Post-Implementation

Organization & Support

Loren Blinde
Director, Administrative Systems Group

Session Objectives

An appreciation of issues that new

customers and recent go-live projects
will face with the long-term support
and enhancement of their SAP
systems
An opportunity for established
customers to share their experience

Session Topics

Why ongoing support is an issue

What a support team does
Considerations in organizing a team
Nebraskas experience

Open audience discussion

Why Support is an Issue>

Institutional Culture

ERP system is likely a new thing

The Business <> Technical
relationship has changed

There is a NEW business role

Why Support is an Issue>

Go-Live Psychology

The finish-line is system go-live

Management expectation of
completion
User expectation of a finished product

Why Support is an Issue>

We want our people back!

The ERP project was a short-term

assignment
Many team members are drafted from
your Business offices
They are also your best people for
system support

Why Support is an Issue>

Money

You budgeted for the maintenance

agreement
Did you plan for the human side?

Your Challenge>
Create a reality-based
management perspective of
system support

Identify what support teams do

Consider your institutional factors
Look at peer models

What Support Teams Do>

Maintenance Tasks

Major upgrades
Service packs
Problem solving
Security administration
Workflow administration
Archiving

What Support Teams Do>

Common Business Tasks

Support the business offices

Centralized processes

Tax reporting (US 1099 & W-2)

Financial closing
Payroll
Payment runs

Data manipulation
Mass changes
Data loads

Ad-hoc report creation

What Support Teams Do>

Tend to the Users

Training
Documentation
Change Management &
Communication
Internal Influence Channels

What Support Teams Do>

Continuous Improvement

New initiatives and more SAP

Accountability to senior management
Priority setting - consensus building
Product evaluation and acquisition
Process redesign
License management

Define a priority setting process !

What Support Teams Do>

Stay Smart

Networking
Project team training
Keeping up with SAP
Advocacy and Influence
CRM
(Consultant Relationship Management)

What Support Teams Do>

Marketing

Publicity & Promotion

Internal Marketing Selling SAP

Build a Support Team

Consider your organization

Build the right team structure
Find the right people
Create the right work environment
Create the right relationships

Build a Support Team>

Consider your Organization

Single or multiple-campuses?

Administratively centralized?

One size does not fit all

Build a Support Team>

The Right Team Structure

Define the Business > IT Relationship

Define subject-oriented business
positions
Obtain executive sponsorship, write it
down and make it official
Make the team entity-independent

Build a Support Team>

Entity-Independent?

Yes, its political

An issue for multi-campus universities
Your implementation was one for all
Ongoing support works the same way
Look at the corporate home office
model

Build a Support Team>

Find the Right People

Desired traits:
Knows SAP
Knows your institution
Knows your implementation

The perfect fit

Your implementation team member ?

View it as new position recruitment

Find the Right People>

Cant They Just do Two Jobs?

The inevitable compromise for We

want our people back
The old job still needs to be done
The new system still needs support
Somehow the old job got done
The rest of your people just got better

Build a Support Team>

The right work environment

System integration requires team

integration
One team one location
Keep the team visible
Become welcome and familiar faces in
the business offices

Build a Support Team>

The Right Relationships

Team Manager <> Executive Admin

Team Manager <> IT Manager

Team Members <> Team Members

Team Members <> IT Staff
Team Members <> Business Offices

Change Management <> End Users

The Nebraska Time Line

Late 1997 Begin Implementation (3.1H)

July 1999 Go Live (4.5B)
Late 1999 Implementation team fades away
2000 the Virtual Team year
2001 Administrative Systems Group formed

The Nebraska Organization

Chief Financial Officer /
Associate VP

Director
Administrative
Systems Group

Administrative
Systems Business
Team:
Finance

Chief Information
Officer

Chief Business
Officers / Steering
Committee

Customer
Support Team
Change
Management

Projects/FM

Associate CIO

BASIS Team

Applications/
ABAP Team

Communication
Human Resources
Documentation
Payroll
Training
Procurement/
Travel
Workflow

Information
Access/
Business
Warehouse
Team

Closing Thoughts

Preserve your project momentum

Keep your key people
Find a way to do it
Some will question if you can afford it
Can you afford not to?

Now YOU Talk . . .

Questions
Other schools experience

Loren Blinde
University of Nebraska
327 Nebraska Hall
Lincoln, NE 68588-0521
402-472-7023
lblinde@nebraska.edu