on one box, SAP Business One version for SAP HANA will not run on the box that customers run SAP Business One on today. So again, there will be some investment required; explore those costs with SAP and its partners. If you feel this would be a path you might take, there is no reason to delay your purchase of the Analytics powered by SAP HANA. You can take full advantage of the speed and functionality available today with SAP’s assurance that your investment will be protected.

Those that are satisfied with performance today or cannot justify the expenditure and transition to SAP Business One version for SAP HANA may choose to continue running SAP Business One on MSSQL. They will still have the option of purchasing the Analytics powered by HANA on a separate appliance.

Case in Point: Nashua Communications (Pty) Ltd

Nashua Communications is a good example of an SAP Business One customer that has been and will continue to evaluate different options presented by SAP. As a leading provider of converged enterprise network and communications solutions, the company is based in South Africa. It specializes in the design, implementation and support of converged networking and security solutions that use open, standards-based architecture to unify communications and business applications for a seamless collaboration experience. Nashua Communications is running live on SAP Business One Analytics powered by SAP HANA.

The company has a long history with SAP. Up until a few years ago it was part of Siemens and its global enterprise communication arm (Siemens Enterprise Communications PTY).  As part of the Siemens family, it had been using SAP R/3 for the prior 15 years. This changed when Siemens divested this group and it became part of the Nashua Group (within the Reunert Ltd Company).

According to Darren de Vries, Nashua Communication’s Chief Information Officer (CIO), “During our 15 years on SAP R/3 we had accumulated a lot of IP [intellectual property] around reporting. When we migrated to SAP Business One, this was one of our biggest challenges – 15 years of custom-written reports and queries were no longer there. The challenge had not so much to do with functionality – we had all we needed with some customization to SAP Business One and add-on software, but the standard SAP Business One reporting just couldn’t replace 15 years’ worth of time, effort and knowledge.

“In response to the challenge, we purchased the Business Objects (BOBJ) Business Intelligence (BI) tool and started implementing it. We were working with a South African partner of SAP’s that had BOBJ skills but not in conjunction with SAP Business One, so we found the project not the easiest; and progress was slower than expected.”

At this point SAP approached them directly about SAP HANA. “HANA was all about speed, in memory. But what appealed to us the most was that we could buy it off the shelf to work with SAP Business One right away. It was a no- brainer to our CFO. He said, ‘I want this. Go ahead.’”

When Nashua Communications signed on with SAP HANA it was still in the ramp-up phase and therefore the company was instrumental in identifying some problems, but these were resolved. Most had to do with the customizations and add-on functionality it had added to SAP Business One. This was a thorough test since Nashua Communications puts the solution through more paces than the typical SAP Business One customer. At the 300 user mark, if not the largest, it is at least one of the largest SAP Business One customers.

Because of the “newness” of the solution both to the market and to the company, Nashua Communication chose to roll it out first to a selected group of about 10 power users. Mr. de Vries goes on to say, “We are running now on a live environment and once we resolve the odd little glitch here and there, we are very keen to roll it out to the entire user base. We see enormous potential in terms of enterprise searching, speed and access to real-time data. We will empower each and every user as much as possible, but will keep report and query writing to a more technology literate group of people.”

So what about taking the next step to SAP Business One version for SAP HANA when it becomes available? Mr. de Vries states, “We see value in taking transactions to SAP HANA; performance is like night and day. If there is a cost to upgrade, we would have to come up with a business case to justify, just as we have done for the analytics side.

“For the Analytics powered by SAP HANA, the basis for cost justification was our fairly complex needs in terms of data and reporting. Quite frankly, we had struggled to get Business Objects up and running on Business One. The improved speed we experienced was a major factor. Equally important was access to live data rather than data that was 12 to 24 hours old.

“We also experienced a benefit that is quite unique to the South African market. Unlike the US where good telecommunication service is expected and people talk (rather loudly) about bad service, it is just the opposite in South Africa. Expectations are lower and people sing praises when good service exceeds expectations. We are hoping this access to live information will give us a competitive advantage to provide excellence in products and service.”

Key TakeAways

It is clear that a key value proposition for SAP HANA is speed, and even small to midsize enterprises can be faced with a growing challenge of making sense from and managing more and more data. Whether you consider this “big data” or not, the ability to apply analytics in real time without bogging down the transactional system of record can lead to a competitive advantage.

If you are an SME running SAP Business One now, or considering transitioning to this solution, don’t overlook the added strength of analytics powered by SAP HANA today. The enterprise search capabilities alone may suffice to justify making the transition. As SAP Business One version for SAP HANA becomes available later this year, this version, together with speed and the ability to better handle the growing data challenge should be a no-brainer for those just starting out. Existing customers will need to carefully review the business case for making the transition. For these customers, don’t assume SME means small data and don’t overlook the need for speed.

Recently, I have been posting a series of

Mobile access to ERP brings the data contained in ERP to the fingertips of employees. This aids in data access, helps to streamline processes, increases efficiencies for employees both inside and outside of the home office, and promotes cost savings and decision-making. Still, only a minority of SMEs (organizations under $500 million in annual revenue) have enabled this access. But Figure 1 shows that mobile access is already a competitive differentiator. Best-in-Class organizations are more likely than All Others to already have implemented mobile access to ERP. Additionally, a significant amount of organizations are planning to implement this access in the near future. This tells us that mobile ERP access may soon be a standard.

