Future-Proof Your SAP Business Processes Before Moving to S/4HANA

Many SAP on-premise users recognize the inevitability of migrating to SAP S/4HANA. SAPinsider research indicates that though 64% of organizations are already implementing or planning their S/4HANA migration, 28% are still evaluating it. Budget constraints, risk aversion, or the misconception that there’s ample time are among the key factors that delay these organizations from making the move.

However, postponing this migration can lead to costly reworks, increased risks, and a more disruptive transition.

The Cost of Delaying Modernization

Delaying your SAP S/4HANA migration without addressing outdated business processes and custom code can result in significant financial and operational challenges. They include:

• Expensive reworks to ensure that legacy SAP processes, which often rely on complex, hard-coded logic, are compatible with the new system. The more complicated the customizations, the higher the effort required to refactor or replace them, leading to unanticipated costs and delays.
• Rising maintenance costs due to more resource requirements for maintaining and troubleshooting outdated, custom-built processes. As SAP phases out support for legacy systems, businesses may also find themselves paying a premium for extended maintenance and support, adding unnecessary expenses to their IT budgets.
• There is an increased risk of downtime from unstable older customizations that lead to systems outages and migration disruptions, which impact internal operations, customer satisfaction, and revenue streams.

Why Migrating to S/4HANA Now Saves Money

Investing in process optimization today significantly reduces future migration costs and risks. SAP partners like Neptune Software can help in this process in the following ways:

1. Reduce Custom Code Dependence: Neptune Software’s low-code platform enables rebuilding legacy customizations as flexible, modular applications, reducing reliance on expensive, hard-coded SAP modifications. This streamlines future upgrades and ensures your system remains agile in the face of evolving business needs.
2. Optimize Business Processes Before Migration: Modernizing key business processes now means fewer adjustments will be needed during migration, minimizing disruptions and downtime. A well-structured SAP landscape ensures faster deployment with fewer technical surprises, allowing teams to focus on strategic initiatives rather than troubleshooting unexpected issues.
3. Enable Continuous, Agile Improvement: Neptune Software empowers teams to iteratively refine SAP business processes, ensuring systems remain optimized and aligned with evolving business needs. Continuous improvement helps businesses remain competitive by quickly adapting to market demands and regulatory changes.

Future-Proof Your SAP Systems Today

Here are some steps that organizations can proactively take today to future-proof their SAP Systems:

• Assess Your Custom Code: Identify outdated customizations that can be replaced or improved with modern low-code solutions to prioritize high-impact areas. Conducting a thorough audit now can help uncover inefficiencies and redundancies that may hinder your transition.
• Prioritize High-Value Processes: Focus on modernizing processes that offer the greatest ROI and operational efficiency. Engaging business stakeholders early in the process ensures that IT efforts align with strategic goals and deliver tangible business benefits.
• Embrace a Modular, Scalable Approach: Use Neptune Software to build flexible, modular applications, minimizing dependencies on SAP core code and reducing future rework. This approach facilitates incremental improvements, allowing organizations to modernize in phases without disrupting critical operations.
• Implement, Test, and Refine: Gradually implement changes to reduce risk and ensure workflows align with business needs. Using a sandbox environment to test new configurations and workflows can help identify potential issues before they impact production.

By proactively modernizing your SAP business processes with Neptune Software, you can reduce long-term costs, minimize risks, and streamline your S/4HANA transition. SAPinsider research indicates organizations that optimize processes before migration achieve 40% faster implementation times and 25% lower total cost of ownership. Avoid costly reworks and position your organization for success—start modernizing today.

What This Means for SAPinsiders

Accelerate user-centric innovation. With Neptune Software’s low-code platform, SAP users can rapidly develop user-friendly applications that improve employee and customer experiences without extensive coding. Businesses can innovate faster and respond to market demands more effectively by simplifying application development.

Enhance system agility and scalability. Neptune enables organizations to create modular, scalable applications that seamlessly integrate with existing SAP environments, reducing technical debt and future-proofing workflows. A modular approach allows IT teams to implement updates and enhancements without overhauling entire systems.

Reduce migration complexity. By modernizing SAP workflows before S/4HANA migration, organizations using Neptune Software can significantly reduce migration time and costs while minimizing system disruptions. A well-prepared transition plan ensures smoother execution, reducing the risk of unexpected setbacks and costly last-minute fixes.