The solution is to enhance the customer experience. If a company wants a more seamless experience for the customers and they were expanding their omnichannel experience, they implement this product.
Consultant at Capgemini
Customizable with a seamless customer experience and good support
Pros and Cons
- "It was easy to implement."
- "We'd like to have more of a low-code platform."
What is our primary use case?
How has it helped my organization?
The product improves the customer experience.
What is most valuable?
It makes it seamless for customers.
It was easy to implement.
The solution is stable.
It is pretty scalable as it is cloud-based.
The customization is excellent.
What needs improvement?
We'd like to have more of a low-code platform.
I'm not missing any features at this time.
Buyer's Guide
SAP S/4HANA Cloud
November 2024
Learn what your peers think about SAP S/4HANA Cloud. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: November 2024.
824,067 professionals have used our research since 2012.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have about five years of experience with the solution.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The solution has been stable. There are no bugs or glitches and it doesn't crash or freeze. It's reliable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The product is scalable. It's not a problem to expand the product. Being on the cloud makes it easy.
I'm not sure how big our current environment is. I don't deal with that aspect of the solution.
How are customer service and support?
Technical support is very professional. They are on time and are always assisting us.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I recently changed companies, and this solution was being implemented at the time.
How was the initial setup?
The setup is straightforward. Initially, we were learning how to implement it by ourselves. When we were into the process, it was easier and simpler than we thought to implement and get it up and running pretty fast.
The deployment itself took three months.
We have five to six people that can deploy and maintain the solution.
What about the implementation team?
We set up the solution ourselves. It's not hard. We didn't need any integrators or consultants.
What was our ROI?
While I don't have an exact number, we have witnessed an ROI in terms of the client being happy with us.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
I'm not aware of the exact pricing of the product.
What other advice do I have?
We are customers and end-users.
Since implementing this product, the customer is very happy, and therefore, we are very happy.
They are easy to use, and we are witnessing an ROI.
I'd rate the solution ten out of ten. We are very satisfied with the solution.
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?
Amazon Web Services (AWS)
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
CEO at a manufacturing company with 11-50 employees
The readymade processes make it a good option if you're adopting a greenfield approach
Pros and Cons
- "I like S/4HANA's automated features, readymade processes, and user interface. It supports various processes required by large international companies, like logistics, procurement, payments, sales, etc. All of these features were available in previous SAP solutions, but HANA has an updated user interface and improved integration with other systems. The readymade processes make HANA a good option if you're adopting a greenfield approach."
- "S/4HANA isn't ideal for managing contracts and subscriptions. There isn't a feature to notify us when a contract for a service we need is approaching its end or a product is no longer supported. You need a separate solution for that."
What is our primary use case?
We're a manufacturing company that uses S/4HANA for managing finances and other business processes.
What is most valuable?
I like S/4HANA's automated features, readymade processes, and user interface. It supports various processes required by large international companies, like logistics, procurement, payments, sales, etc. All of these features were available in previous SAP solutions, but HANA has an updated user interface and improved integration with other systems. The readymade processes make HANA a good option if you're adopting a greenfield approach.
What needs improvement?
S/4HANA isn't ideal for managing contracts and subscriptions. There isn't a feature to notify us when a contract for a service we need is approaching its end or a product is no longer supported. You need a separate solution for that.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have used S/4HANA for the last eighteen months.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
S/4HANA is stable, but it needs resources.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
S/4HANA is scalable.
How are customer service and support?
I have contacted SAP support in Germany and Spain many times and also SAP partners. SAP support is excellent, but the support from partners varies depending on who you get. Some are more experienced than others.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I have used other SAP ERP solutions that were more appropriate for small and medium-sized companies, like logistics warehouses. They didn't have good enough support. S/4HANA is easier to use and suitable for large, complex organizations.
How was the initial setup?
You need to prepare before deploying S/4HANA. You need to do a feasibility study and have a team analyze the current processes. It involves several groups of employees, like testing, configuration, and interface teams. Before implementing, you need to know what resources are needed. It's easier if you are adopting a greenfield approach. It can take two years or more for a large company to deploy S/4HANA company fully. It's at least one year.
The system requires ongoing maintenance. You need people who can code and understand SAP logic. It's hard to maintain if you have to change something.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The license for S/4HANA is expensive, and the licensing structure is hard to understand. The admin license is something like 500 euros per user. Other ERP solutions allowed you to pick only the modules you need. The SAP ECC version requires you to take all the modules even if you are not using them.
You take the whole system and pay your monthly fees. S/4HANA can define licenses based on roles, series, etc., but there are so many kinds of licenses and fees. It's more complicated than the licensing for Microsoft Dynamics or other SaaS ERP tools.
What other advice do I have?
I rate SAP S/4HANA eight out of 10. Before implementing an ERP tool, you should understand your needs, processes, and business requirements.
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
Buyer's Guide
SAP S/4HANA Cloud
November 2024
Learn what your peers think about SAP S/4HANA Cloud. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: November 2024.
824,067 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Manager at Mahindra & Mahindra
Stable application which improves data management, user and stakeholder experiences
Pros and Cons
- "I like the SAP offerings and the standard best practices included in the SAP S/4HANA Cloud version."