Source: Aberdeen Group, August 2012

But why are these organizations implementing mobile access to ERP? Mobile ERP enables a series of capabilities that can have a significant impact on the business, which are illustrated in Table 1.

Source: Aberdeen Group, August 2012

One of the most important capabilities is data entry at the point of activity. This helps to avoid rework and mistakes, and adds efficiency to processes. For example, a warehouse worker can take inventory on their hand held device rather than have to walk back to a work station and input information manually. Another way in which mobility enhances operations is through the communication of work instructions. For example, field service technicians can access work instructions from their mobile device to help them better perform their job.

But most importantly, mobile access to ERP enables real-time access to information. As Table 1 illustrates, organizations with mobile access are providing data in the form of alerts and reports to decision-makers in order for them to make informed, agile decisions. They are better able to receive alerts (enabling action from anywhere) and can constantly keep an eye on the business no matter where, or when, they are.

The proof of the enhanced decision-making is contained in Figure 2. SMEs with mobile access are making quicker decisions year-over-year and are able to provide actionable data more often during the business decision-window. How often do you receive information after you already had to make a decision that the data would have influenced? Mobile access to ERP can help that problem. These are the reasons why Best-in-Class organizations have started to implement mobile ERP and will continue to do so in the future.

Source: Aberdeen Group, August 2012

If you’d like to take part in my 2012 ERP survey and receive access to my research, please click here.

To find past research from Aberdeen’s ERP practice click here, or read my blog here.

Pre-configured software.  Smoother implementations.  Faster adoption.  Sound like something that your small or medium sized business could benefit from?

After all, you have some of the same challenges any company does.  You want to remain competitive.  The pressure you feel happens right away and is often more acute.  Larger companies can weather IT projects that unexpectedly grow in complexity, cost, and time.  As a fast-growing company, reaching your business objectives, being on-time, on-budget, and with the desired outcome for your IT project are non-negotiable.

Find out how you can use the SAP Business All-in-One rapid-deployment solution to meet these goals.  It’s a proven solution that can be up and running in just 8 weeks.  Not convinced it’s priced and tailored for you?  We have a tool, the solution configurator, which provides an immediate cost estimate for software, hardware, and implementation services based on how you scope your solution.

Want to learn more?  Check out the blog here.

Recently, I have been posting a series of

Currently, 18% of ERP deployments in SMEs (organizations under $500 million in annual revenue) are in the cloud. This could either mean Software as a Service (SaaS), hosted by the software vendor, or hosted by a third-party. While this may seem like a small amount, it is a figure that is sure to increase in the future. Figure 1, shows the deployment options that SMEs would be willing to consider for their next ERP deployment.

Source: Aberdeen Group, August 2012

While the traditional on-premise deployment model for ERP is still the leader, data from my SaaS and Cloud ERP Trends, Observations, and Performance 2011 report indicated that we have seen a year over year increase in the willingness to consider ERP in the cloud, while we have also seen a year over year decrease in the willingness to consider the on-premise model. This tells us that in the near future deployment model may not matter as much, and organizations will be able to just focus on whether prospective solutions have the needed functionality and meet the correct price point.

So why would SMEs be willing to consider the cloud model for their ERP deployment? Figure 2 lists the top reasons.

Source: Aberdeen Group, August 2012

Many of the top reasons that organizations are willing to consider cloud ERP involve costs. A cloud solution may have a lower total cost of ownership, and lower upfront costs. A key benefit of ERP paid for in the subscription model is that it can be recorded as a monthly operating expense rather than a large upfront capital expenditure. There are no upgrade costs because upgrades are handled automatically by the ERP vendor. This means that the solution automatically stays up to date without strain on the business. With a cloud solution, organizations can receive the improved efficiencies that ERP provides while acquiring the resources they need to expand operations.

Some cost savings of a cloud solution are not immediately evident. Cloud ERP minimizes the strain on internal IT departments, as IT support is handled by the ERP vendor. Again, this is attractive for organizations that want to focus the resources that would be used to support and maintain an ERP deployment on other essential areas of the organization. There is no need to build an IT staff to support ERP with a cloud solution.

Another factor that positively influences cloud ERP decisions is the perception that cloud ERP is easier to implement. Aberdeen has found that the time from installation to the first “Go Live” milestone is significantly shorter for cloud ERP than it is for on-premise. SaaS ERP is attractive for organizations that want to quickly get up and running – especially for organizations in a massive growth phase, which could quickly spiral out of control without ERP.

Lastly it is telling that 50% of organizations that are willing to consider SaaS ERP are looking for the best fit solution, regardless of deployment model. This is consistent with the trend that cloud ERP and on-premise are approaching equal consideration. My upcoming report, ERP Selection: Finding the Right Fit illustrates what the top factors should be when selecting an ERP. In fact, deployment model was not one of the top 10 factors. It is becoming more and more clear that deployment model for ERP is only a small piece of the ERP puzzle. What SMEs need to consider when selecting an ERP solution is the fit and features, and whether the organization can afford the solution. The reasons listed above illustrate why a cloud ERP solution could fit very well within that strategy.

If you’d like to take part in my 2012 ERP survey and receive access to my research, please click here.

To find past research from Aberdeen’s ERP practice click here, or read my blog here.