Power Plant Manager at a energy/utilities company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Real User
Allows everything to be linked and integrated into the entire supply chain, but is overly priced
Pros and Cons
  • "The solution links everything and allows us to integrate into our entire supply chain."
  • "When it comes to the SAP PM material's module, it would be nice to see the inclusion of predictive analytics."

What is most valuable?

I like that SAP allows one to put in other APIs to be linked, especially in its function of plant maintenance. There is a module called SAP PM. The advantage of this is its role in plant maintenance. The part which is free and accessible to all employees encompasses the logging in of plant defects and the receipt of work orders. This feature is competitive when compared with other standalone CMMS solutions, such IBM's Maximo. 

The solution links everything and allows us to integrate into our entire supply chain. We can integrate the entire business. Employee leave management resources can be linked and our employees can arrange time for doing work orders for maintenance completion ratios. In the materials section, when someone takes out a spare part or asset, asset life-cycle management can be undertaken within the same system. So, it allows for seamless integration of processes that we have in our process plants.

What needs improvement?

I feel the solution is expensive when it comes to what can be obtained with open source software. I have not explored all of its components. The price is higher than alternate solutions. There should be greater editing API capabilities, which could help to reduce the overall cost implementation and the OPEX cost for CAD which the end-user would incur in licensing fees.

While I give the solution points for its usage and ability to be interfaced with other third-party sites, the costs and licensing fees bring down its rating. 

Furthermore, when it comes to the SAP PM material's module, it would be nice to see the inclusion of predictive analytics. This would help with the optimization of maintenance processes. Where batch two is involved it should be able to automatically change the frequency of a preventative maintenance schedule. This would save a person from having to invest in a search for predictive maintenance solutions since this feature would already be embedded or there would be machine learning capabilities.

Moreover, in respect of the RPA processes, a close look at the entire S/4HANA and SAP process will demonstrate, by its nature, the involvement of many clerks, meaning those who do clerical work that involves checking input, entering a particular system, verifying and getting reports. For some processes, the inclusion of soft bots would minimize intellectual assistance and allow for things to be automated. This would reduce the head count of the people who are needed as SAP administrators.

There are other applications which exist that, while employed in the organization, I do not interact with directly. They touch on GIS, which is already embedded and allows for remote identification of assets and interfacing with other process documents. I believe the solution offers this feature, but its implementation takes some effort and it is not very user friendly. Its use requires a certain level of skill-set. This means that when rolled out in the context of an organization which is in the process of upgrading it can pose a challenge to do so without having to incur high costs through the inclusion of parties needed to provide assistance without the use of one's internal results. 

It would be preferable to be able to rely on one's own internal resources instead of needing outside assistance. From a business point of view, it is better to have something and to undertake upgrades, add patches and make changes and modifications. 

For how long have I used the solution?

We have only recently started using SAP S4HANA Cloud, but the previous version, SAP, I've been using for nearly seven years. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is stable. 

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What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is scalable. 

How was the initial setup?

The complexity of the solution's setup can vary. If an organization has much unstructured data then this can impede the rolling out of the solution. If, on the other hand, the organization equips itself in advance with many spreadsheets of data, this can make the roll out of the solution easy to implement. As such, the pre-implementation preparation is key. 

Take a traditional organization which lacks a system, but uses an Excel spreadsheet for its processes. This equates itself with some structured data. When rolling out SAP S4HANA Cloud it is easy to incorporate this into the existing interfaces. The web base with which one starts means that it would be very difficult to accomplish this without using the solution. 

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The price of the solution is a bit higher than the competition's.

What other advice do I have?

The version we use is S/4HANA Cloud. 

I rate SAP S4HANA Cloud as a seven out of ten. 

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Enterprise Resources Planning Consultant at ILIADE CONSULTING
Real User
Top 5
Can trace all transactions and is stable but needs to be more user friendly
Pros and Cons
  • "I like that it saves every transaction, so anything is traceable."
  • "It's a huge software, and they need to make it look less complex and more user friendly. They need to work on user stories and user experiences."

What is our primary use case?

It's an information management system and can have all your company's information.

What is most valuable?

I like that it saves every transaction, so anything is traceable.

What needs improvement?

It's a huge software, and they need to make it look less complex and more user friendly. They need to work on user stories and user experiences.

Better documentation would be great to have too.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using it for one year.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I would give the stability of the solution a rating of ten out of ten.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I think it is scalable and can manage millions of data.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is complex. If I were to rate the initial setup on a scale from one to five with one being the most complex and five being the easiest, I would rate it at one.

The deployment takes about a year. A team of about five to a team of 20 maybe needed to deploy and maintain the solution.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

Pricing wise, SAP S4HANA Cloud is very expensive. The licensing cost can be 100,000 euros per year, depending on the number of users in your company.

What other advice do I have?

If possible, use simpler solutions, particularly if your business is not complex.

