Intro SAP Activate, based on Agile
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- Опубліковано 8 лип 2024
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Note : 4'46'' A balloon is shown only a very very short time. It is from block "Build" : "5. You come with this now? Design phase is long closed"
SAP Activate methodology with links to access. Training for SAP S/4 Hana, based on Ready-to-run and Agile, guided configuration. Learn quick overview. Getting started Framework, self service UI’s. open.sap.com/courses, SAP Activate, implementation, introduction, project management, ASAP Methodology. Highlights, project management, hana, agile methodology, agile project management, SAP.
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Thank you so much for this quick start, please keep sharing with us your knowledge around Activate SAP methodology.
Concise, clear presentation for a great start.
Stefan, thanks to share the presentation about SAP Activate based on Agile. Have a nice day.
Thank you for this overview
very nicely done presentation .
HEY STEFAN: VERY USEFUL AND INFORMATIVE VIDEO. THANKS
Stefan, Thanks for this simple explanation , could you guide from where to start on SAP ACTIVATE From the scratch , for a BASIS Netweaver Consultant working in SAP since 10 + years
Page 1
Here an overview of SAP Activate, and especially on the aspect “Agile” an outline what it is and why SAP is promoting it now.
Page 2
SAP Activate is
- the framework, meaning that the old frameworks Launch and ASAP are stopped being developed and will phase out. It include several elements, which will be outlined right after these three bullets.
- for SAP S/4HANA implementations. Please note that there are pre-requisites and conditions, but to keep it simple, they are not included in this presentation. Check your specific case upfront with official SAP documentation.
- throughout the customer life-cycl, this is realized by adding assets and support for all phases. From orientation, implementation as well maintenance.
The Framework offers
- Best practices, which are industry specific assets
- Guided configuration, which aims to make it easier and have expert configuration only done where it contribute to business differentiating cases and
- Agile promoted as an alternative method, aside waterfall
The next information is organized according to these three bullets.
Page 3
This slide gives an outline on the Best Practices, which are captured in all kind of assets.
“Ready-to-run” is a key aspect. The name “Activate” is derived from this. It means that the flow is, including master data already functioning.
Here an overview of all kind of assets included, from presentations supporting the understanding, process diagrams, test-scripts and cut-over plans. Thus, if you stay with these pre-defined industry specific processes, this is all ready.
Here some more assets, tools and concepts lined up and recommended.
- iRise is Process visualization software
- Design thinking is a formal method for the creation of solutions
There is material available to support several types of projects, listed here below.
Page 4
Guided configuration is based on the “activation” concept.
It is done in 3 steps:
1. First, based on the scoping the relevant ready-to-run processes are activated in the solution builder.
2. The second step is to personalize these, with self service user interfaces
3. In the last step application-experts can do specific configuration and development. So this is where the traditional transaction SPRO is. The recommendation is to do this only, if the process and deviation from the ready-to-run processes are substantial business differentiators.
Page 5
SAP Activate promotes Agile. The next slides are focusing on this method. This slide aims to summarize on the why-question. But do note that Agile does have its own prerequisites and challenges.
Here the waterfall approach.
First driver to consider another method is that the society in general is faster. Companies are more keen to deploy benefit quicker.
Secondly listed is that the reality-check is late. Testing and actual business usage is months after the first designs. People do think better when they see an outline of the solution.
Do realize that two groups are working from a complete different background. Consultants might have industry knowledge, but don’t know all specifics on this business. The user-organization is likely not to know the to-be application with all its details.
In Waterfall the analyses-phase does consider the full scope in ones. The whole team in this phase do inspire each other and people want to make sure they don’t miss out on something or make mistakes, as they can’t oversee the impact of it.
Different phases do appreciate different skills. Both consulting companies as well user-organizations tend to change resources. If it is not for the skill, there is a cost-reason. This leads to handovers, which are inefficiencies, as well a risk on quality.
Last highlight is the fact that “changes” are hard to handle in this model. Stages close but by seeing the solution better and better, the customer might realize it specified wrongly or forgot aspects.
And aside that, there might be changes in the business during the project.
Page 6
The next 3 slides the main characteristics of Agile are highlighted.
First aspect is that Agile advocates to note down “Customer requirement” as use-cases or as “user-stories”.
For example, a customer requirement could be: we need an overview of open sales orders and the total balance.
As user-story this could be:
As a : sales rep.
