SAP Managed Services: Advantage or risk for companies?

Companies in all sectors are faced with an increasing workload and limited resources. At the same time, they need to position themselves for the future. A conflict that needs to be overcome. Managed services for SAP systems are being utilised more and more frequently. Nevertheless, there are companies that are unsure whether SAP Managed Services are an option for them. After all, this SAP support involves handing over parts of their own SAP systems to an external service provider. A trusting cooperation is the basic prerequisite for this.

In this blog post, I would like to show you 10 reasons why SAP Managed Services can be beneficial for your company.

10 reasons in favour of SAP Managed Services

1. Predictable IT costs

Your IT services are clearly defined with the Mmanaged Sservice Pprovider (MSP) when the contract is concluded and the price is fixed for the term of the contract. These tasks to be outsourced should be worked out and defined in detail together with the IT service provider in order to have a clear understanding of what responsibilities the service provider will take on and what costs will be incurred. Proof of all services provided must then also be provided, e.g. in a monthly report.

2. Efficient system support

Supporting your business-critical systems is time-consuming. MSPs specialise in providing optimal and efficient support for your SAP systems. As the service provider of your choice usually knows your systems best and is technically up to date, it is also advisable to have selected projects such as upgrades, migrations, etc. carried out by them.

The MSP should, however, have certificates such as ISO 9001 and ISO 27001, which guarantee both a quality standard and the required information security. In any case, you should also ask the service provider's employees whether they have the certifications relevant to the project. This is the only way to ensure that the service provider of your choice can also handle the planned technical projects to a high standard.

3. Optimal use of internal resources

Your resources are limited and day-to-day business may slow you down in your internal projects. Why not leave SAP operations to highly specialised service providers and concentrate on what drives your company forward? This way, you can optimise your internal resources and are not bogged down by time-consuming tasks such as monitoring, patching and troubleshooting business-critical SAP systems.

4. Lower training costs

Continuing training in IT topics costs time and money. At the same time, it is an absolute necessity in order to optimise the support of your systems. However, this not only involves further training on IT topics relating to your existing systems, but of course also on topics that are currently new to your company, such as the switch to SAP S/4HANA. For example, expertise needs to be built up for the new SAP HANA database and also for Linux operating systems. Perhaps you are "only" dealing with a supposedly simple topic such as the introduction of OneDrive. Many companies that have tried to do this themselves have failed. This burden can be lifted by using SAP Managed Services. This relieves your company of these costs and you can still be sure that your systems are optimally supported.

5. Accelerated use of new technologies

IT, and the SAP world in particular, is evolving rapidly. Your service provider will also support you with new topics for which you would have to spend a long time building up expertise. The pandemic in particular has made many companies recognise the need for modern desktops. There is not much room for "try and error". Such projects must be implemented quickly, successfully and without stumbling blocks. Rely on the experience and expertise of specialists!

6. Risk minimisation

Your company may have analysed the costs incurred if your business-critical systems fail unplanned. In the vast majority of cases, these are alarmingly high! Does your IT have enough time to take proper care of your "centrepieces"? And 24 hours a day, seven days a week? Certainly not! Sometimes it's just little things, such as a hard drive filling up due to a database backup, that bring your SAP system to a standstill. And then you need fast, immediate help! Reduce the risk of system failures by having your systems monitored by SAP Managed Services.

7. Compensating for skills shortages

Finding good, experienced and certified IT employees on the labour market is almost an impossibility. And if they are, then usually with horrendous salary expectations. These cannot be realised by public sector companies, for example. Or perhaps your location is simply unattractive for young people? You are no doubt aware of the reasons why your company is unable to find good employees. Here too, outsourcing IT tasks can solve real problems. Even if only for a short period of time until you have found a suitable employee.

8. Improving compliance and security

An unpopular topic and yet so important! More and more companies are painfully experiencing what it's like to be hacked. For example, when systems are encrypted using ransomware, an encryption Trojan, and the affected company is blackmailed. Are your SAP systems optimally protected and at the latest patch level? Are you well advised and do you have an emergency plan for all conceivable cyberattack scenarios? These tasks are also important components of SAP Managed Services that can help you sleep better.

9. Increasing employee satisfaction

Faulty functionalities, poor system performance and then perhaps an overloaded internal hotline - there are many reasons why employee satisfaction can plummet. Yet the solution can be so simple: be it through a helpdesk or by relieving your IT staff. Your employee satisfaction can be increased through managed services. And the effects of increased employee satisfaction are enormous: employee turnover decreases, work in the specialist departments is completed more efficiently and the working atmosphere can be noticeably improved.

10. Cost reduction

If you take all of the above points into consideration, you will certainly come to the conclusion that SAP Managed Services help you to save costs and at the same time offer real added value.

Conclusion

Maybe not all of the above points apply to your company, but I am convinced that you will find yourself in many of the points. The important thing is that the path to SAP Managed Services is well thought out and planned.

Claranet has put together four SAP Managed Services packages that cover the requirements of different companies.