Overall, I would give SAP S4HANA Cloud a five out of ten.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
SAP S/4HANA Cloud
March 2024
Learn what your peers think about SAP S/4HANA Cloud. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: March 2024.
769,065 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Deputy Human Resources Coordinator at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
Real User
Stable, scalable, and helps to streamline organizations
Pros and Cons
  • "Makes it easier to reach and read data."
  • "UX design is not flexible and lacks compatibility with mobile devices."

What is our primary use case?

My primary use case is for organizational design, especially for payroll.

How has it helped my organization?

This product makes it easier for us to reach and read data. It has also reduced the number of roles in our organization, making it leaner and more linear, and making it easier to manage our organizational chart.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable feature of this product is its clear process lines.

What needs improvement?

An area for improvement is the UX design, which is not flexible and lacks compatibility with mobile devices. In the next release, I would like to see an improvement in the talent management feature.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The stability of this solution is good, with no room for improvement.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

This solution has good scalability.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is straightforward if you have technical knowledge but difficult if not.

What about the implementation team?

I implemented through a vendor team - the first team we worked with was not so good, but we've now switched to a new, more helpful team.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

I evaluated both Oracle and Nickel Software. We chose SAP because the competency support was the best.

What other advice do I have?

Sometimes we choose to use other solutions because of the problems with the UX design. I wouldn't recommend this solution for smaller companies, but it's good for bigger ones as it makes it easier to design your processes. I would rate this solution as eight out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Private Cloud
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Zonaid Zonaid - PeerSpot reviewer
SAP Associate Consultant FICO at Fusion Infotech Limited
Consultant
Top 20
A scalable, versatile solution that includes various integrated tools
Pros and Cons
  • "The solution is versatile with various integrated tools such as connecting with finance modules, controlling parameters, and creating universal journals."
  • "The solution's speed and dashboard could be improved."

What is our primary use case?

Our company deploys the solution for our customers as a business ERP for daily operations. We work primarily in the construction, service, and manufacturing industries. 

Our company has 120 users, administrators, and developers who use the solution. 

What is most valuable?

The solution is versatile with various integrated tools such as connecting with finance modules, controlling parameters, and creating universal journals.

What needs improvement?

The solution's speed and dashboard could be improved. 

The setup offers many integration options but could be less complex. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using the solution for one year. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is stable. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is scalable. 

How are customer service and support?

Technical support is very helpful and I rate it an eight out of ten. 

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

Our company has never used another solution. 

How was the initial setup?

The setup takes a couple of hours and can be complex because the solution offers various integration options. 

One engineer handles maintenance of the solution. 

What about the implementation team?

Our company implements the solution for customers.

What other advice do I have?

I recommend the solution and rate it a nine out of ten. 

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Private Cloud

If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

Other
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
DouglasSilva - PeerSpot reviewer
SAP FI Solutions Architect at Numen IT
Reseller
Reliable with great features and good accounting capabilities
Pros and Cons
  • "The solution is stable."
  • "The solution is expensive. That can be an issue for clients."

What is our primary use case?

The solution is used to solve many activities. We use it, for example, for backoffice, to solve the problem in control and governance. It gives us more "information control". That's the main mission of ERP software.

How has it helped my organization?

In this case, my organization is a consultancy. But I can speak for my customers, SAP is not only to basic business processes, it also paves the way for leveraging the company's digital transformation.

What is most valuable?

The accounting on SAP is great. Accounting is the main point for me. It's very strong and offers the most security. The technology is scalable and security is too. 

The solution is stable.

The features and capabilities in general are great.

It scales very well.

What needs improvement?

The BTP, business transaction platform, could be better. There need to be improvements and more services like to AWS, GCP and Azure services.  

The solution is expensive. That can be an issue for clients. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using the solution for almost fifteen years at this point. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is quite stable. There are no bugs or glitches. It doesn't crash or freeze. We have found it to be reliable. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Being a cloud solution, it can scale very well and quite easily.

How are customer service and support?

I don't deal with technical support directly. Typically, a client and SAP would interface together. As I don't have any experience with them, I can't rate their services. 

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We are also using AWS and are AWS partners. We also use Oracle NetSuite.

There's another solution similar to SAP called Odoo, which is an ERP cloud. They promote themselves to the middle market. For me, S4HANA, the capabilities are the best, however, the price is so difficult for clients in the middle market. There's also Business One and that is better than S4HANA if you are looking at just the price.

How was the initial setup?

It's moderately difficult to install the product. It's not simple or easy. It can be a bit complex. However, we use the best practices, and therefore it isn't too bad. 

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The solution is quite expensive, and, for middle-market clients, it may be too expensive. There are other options that are a bit cheaper. 

What other advice do I have?

My company is an SAP partner. We are also resellers. 

I would recommend SAP S4HANA to a middle-market or big company. It's the best option for organizations of that size.