I want : to have an overview of open Sales Orders and the total balance
So that : I can control exposure from this customer
Now we understand who needs it and what the intended goal is. This might well be a good solution in their old application but in the new system there is a completely other solution supported. In this case a credit block. The system will automatically block the sales order based on the outstanding balance from this customer.
The most famous characteristic of Agile is the iterative delivery. In rather short time-boxes, 1 to 4 weeks, actual useful functionalities should be delivered.
So if an “user-story” is too big for that, it should be broken in smaller. Stories should fit time-boxes. In an SAP situation, a process might have to be stripped of all its features, and these needs to be delivered as separate stories.
Go lives are never postponed. The comparison with the newspaper is helpful. If breaking news comes in just before the deadline, the newspaper is not postponed, rather a short article is published, with the comment that in the next newspaper more details will follow.
”Think through and document only what is needed the next 2 time-boxes” - the stories should not be detailed design, nor it is good to have them too long on the shelf.
By this way of working, it’s much easier to adjust to changes and prioritizations.
Now if we go thru the next case: a project of 100k hours is sold for 80k hours. Neither of the methods will deliver it completely. But delivering it according to waterfall the only options are to either have nothing live, or invest the extra 20%.
Delivered according to Agile gives you a situation that the most important 80% is live. It can be considered to keep it as such, or invest extra any percentage concluded best.
Page 7
In Waterfall teams are organized by stream, such as C2C (Customer to Cash), R2R (Record to report).
In agile the required team-setup is small and as much as possible dedicated, typically around 7 persons.
The team shall have all the skills capable to deliver full stories. Peoples load will be balanced via teamwork, work enrichments and maturing.
Note there is not a PM included. The team is much more empowered, for example makes its own planning.
Also note there is a customer-representative in the team, right up, here called the “Product owner”
There are specific simple techniques proposed to help the team to do this without project manager. For example planning poker and MosCoW prioritization . The full team, except the customer, is responsible for the planning. Only the customer is responsible for the prioritization.
“Models and prototypes” to visualize the solution are very important as all people involved will have different backgrounds and the delivery is already in 2 weeks. No mis-understandings are acceptable.
Page 8
Finally, Agile is characterized by such status-board and a daily meeting with all around it. It is time-boxed to a maximum of 15 minutes and all team-member tell the next 3 aspects:
- What have I done since the last daily stand-up?
- What am I going to do till the next?
- What is blocking me, is a risk or other concerns
The progress is represented by moving the task-post-its from left to right over the board.
People not belonging to the team may attend to listen only.
Ideally this meeting is done all around the board, but especially in the SAP business we often work from different locations. There are software tools supporting this, for example Jira and IBM Jazz.
Page 9
Last slide specifically on Agile is to make you aware that there are different Agile standards. Some more lighter, suitable for less complex environments, and some fuller versions. They have, partly own thermology’s.
Often you’ll see that companies tailor to their own needs and preferences.
It is possible to work waterfall on programme level and Agile on project level.
Finally some words on how to combine “Agile and Fixed price”. Agile is naturally fixed price, as the contract can arrange, for example 10 timeboxes of 3 weeks with 6 consultants. But fair and open to conclude such is not “fixed scope”.
A “Fixing all-concept” does conflict the word and concept “Agile”. Risks are reduced by mutual understanding of each others services and businesses and the end-result. A suggested way of working is to commit to a couple of sprints, understand teams performance in this environment and then recommit.
Learnings from projects with limited scope can tremendously help planning the big follow-up project and evaluating a supplier.
Also to a certain level compromising the mentioned key-characteristics can help to enable a fixed price. But as it is unnatural, do consider also other commercial models with shared risk and reward and outcomes-based pricing-models.
Page 10
So back to SAP Activate, this is the phase-definition as SAP is proposing it.
Most important aspects to notice: starting with trail-version in the cloud. Speed drives Agile and cloud solutions are much faster available, so that fits.
Solution validation instead of blue printing from scratch. This refers back to the ready-to-run processes.
The backlog is a collection of user-stories ready to go to “Delta design” and “Release and sprint planning”.
Lastly of course the sprint execution.
Page 11
On the SAP Activate sites you’ll find such overview, where you can click further to more details, here done for the “validation workshops”.
SAP outlines key deliverables, gives a summary of tasks and links to accelerators.
You can download also template project plans for MS Projects and SAP’s Solution Manager.
Access SAP Activate via:
SAP Jam - request access via bit.ly/SAPActivate
or
roadmapviewer-supportportal.dispatcher.hana.ondemand.com/