- "The proposition by SAP does not match the value realization."
What is our primary use case?
SAP S/4HANA Cloud can be integrated with other non-SAP applications. Our company wants to elevate the core user experience and wants users to use the SAP favourite mobile applications.
How has it helped my organization?
SAP S/4HANA Cloud has improved our data management and user and stakeholder experiences. It has also enhanced our business partners, supplier and customer experiences.
In regards to storage, one of the other drivers that led us to implement SAP S/4HANA is that other SAP storage offerings, such as RISE with SAP and SAP BTP, do not offer the same user and customer experience or proper data management. As a result, it's difficult to find available competencies.
What is most valuable?
I like the SAP offerings and the standard best practices included in the SAP S/4HANA Cloud version.
Another valuable feature is the private cloud. If you are on a private cloud, the SAP S/4HANA allows you to use a desktop PC and customize the workings to your business needs. In addition, with SAP S/4HANA, you also have the choice to select your own Hyperscaler.
What needs improvement?
A challenge with SAP S/4HANA is that the proposition by SAP does not match the value realization. For example, SAP proposes more value for the cloud offering with RISE with SAP. This same approach should also be realized to the fullest extent for SAP S/4HANA.
For how long have I used the solution?
We started the implementation of SAP S/4HANA in November 2021.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The product is stable. It's not challenging, especially with extensive testing and multiple iterations. However, there is always a possibility of issues or surprises, but the product is stable immediately.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
In terms of storage scalability, if it is in the cloud, SAP S/4HANA Cloud appears to offer some direct phasing, down phasing, and scalability. But, I have yet to come across a scalability situation on the customer side.
How are customer service and support?
We have a great contract with SAP, so we have no challenges getting technical support. We know that SAP technical support works per their policy and whatever has been defined in the cloud agreement. So, we can connect with an expert and usually have an answer within 48 hours.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup of SAP S/4HANA Cloud was complex and wore me and my colleagues out. Value realizations are complex, and it was difficult finding out the actual value realization.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The licensing process for SAP S/4HANA Cloud has worked well and is usually completed before I decide on a project. Also, licensing is confidential between the supplier and the customers.
Regarding setup processes, I believe that a company should be clear about its vision and goals. A company should ensure that the technology they want to implement aligns with the vision they want to achieve in the next two or three years. If these things align, they should adopt this technology and see how many competencies they possess. So, for example, if the company doesn't have the technical competency in-house, it may be better to offload these tasks by leveraging completely managed services via the cloud or SAP.
What other advice do I have?
I would rate this solution an eight. I would have rated it a 10 had I successfully gotten a value realization in a simpler way.
Our company wants the data to be collected from SAP S/4 SSP, and then we want to send the data to the data lake. We want to bring to the world analytics on the data collected from SAP. This includes the structured and non-structured data collected from SAP and data from social media.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Head-IT/SAP at Barista Coffee Company Ltd.
Good integration capabilities with helpful best practices and great technical support
Pros and Cons
- "The integration is very stable."
- "The pricing is high."
What is our primary use case?
We are into little segments and we are using SAP's little option. We are using five models in that S4HANA, and this is just the backend. On the front-end side, we are using both applications and both are integrated together.
What is most valuable?
The primary and secondary line views are very helpful.
The solution is reliable.
The scalability is very good.
The integration is very stable. We have 18 years of SAP experience and we simply have migrated to S4HANA. We are using SAP Best Practices within our business requirements and it works very well for using this approach.
Technical support has always been insightful and responsive.
What needs improvement?
There isn't anything I would want to improve on. It's a good solution.
There is a difference between the real-time synchronization of any application or the solution that's provided by the OEM. SAP is providing releases or notes frequently, so it's an ongoing activity. SAP is constantly providing small, small patches to upgrade everything. The release strategy is based on the OEM. It works fine for us, this approach.
The pricing is high.
For how long have I used the solution?
We have used SAP for the last 17 years, however, recently, last year, we migrated into HANA.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The stability of the product is good. It doesn't crash or freeze. There are no bugs or glitches. The performance is reliable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
We've never had issues with scalability. It's good. If a company needs to expand, it can do so.
We currently have 40 or more SAP users in our business. While we have over 700 employees, the backend application can only be used by corporate or regional team members.
How are customer service and support?
Technical support has been great. We've used them in the past and have been satisfied with how they have helped us.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I am also familiar with Oracle and Microsoft Dynamics. This product has a higher cost, however, it is the best option and therefore you get good value for money.
That said, our company is almost 20 years old and we adopted SAP about 18 years ago. We've pretty much always used it.
How was the initial setup?
The installation or implementation of this product takes around five months. It's about the process implementation. Therefore, whenever you will implement any application, you have to understand how it will fit into your business. You need to consider the business use cases and the user interactions. All of these tasks take time.
What about the implementation team?
While we handled the solution's implementation in-house, we also had an in-house consultant who assisted us in the process.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
If you compare this product with the big players - like Oracle and Microsoft Dynamics - SAP is quite costly. That said, if you are talking about the solution, SAP is the number one option.
