ERP Cloud solutions like SAP S/4HANA Cloud and SAP S/4HANA Cloud, Extended Edition have the advantage of standard processes with multiple updates per year. The customers can innovate continuously in incremental steps, Innovation-as-a-Service.
Many customers choose the SAP S/4HANA Cloud, single tenant edition first with the SAP S/4HANA Cloud on their future implementation roadmap. So the question is, how does that change the implementation of the Extended Edition, when eventually the customer is implementing SAP S/4HANA Cloud in the near future? We first need to have a look at the SAP S/4HANA Cloud implementation first.
Key characteristics that influence the single tenant edition scenario are:
The implementation of SAP S/4HANA Cloud, Extended Edition should get close to these characteristics and that leads to 5 Golden Rules:
Rule 1. Foster cloud principals
Innovate continuously, use the standard wherever you can. Before extending a business process, ask if you can use the standard as such. Use the software implementation to get more efficient and effective. Use the Fit-to-standard for scoping by evaluating standard processes (SAP Best Practices) first.
Learn continuously. Build a learning organization that is able to adjust quickly.
Rule 2. Usage of SAP Best Practices – how-to Fit-to-Standard
Best Practices for SAP S/4HANA Cloud, Extended Edition are published in the Best Practice Explorer.
Use the DEV system to prepare a client that is working like the starter system in SAP S/4HANA Cloud:
The SAP Activate Methodology for SAP S/4HANA Cloud can be found here.
*update July 31* the SAP Activate methodology for SAP S/4HANA Cloud, Extended Edition can be found here.
The following figure describes the Discover to Explore scoping process from value determination to the q-gate. The Fit-to-standard is focusing on the business processes. The standard is evaluated and requirements are documented. These are handed over to experts to determine the details. This means also, determine the options on how to fulfill the requirements. Especially in extensions, there might me more than one option to realize.
Rule 3 and 4 are about how to define Integrations and extensions.
Rule 3. Cloud Like Integrations – white listed APs preferred
The two cloud solutions share the code line, but nevertheless there are technical differences. The ‘Integration’ topic is one of them. During the implementation the integrated business processes go through an innovation cycle like the single system processes. When determining the technical details for realizations, white-listed APIs that are available in both ERP cloud solutions are preferred. If those are not available for your scenario evaluate the API roadmap and the availability of alternatives (non-white listed interfaces). Document all found interfaces to make visible how many integrations are "cloud-like", and how many not.
Rule 4. Cloud Like Extensions
The first choice is always to use the system settings to create new processes (aka scope items), avoid extension wherever you can. But this is not always possible so, if this leaves requirements open you have several options in SAP S/4HANA Cloud, Extension Edition. Since the IMG and SE80 are open, you have a wide range of options to extend. Keep in mind that most of those options are not available in SAP S/4HANA Cloud. Those which are, are preferred. For SAP S/4HANA Cloud Extended Edition key-user extensions y and Side-by-side extensions also using white-listed APIs are preferred.
Last, but not least.
Rule 5. Make your choices transparent
It might not be possible to always stay within the golden rules, you might need to use non-white listed API’s, you might want to extend with your own tables. It is the customers decision on how he wants to implement. With every quality gate we recommend including an analysis with regards to these rules. For Example: how many integrations are using white listed APIs and how many are not.
Also, design documents including process models and test scripts can be reused in the future to understand the choices made at the time. SAP delivers new Best Practices and API’s multiple times per year and for future evaluations on how close the customer is to SAP Best Practice, the documentation on the current single tenant edition implementation is vital for the future move to the multi-tenant public cloud environment.
5 Rules easy to remember
Be cloud, choose standard where you can, cloud like integrations and extensions and be transparent!
*update July 31* the SAP Activate methodology for SAP S/4HANA Cloud, Extended Edition can be found here.
Stay tuned, more blogs are to come on that topic of how to implement SAP S/4HANA Cloud, Extended Edition.
Helpful links:
SAP Roadmap Viewer -> SAP Activate Methodologies
SAP Jam for Methodology , not a member? Request access
SAP Best Practice Explorer
SAP API Business Hub
SAP Extensibility Explorer
Many customers choose the SAP S/4HANA Cloud, single tenant edition first with the SAP S/4HANA Cloud on their future implementation roadmap. So the question is, how does that change the implementation of the Extended Edition, when eventually the customer is implementing SAP S/4HANA Cloud in the near future? We first need to have a look at the SAP S/4HANA Cloud implementation first.
