Navigating SAP's Product and Technology Layers 9 July 2003

	For SAP prospects and customers, the ability to address tactical and strategic concerns requires in-depth knowledge of the vendor's offerings and technologies, and how to map them into current business strategies. Based on our observations, there is an overall lack of SAP resources available to assist enterprises in this daunting task. As a result, Gartner has designed this Spotlight on SAP to help enterprises understand and evaluate SAP's business applications, technology and infrastructure, as well as the deployment issues enterprises face. This Powerhouse Vendors Spotlight provides in-depth analysis and advice on a broad set of SAP products, as well as strategic company initiatives. In "Adapt to SAP's Evolving Environment", we offer an overview of technology and business application issues facing SAP users. In "How SAP Customers Can Beat the 'Post-Deployment Blues,'" we provide guidance to help SAP customers through the post-implementation stages.   Read more		Betsy Burton Editor in Chief Powerhouse Vendors Yvonne Genovese Research Director, Gartner Research

Adapt to SAP's Evolving Environment 9 July 2003 Yvonne Genovese  Derek Stephen Prior  Gene Phifer  Karen Peterson  SAP customers should stay abreast of the mega-vendor's evolving product and technology road map, and follow our advice for a smoother ride toward becoming real-time enterprises. Vendor Rating: SAP's Size May Inhibit Future Growth 9 July 2003 Yvonne Genovese  SAP's ability to change with market demands continues to surprise users, but this change is not without costs. SAP continues to be plagued by perceptions of its complexity and market confusion concerning its solutions. mySAP ERP vs. R/3 Enterprise: A Clarification 26 June 2003 Yvonne Genovese  mySAP Enterprise Resource Planning should, ideally, help SAP explain the contents of its full mySAP Business Suite offering to users. However, it will also add to user confusion surrounding the SAP upgrade path for R/3. SAP in SCM: ERP Takes on Best-of-Breed Vendors 18 June 2003 Karen Peterson  Maria Jimenez  SAP offers broad supply chain management functionality in its enterprise resource planning suite, but prospective users should assess individual product maturity and module integration before deploying the solutions. When to Consider SAP Asset Management and Maintenance 3 July 2003 Kristian Steenstrup  SAP's asset and work management offerings are best suited for simple to moderate maintenance needs. Evaluate best-of-breed alternatives when seeking advanced enterprise asset management functions. SAP WMS Will Become a Contender in 2005 6 May 2003 Jeff Woods  Account control in "SAP shops" — combined with SAP's global presence, momentum and viability — and a few key wins are positioning the company to become a strong contender in the warehouse management system market. SAP Is Building PLM Presence With ERP Muscle 3 July 2003 Marc Halpern  With established enterprise resource planning customers fueling its growth, SAP will be a long-term player in the product life cycle management market. However, it will not displace its best-of-breed competitors. mySAP SRM 3.0 Is a Work In Progress 1 July 2003 David Hope-Ross  SAP's mySAP SRM 3.0, which became available in June 2003, includes major enhancements, but its functionality lags the market. SAP Business One: Capable of Challenging SMB Leaders? 17 June 2003 Robert P. Anderson  Karen Peterson  Because of challenges in developing a small and midsize business partner channel, SAP's Business One, while encouraging, probably won't become a major low-end enterprise resource-planning competitor until 2006. SAP's Visionary NetWeaver Platform May Prove a Risky Bet 28 April 2003 Massimo Pezzini  Derek Stephen Prior  Gene Phifer  Simon Hayward  SAP is betting its future on NetWeaver, which underpins its new xApps strategy. This will force customers to choose between some of SAP's immature technology products and proven, though less integrated, rivals. Staying on Top of SAP's Technology Strategy 30 June 2003 Derek Stephen Prior  SAP has built a powerful technology strategy, but most of its customers do not seem to be aware of it and its impact. This could cause customers to make strategic planning and deployment mistakes. SAP Plans to Mine More Revenue From Its Installed Base 15 April 2003 Alexa Bona  Derek Stephen Prior  SAP is adding new categories to its pricing model and is using its software license agreements more creatively to generate further revenue. Gartner answers important questions from SAP clients about this strategy. Can SAP Win the Hearts and Minds of Developers? 7 July 2003 Derek Stephen Prior  Gene Phifer  The new NetWeaver technology stack proclaims SAP's determination to establish itself as a software infrastructure vendor. The first step will be to convince developers SAP can compete alongside IBM, Microsoft and Oracle. SAP Prepares to Launch Enterprise Portal 6 23 June 2003 Gene Phifer  SAP is nearing general availability of the newest version of its portal product, Enterprise Portal 6. SAP seems to be overcoming the challenges it faced with the release of Enterprise Portal 5. SAP Products' Impact on Enterprise Architecture 14 February 2003 Derek Stephen Prior  Gartner's enterprise architecture framework is a powerful planning tool. But customers deploying SAP business applications must know the constraints SAP products and technologies bring when applying the framework.

How SAP Customers Can Beat the 'Post-Deployment Blues' 9 July 2003 Brian Zrimsek  Derek Stephen Prior  SAP customers can overcome challenges related to application support, performance, upgrade and expansion by taking several key post-implementation steps. SAP Competence Centers: Not Just for ERP Anymore 25 June 2003 Brian Zrimsek  Derek Stephen Prior  Competence centers are the recognized best practice for SAP post-implementation support. The established ERP-centric model must evolve to support business processes, application integration and application architecture. SAP ERP Upgrades: Seeking SAP's Next Vintage Release 25 June 2003 Brian Zrimsek  Yvonne Genovese  Derek Stephen Prior  With the recent announcements of R/3 Enterprise and mySAP ERP, users have several options in addition to version 4.6C when planning an SAP upgrade. Integrated Teams Are an Edge in mySAP CRM Deployments 19 June 2003 Beth L. Eisenfeld  Ed Thompson  Alexa Bona  Enterprises have many professional services options for deploying the mySAP customer relationship management suite. Understanding the strengths and challenges of these choices will help enable successful implementations.