I have just selected as SAP Community Hero for year 2018, many thanks to everyone who nominated and supported me and again many thanks to Community selection board that selected me.
I believe my most important duty is to bring real community problems to discuss with all related parties. That is why I selected this blog to share after being a SAP community hero. I am not trying to address or blame any party, I am just bringing what it has been told.
Unstoppable S/4HANA versions and Innovations
Once S/4HANA is first announced in year 2014, all of us excited about the offerings that have been shared and showed. We have spent first year about to understand the real benefit and disruptive improvements brought by S/4HANA. Then in 2015 real S/4HANA is released which is called version 1508 that contains new code set and Logistics Simplifications. This has new core component called S4CORE.
Each and every year SAP improved functionality and released new versions. Every version brought new possibilities, for example embedded TM was brought by version 1709.
Now we have latest version 1809, embedded Customer Management 2.0 is available with this version.
Why I have listed all these details, because one of the main barriers is all these bunch of S/4HANA versions and unstoppable SAP innovations 🙂 You might say why are you complaining about continuous innovations, this what we need in this new digital economy era. I am totally agree with you, however, mature SAP customers could not get into moving S/4HANA train. Once they decide a version/roadmap, Oops SAP has releases a new version and new functionality, all discussions start from beginning.
So Customers needs a S/4HANA stop, to get into S/4HANA train.
Fast Changing Deployment and Licencing Options
Early stages of S/4HANA product there were 2 main products and so called options: On-premise and cloud. Customers who have complex business scenarios gone with on-premise, lean ones has selected cloud versions, however today on-premise versions can be deployed on SAP cloud (HEC), with all functionality. Licence can be purchased/converted on subscription bases, including one time/year free upgrade. If you are a new customer this sounds great, however what will happen to existing SAP products which can not be moved to HEC(because of Legal or private reasons), from technical point of view it is possible and recommended by SAP architects. If you have MII or ME of course you need to run them locally even if your S/4HANA in running on HEC.
But how will licence BOM will look like? Customers needs a clear licence policy, what will be the final destination, will all products be on subscription base? Even if they run on-premise and managed by own.
SAP Product Offerings and Names Changing too Fast
As I have written beginning of this blog, S/4HANA has changed the known ERP rules and approaches. Disruptive innovations both in UX and DB side re-shaped everything, this is fare, however, it shattered SAP as well, what will happen to SRM? CRM?Hybris?VM?Payroll?SNC?APO?...all of them has own replacement it is ok, but how, when, transition period? How long can I use my SRM with S/4HANA? will the be an extension?
All these questions are slowing S/4HANA conversion decisions.
Finally Mature SAP customers need a clear stop or method to get into S/4HANA train. Each and every customer want to get into as fast as it is possible, however today's circumstances are not too safe to get into moving train.
Cheers,
@sarhanpolatates