I'd rate the solution an eight out of ten, however, I am aware that it is a bit expensive for many clients.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Private Cloud

If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

Other
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer:
PeerSpot user
PeerSpot user
Director of Product Management at EIM solutions
Real User
Top 20
Stable, reliable business management system
Pros and Cons
  • "S/4HANA Cloud is very stable."
  • "The implementation time for S/4HANA Cloud could be reduced."

What is our primary use case?

I use S/4HANA Cloud to manage our business and maintain our raw materials and finances, accounts, employee details, supplier details, invoices, payments, and all supply-chain management details.

What needs improvement?

The implementation time for S/4HANA Cloud could be reduced. The UI could also be improved.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using S/4HANA Cloud for a year.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

S/4HANA Cloud is very stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

S/4HANA Cloud is scalable.

How are customer service and support?

S/4HANA Cloud's technical support is excellent.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was straightforward but had a few steps that took some time. I would rate the setup experience 4 out of 5.

What other advice do I have?

S/4HANA Cloud is a top-notch product and a stable, reliable system for managing a business. I'd advise anybody implementing this solution to do it on cloud rather than local and private data centers and to check SAP's documentation to get an idea of the implementation time and costs. I would give S/4HANA Cloud a rating of eight out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud

If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

Microsoft Azure
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
PeerSpot user
Director - SAP Mid Market at a tech services company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Real User
Good functionality with friendly UI; some limitations and restrictions on what can be customized
Pros and Cons
  • "Speed has improved and getting analytical reports has been simplified."
  • "Public cloud is single-tenant so there are limitations on what can be customized."

What is our primary use case?

I'm a company director. 

What is most valuable?

This product has all the functions that SAP had but this is a better product with additional functionalities as well as a much more friendly user interface. It can be used on Windows, Android and iOS. The speed has improved and getting analytical reports is much easier than it was in the past. I think it's the best software for manufacturing and retail.

What needs improvement?

I'd like to see them shift their focus beyond manufacturing industries because there are other kinds of organizations that could benefit from this product. Public cloud is single-tenant so there are some limitations and restrictions on what can be customized or enhanced. As a result, we advise our customers to use enterprise cloud, on-prem, or other options. Some of our customers complain that the cost is too high and for smaller organizations, it's a large financial investment. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using this solution for six years. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is very stable and that's one of the reasons I recommend it. It's a key point.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

This is the most scalable enterprise solution that we have. 

How are customer service and support?

The customer support is great and that enables us to assure our customers that the process will be a smooth one. 

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is quite straightforward; it has all the services required and onboarding new users is relatively simple. SAP carried out the initial implementation for us. Our company has been deploying these solutions for 20 years. 

What other advice do I have?

For now, I rate this solution seven out of 10 because some of the functions of S4HANA are not yet available in the cloud version. 

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Territory Manager at a tech services company with 1,001-5,000 employees
MSP
It's massively scalable and capable of handling all aspects of business for a large enterprise
Pros and Cons
  • "SAP is an extremely powerful ERP. In my past company, we used it on a massive large scale, and it was amazing."
  • "The only thing I would improve is the overall user experience, particularly the mobile app. S/4HANA is a powerful, scalable platform, but the user experience isn't positive. It's a bit complex. The look and feel aren't attractive, and the mobile experience isn't great."

How has it helped my organization?

S/4HANA is an ERP solution. It can be used across the complete ERP landscape, including HR, finance, supply chain, procurement, and logistics.

What is most valuable?

SAP is an extremely powerful ERP. In my past company, we used it on a massive large scale, and it was amazing. 

What needs improvement?

The only thing I would improve is the overall user experience, particularly the mobile app. S/4HANA is a powerful, scalable platform, but the user experience isn't positive. It's a bit complex. The look and feel aren't attractive, and the mobile experience isn't great.

For how long have I used the solution?

We have been using SAP S/4HANA for the past seven years.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

S/4HANA is massively scalable. My last company had half a million employees in 170 countries. My current employer has tens of thousands. 

How are customer service and support?

SAP support is average.

How was the initial setup?

I wasn't involved in installing S/4HANA, but my colleagues tell me it's easier to set up than Oracle. SAP's implementation is more flexible than Oracle's. 

The deployment time varies from customer to customer. The minimum is around two months, but it depends. If you're on the cloud, it takes two months to do the customization. It involves data entry plus customization and configuration.

A small cloud-based implementation might not take as long. It depends on the number of modules as well. Some customers want all the modules, but others only want one. It isn't easy to say a specific timeline, but it can be one month to a year. 

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

I don't remember the specifics about the licensing, but it's scaled and modular. You pay for what you use. It's not a one-size-fits-all license. You have a license for every single module. It's similar to Oracle. 

What other advice do I have?

I rate S/4HANA eight out of 10. I recommend it. My advice is that you need to clearly define your requirements before purchasing SAP or any ERP software. You also must ensure that your implementation partner is qualified. SAP is a great product, but you need a good implementation partner to implement it correctly.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
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Updated: March 2024
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Buyer's Guide
Download our free SAP S/4HANA Cloud Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.