Analyzing the Benefits of Clean Core for Users

A clean core enables users to make better decisions faster with increased data quality and availability.

In the second unit, we articulated a precise definition of clean core. We saw that a clean core means a system that is as close to standard as possible. The system runs cloud-compliant extensions and integrations that are created using standardized guidelines and best practices from SAP. Also we saw that SAP Cloud ERP is effective in tackling the challenges that a modern enterprise faces when it is maintained with a clean core across all relevant principles.

In this unit, we look at the benefits of a clean core ERP. We'll use a concrete example to explore the benefits of clean core for various stakeholders. In this first lesson, we start with the most important one: users. In the following two lessons, we look at the IT staff and the company as a whole respectively.

The true value of enterprise software is created by the people who use it every day to carry out the tasks that enterprises depend on to fulfill their purpose and mission. Those tasks are oriented towards all the stakeholders of an enterprise - employees, customers, investors, and society in general.

Enter Gritty Pixel a production company that is facing several challenges that are hindering its growth and competitive edge. Gritty Pixel is in the business of creating inspiring graphics and videos. Their products are world-class, sharp, and visually appealing. However, behind the scenes, they are suffering due to significant technical debt in their legacy SAP ECC system. It's loaded with redundant features from past customizations not to mention large amounts of duplicated data.

The challenges more specifically are centered on the following:

• Data silos and inefficient communication: Because of their fragmented ECC system end users in different departments within the company operated in silos, resulting in a lack of coordination and poor communication. This led to delays, errors, and duplicated efforts.
• Significant technical debt: The IT department was operating under an unsustainable burden of managing extensive custom code and complex system landscapes that prevented timely upgrades and left the organization vulnerable to technical obsolescence.
• Difficulty innovating to maintain their competitive edge: The limitations of the ECC system was preventing the company from pursuing strategic business opportunities that would advance their competitive position and unlock new revenue streams..

We explore the benefits of clean core for end users through the eyes of Jane. She is a clerk in the production department and has spent a significant amount of time manually tracking and managing production orders and material inventories. She was wanting a better way. The problem stemmed from production orders being in ECC while inventory information was in a non-SAP system. In addition incoming sales orders were in another different non-SAP system. The IT department had built interfaces linking the three systems. Incoming sales orders were transferred to the ECC system where a corresponding production order was created (a classic make to order scenario). An additional interface transferred the production order to the inventory system where, if necessary, appropriate purchase orders for raw materials used in the production process were created.

This approach however led to data silos not to mention redundant data that was frequently out of sync. Jane was responsible for logging into both the SAP and non-SAP systems several times a day to reconcile (and synchronize) sales, production and purchase orders. Jane also ran manual reports overnight as batch jobs, so that each morning she (hopefully) started the day with all data synchronized. However, this rarely happened since production and scheduling activities were applied globally. As a result, when she picked up the report each morning the data was already "stale". Therefore, Jane was frequently frustrated as she felt that she was "treading water", unable to stay on top of important tasks.

Recognizing the need for a comprehensive solution to address these challenges, Gritty Pixel decided to move forward with a transformation program centered on SAP Business Suite. As part of the adoption of SAP Business Suite they decided to replace their convoluted legacy systems and to modernize their landscape by embarking on a brownfield implementation migrating their legacy SAP ECC to SAP Cloud ERP Private. As mentioned in the previous lesson one of their goals was to "get the core clean". By modernizing their ERP Jane experienced immediate and clear benefits. Let's explore how these benefits occurred.

A thoughtfully executed brownfield migration to SAP Cloud ERP, grounded in clean core principles, can deliver measurable value across all organizational levels.

Firstly for Jane all legacy systems were retired and the corresponding processes they were implementing are now covered entirely by SAP Cloud ERP. Gritty Pixel took a "fit to standard" approach for the most part with only a few minor deviations from the out of the box processes of SAP Cloud ERP. By adopting standard processes sales, production, and inventory management are now harmonized in one system with no need to interface with other systems. As a result, the former background jobs now run as real time applications with virtually no latency.

As an added benefit the system conversion has resulted in clean data. Jane now can trust that the data she looks at on her reports is reliable and up-to-date. As a result, the risk of her making a decision based on incorrect or outdated information is eliminated, leading to improved overall business outcomes.

By adopting a clean core, a company can modernize its technology foundation while preserving valuable business investments and historical data, ultimately enabling faster innovation cycles and more efficient operations across all organizational levels.

SAP Cloud ERP with a clean core allows users to collaborate more meaningfully by using one version of the truth to break down siloed departments.