Key characteristics that influence the single tenant edition scenario are:
- Business Processes are SAP Best Practices published in the Best Practice Explorer
- Three-tier landscape with a Starter tenant (for scoping), Quality and Productive tenant
- Highly standardized integration with communication scenarios and arrangements using white listed APIs published in the SAP API Hub.
- In-app and Side-by-side extensions to extend business processes, no modifications.
- Automatic testing for regression testing to enable quarterly upgrade.
The implementation of SAP S/4HANA Cloud, Extended Edition should get close to these characteristics and that leads to 5 Golden Rules:
Rule 1. Foster cloud principals
Innovate continuously, use the standard wherever you can. Before extending a business process, ask if you can use the standard as such. Use the software implementation to get more efficient and effective. Use the Fit-to-standard for scoping by evaluating standard processes (SAP Best Practices) first.
Learn continuously. Build a learning organization that is able to adjust quickly.
Rule 2. Usage of SAP Best Practices – how-to Fit-to-Standard
Best Practices for SAP S/4HANA Cloud, Extended Edition are published in the Best Practice Explorer.
Use the DEV system to prepare a client that is working like the starter system in SAP S/4HANA Cloud:
- Use the Business Driven Configuration questionnaire to prepare for the Fit-to-standard
- Avoid client 000,
- Use system settings only to prepare new processes (Scope Items),
- Document all created processes with business process model and test script,
- One Controlling area only,
- Document all delta requirements and determine feasibility and efforts on realizing them
- *new* Use SAP S/4HANA Best Practices and SAP Model Company Version 1809 or higher, Compliant to cloud content architecture guidelines; no copy of client 000 configuration
The SAP Activate Methodology for SAP S/4HANA Cloud can be found here.
*update July 31* the SAP Activate methodology for SAP S/4HANA Cloud, Extended Edition can be found here.
The following figure describes the Discover to Explore scoping process from value determination to the q-gate. The Fit-to-standard is focusing on the business processes. The standard is evaluated and requirements are documented. These are handed over to experts to determine the details. This means also, determine the options on how to fulfill the requirements. Especially in extensions, there might me more than one option to realize.
Rule 3 and 4 are about how to define Integrations and extensions.
Rule 3. Cloud Like Integrations – white listed APs preferred
The two cloud solutions share the code line, but nevertheless there are technical differences. The ‘Integration’ topic is one of them. During the implementation the integrated business processes go through an innovation cycle like the single system processes. When determining the technical details for realizations, white-listed APIs that are available in both ERP cloud solutions are preferred. If those are not available for your scenario evaluate the API roadmap and the availability of alternatives (non-white listed interfaces). Document all found interfaces to make visible how many integrations are "cloud-like", and how many not.
Rule 4. Cloud Like Extensions
The first choice is always to use the system settings to create new processes (aka scope items), avoid extension wherever you can. But this is not always possible so, if this leaves requirements open you have several options in SAP S/4HANA Cloud, Extension Edition. Since the IMG and SE80 are open, you have a wide range of options to extend. Keep in mind that most of those options are not available in SAP S/4HANA Cloud. Those which are, are preferred. For SAP S/4HANA Cloud Extended Edition key-user extensions y and Side-by-side extensions also using white-listed APIs are preferred.
Last, but not least.
Rule 5. Make your choices transparent
It might not be possible to always stay within the golden rules, you might need to use non-white listed API’s, you might want to extend with your own tables. It is the customers decision on how he wants to implement. With every quality gate we recommend including an analysis with regards to these rules. For Example: how many integrations are using white listed APIs and how many are not.
Also, design documents including process models and test scripts can be reused in the future to understand the choices made at the time. SAP delivers new Best Practices and API’s multiple times per year and for future evaluations on how close the customer is to SAP Best Practice, the documentation on the current single tenant edition implementation is vital for the future move to the multi-tenant public cloud environment.
5 Rules easy to remember
Be cloud, choose standard where you can, cloud like integrations and extensions and be transparent!
*update July 31* the SAP Activate methodology for SAP S/4HANA Cloud, Extended Edition can be found here.
Stay tuned, more blogs are to come on that topic of how to implement SAP S/4HANA Cloud, Extended Edition.
Helpful links:
SAP Roadmap Viewer -> SAP Activate Methodologies
SAP Jam for Methodology , not a member? Request access
SAP Best Practice Explorer
SAP API Business Hub
SAP Extensibility Explorer
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