- Successful SAP education is critical to a successful SAP implementation.
- The popular and widely accepted ''ASAP methodology'' includes training best practices.
- Advanced planning for SAP education mitigates the risk of a ''showstopper.''
The AcceleratedSAP (ASAP) methodology was introduced to improve the success of SAP implementations and is generally embraced by SAP customers. This methodology, with its emphasis on templates, tools, processes, and benchmarks, has helped SAP customers meet the challenges of (in many cases) the most important business and technological initiatives of their histories.
While this methodology has become a significant contributor to the success of configuring SAP software to meet the critical business needs of those companies implementing SAP, it is important to understand that a company’s implementation can be derailed if the user training is not effective.
This teksoft ventures insight is intended to help further the role of SAP education within the ASAP methodology.
What must you do to maximize your satisfaction with SAP software? There are five critical ASAP milestones in the methodology to successfully integrate SAP throughout your organization and maximize both productivity and your ROI. Each milestone involves meticulous planning and clear communication between project teams, end users, and implementation teams to ensure that your organization’s unique business needs are met.
Preparation Phase
Key Deliverables:
Level one project team training
Assign internal training resources
The Project Team Perspective
To effectively configure SAP software for your business, knowledge around both the SAP software and the business requirements is the key to success.
Toward this end, many firms hire an implementation partner to close the SAP gap. These firms also bring the best and brightest folks out of the business to become part of the ''project team,'' thus successfully meeting the ''business knowledge'' requirement.
At this point, the good news is that companies have brought together the individuals who have the collective ability to execute. The frequent challenge, however, is to build trust and understanding amongst folks who likely have cultural differences and speak different languages (think of the different acronyms that exist even within the same company).
This phase is when your project team members should all go through ''level one'' functional and/or technical training. The successful outcome of this training is baseline knowledge of SAP, particularly the integration points. This foundational training should put the project team on more equal SAP footing with the consultants from the implementation team. It is also recommended that project team members attend this training with members of other functional teams so as to ''fast track'' the bonding between the members of the different business teams.
The End-User Education Perspective
The most critical success factors of end-user education are role-based curricula that include the ''current state to future state,'' role-based training delivery, appropriate classroom facilities, real data the learners can relate to, and training applications that work the way they are supposed to work.
When these success factors do not exist in abundance, it is generally due to the fact that companies simply run out of time! The must-have deliverable associated with end-user training in this phase is the assignment of the internal training resources who are going to be responsible for the success of the planning, strategy, and execution of the training (including curricula development and delivery).
Business Blueprint Phase
Key Deliverables:
Level two project team training
End-user education strategy document
Determination of standards and templates for business process procedures (BPPs) and end-user curricula
Development of company and process overviews for end users
Determine high-level role-based courses and content
The Project Team Training Perspective
It is now time to separate the functional and technical folks so that they understand how SAP works for their particular areas. (As an example, all the finance people are now grouped for functional process training.) The outcomes of this training are a continued understanding between the project team members and their outside consultant partners as well as the knowledge required to help determine the feature sub-modules that best fit the needs of their area.
The End-User Perspective
In this phase the end-user training strategy document is completed, and decisions are now made that take into account the responsibilities for curricula development, delivery, validation of the training application, and post go-live help desk support. The training team should be collaborating with the project team so that the business process procedures (BPPs) are developed to meet both the needs of the project team and the needs of the curricula development team (the training team needs process information for quality training instructions).
Company overviews and process overview classes should be completed by the end of this phase as these are part of the beginning of helping the end users understand the importance of the SAP software for the company and their department.
The end-user training team should have completed an accurate determination of the roles and content associated with all the required end-user classes.
Lastly, the training team leadership has sized the effort for both the curricula development and delivery and has the team in place to secure successful execution of both.
Realization Phase: Issues of Place, Space, and Pace
Key Deliverables:
Level three configuration training for project team members
Role-based curricula development
Project Team Perspective
During the ASAP methodology realization phase, the project team is now separated by department (AP team, AR team, etc.) and trained so that they can configure (or at least work with their consultant partners to influence configuration).
End-User Team Perspective
The realization phase for the end-user constituency is the ''heads-down'' period for curricula development and preparing the training delivery schedule.
The training delivery should be no more than six weeks from the ''go live'' date (if done too early, the users will forget what they learned). The training team now must pay careful attention to the pace of the curricula development (it has to be ready by the training date), the quality of the curricula (they are working closely with the project team to ensure the processes have been captured and are up to date), and whether the members of the user community have all been accounted for.
Final Preparations: End Users Learn SAP in a Useful Context
Key Deliverables:
Training environment has successfully been loaded with data and tested
Training delivery
The training environment must be properly set up with ''real data'' that will support the hands-on exercises that the students will complete; when the exercises are successfully executed by the students, they will be filled with confidence in both themselves and the SAP software.
For successful training delivery the instructors must know the following:
- The business
- SAP
- How to teach in a computer-based training environment
- How to engage learners and have fun
The end users must know that the training team ''has their back.'' No matter how good the training was, it is important that help desk support is easily accessible to the end users and manned by SAP-competent personnel.
About teksoft ventures
Teksoft ventures specializes in training clients to implement SAP applications using proven experience, highly qualified SAP training and configuration professionals, innovative proprietary processes, and a robust library of SAP training curricula, the teksoft Resource Library, that accelerates sustainable results. We deliver onsite, ''just-in-time'' project team training as well as role-based end-user curricula. We are highly regarded professional advocates for the successful education of our clients’ training constituents.
Since 1998 we have educated clients across 10 countries and six continents, including North America, Europe, Africa, Asia, South America, and Australia. Our clients come from a wide variety of industries, including manufacturing, financial information services, consumer products, retail, publishing, pharmaceuticals, public sector, higher education, and insurance. We serve organizations that range from mid-size firms to global Fortune 500 companies.
To learn more visit www.teksoftventures.com or call 708-301-0003.
