The end of life for SAP ECC looms nearer every day. With support set to sunset in 2027 and the average migration taking up to 18 months for large enterprises, delaying the move to SAP S/4HANA becomes an ever-riskier proposition. Systems integrators may not have availability, or companies may struggle to find talent to guide them through the process. A recent survey found that only 12% of SAP ERP customers have transitioned to SAP S/4HANA, and another 12% stated that they’ve postponed their migration.

The reluctance is not surprising given the questions that come with a move to SAP S/4HANA. Choosing a greenfield (new implementation), brownfield (conversion), or hybrid migration tends to spark debate, as does the decision to go with an on-premise or cloud deployment. Some companies are ready to start fresh, while others have decades of data they want to bring into their new systems.

Then there are the challenges of actually migrating to SAP S/4HANA after decisions are made. Almost half of the respondents to the same survey point to defining the target architecture or roadmap and identifying dependencies among ERP systems as a challenge. Other companies find that custom code in their ECC systems, data migration and cleanup, having personnel with the right skills, and integrating SAP S/4HANA with other systems pose difficulties.

If you’re part of the 74% of companies still in the evaluation and planning phase of your migration to SAP S/4HANA, take some time to brush up on what you need to know before making the switch. We’ve scoured the Internet for the top 5 most helpful resources for companies moving to S/4HANA – bookmark this page and come back to it when you have questions.

SAP S/4HANA migration: A definitive guide

https://www.techtarget.com/searchsap/SAP-S4HANA-migration-A-definitive-guide

If you’re just starting your SAP S/4HANA migration journey, IT media company TechTarget put together this comprehensive guide for SAP S/4HANA migration. It delves into why companies should migrate, how to approach migration, and deployment options. There’s a great section on the types of migrations that goes beyond the traditional greenfield/brownfield options and discusses how to use Rise with SAP, which is ideal for companies that want to run in the cloud. It also candidly discusses migration challenges and the critical steps to conducting a successful migration and deployment, such as creating a roadmap and establishing a governance model for software extensions.

Five Best Practices for Migrating to SAP S/4HANA

https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2022/03/11/five-best-practices-for-migrating-to-sap-s4hana/?sh=227cd62d78a3

This article provides five best practices for companies that need an overview of what needs to happen for a successful migration. It offers tips for choosing between a greenfield and brownfield migration and advice on selecting a migration partner. This is critical, particularly in a post-COVID world where remote delivery is becoming more accepted among companies. Of particular interest is the section on streamlining, which can help companies decide whether it makes sense to use standard SAP S/4HANA processes instead of their current ones.

SAP S/4HANA Data Migration Success

https://blogs.sap.com/2022/04/04/sap-s-4hana-data-migration-success/

Data migration continues to challenge organizations as they move to SAP S/4HANA. This article comprehensively discusses how to handle moving from ECC 6.0 to SAP S/4HANA, including who should be responsible for master data and how to choose team members for the project. The author provides a chart that helps allocate knowledge and tasks to different team members, such as noting that legacy data knowledge should be under the master data lead’s and migration lead’s purview. The article also provides information on how the migration process should work and includes exercises for organizations to prepare for migrating their data.

Converting Your ECC System to S/4HANA

https://www.michaelmanagement.com/blog/sap/converting-your-ecc-system-to-s4hana

Organizations have reasons for choosing a brownfield migration, such as already using ECC and only having one instance to move. If this describes your company, this article is an ideal read. It offers a readiness checklist for organizations getting ready for the switch, covering everything from system requirements to custom code It also covers SAP’s migration tools, including SAP Readiness Check and Software Update Manager (SUM). The explanation of what to expect when running SAP Readiness Check is particularly useful, as it notes what to do about simplification items, custom code, and add-ons that may be incompatible.

SAP Continuous Retrofit: Wave Goodbye to Change Freezes and Cutover Risk

https://www.basistechnologies.com/blog/sap-continuous-retrofit-wave-goodbye-to-change-freezes-and-cutover-risk/

Change management is complex, and when you’re managing projects in a dual-track landscape, that becomes even harder. This article discusses the challenges inherent in keeping two landscapes aligned and provides approaches to minimize risk and complexity. It introduces the concept of continuous retrofit, which supports brownfield migration and other SAP project development. For example, continuous retrofit allows companies to run ECC and SAP S/4HANA concurrently and deploy changes to both systems. Organizations that are easing into SAP S/4HANA will find this helpful.

While migrating to SAP S/4HANA can be challenging, organizations must begin the process as soon as possible. Decisions such as migration approaches and hosting locations need to be made, and data needs to be cleaned up. Companies will also want to examine their existing processes to determine whether using SAP’s standard processes is a more streamlined fit and ensure the right people are on the migration team. They’ll also want to look at available tools to make migration easier.

Learn more about how automation solution ActiveControl could be an invaluable part of your SAP S/4HANA migration by talking to our team of SAP experts.