You do need to pay for a license. It's an architectural license based on maintenance costs. Every year we have to pay 22% of the purchase costs and maintenance costs. It's not a subscription-based model, it's a perpetual model.
What other advice do I have?
I would recommend the solution to others. We have 18 years or so of experience with SAP and we've always found the solution to be excellent. We deeply understand SAP and SAP culture. We understand the processes and how to leverage everything for the betterment of our business. We're totally aligned with SAP.
I would rate the solution at a nine out of ten.
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.
SAP Business Analyst at Jante
Assists our organization with following due processes, making it easy for both internal and external audits
Pros and Cons
- "The integration between SAP EWM and S4HANA Cloud is seamless."
- "The integration between SAP EWM and S4HANA Cloud is seamless."
- "The reporting aspect needs improvement, specifically in integrating the EWM and MM modules into a single report."
- "The reporting aspect needs improvement, specifically in integrating the EWM and MM modules into a single report."
What is our primary use case?
I am currently working as an SAP EWM consultant. I am also involved in sales and distribution, and I work with SAP S4HANA Cloud in supply chain management.
How has it helped my organization?
SAP S4HANA Cloud assists our organization with following due processes, making it easy for both internal and external audits. It provides flexibility that allows it to fit into our business requirements and needs.
What is most valuable?
The integration between SAP EWM and S4HANA Cloud is seamless. SAP's reporting capabilities are exceptional. Real-time analytics are also a strength, allowing analytics as long as data is posted in the system real-time.
What needs improvement?
The reporting aspect needs improvement, specifically in integrating the EWM and MM modules into a single report. Integration between flexible real estate and sales and distribution needs to be more seamless. Modules into revenue generation should integrate more easily with SD for better operational flow.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been dealing with SAP S4HANA Cloud since 2016 and SAP in general since 2014.
How are customer service and support?
The technical support from SAP is quite good, although there is room for improvement. We receive quick responses when issues are logged.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
SAP is perceived as expensive, but this is due to the quality of the product. There are also SAP products applicable to small to medium-sized companies, which are more affordable.
What other advice do I have?
I would recommend SAP S4HANA Cloud to other businesses, including manufacturing, supply chain-related, and finance companies. However, its use in the banking industry might be limited.
I'd rate the solution eight out of ten.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Last updated: Nov 26, 2024
Flag as inappropriatePrincipal Information Technology Consultant at NTT DATA
Provides easy database access and fulfills all the custom applications and custom business requirements
Pros and Cons
- "SAP S/4HANA Cloud provides easy database access."
- "The user interface of SAP S/4HANA Cloud needs to be improved because it is not as good as other applications."
What is our primary use case?
We use SAP S/4HANA Cloud for claims portal applications in more than 25 countries. It is used to work on customer complaints after the sale order has been created. Once the customer or distributor raises their complaint, it goes into different levels of approval. Then, based on whether the different levels of approval have been accepted or rejected, an order gets created in the back end of the SAP system, and a cash memo or part exchange is given to the customer. Before the final approval, different approvals and IDs are created in the SAP cloud database instead of the SAP on-premise database to help reduce the number of users.
What is most valuable?
SAP S/4HANA Cloud can fulfill all the custom applications and can fulfill custom business requirements. SAP S/4HANA Cloud provides easy database access.
What needs improvement?
The user interface of SAP S/4HANA Cloud needs to be improved because it is not as good as other applications.
For how long have I used the solution?
We have been using SAP S/4HANA Cloud for two years.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The solution is scalable. Nearly a thousand users are using the system.
How are customer service and support?
The customer support is good.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is neither easy nor difficult. I rate SAP S/4HANA Cloud's initial setup a five out of ten. The deployment of the solution takes two years. Ten people are required for the deployment, which includes two engineers, one system architect, and four developers.
What other advice do I have?
The solution is deployed on a private cloud. People can access the public cloud using all the necessary authentication. So we have both private and public service applications. We are working in parallel with OutSystems, which is far better for SAP.
Overall, I rate SAP S/4HANA Cloud a ten out of ten.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Lead SAP Cloud Services at a computer software company with 201-500 employees
Detailed costing structure, useful built-in analytics, and scales well
Pros and Cons
- "The most valuable features of SAP S/4HANA Cloud are the detailed solution costing, integration, and built-in analytics."
- "The integration with third-party vendors could improve."
What is our primary use case?
SAP S/4HANA Cloud has been used in manufacturing, for niche industries, such as automotive utilities, higher education, and oil and gas.
What is most valuable?
The most valuable features of SAP S/4HANA Cloud are the detailed solution costing, integration, and built-in analytics.
What needs improvement?
The integration with third-party vendors could improve.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have used SAP S/4HANA Cloud within the last 12 years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
SAP S/4HANA Cloud is a stable solution.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The scalability of SAP S/4HANA Cloud is great.
How are customer service and support?
It is difficult to receive the correct answer from the support.
I rate the support from SAP S/4HANA Cloud a four out of ten.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Neutral
How was the initial setup?
Other ERP solutions are significantly easier to implement, but SAP S/4HANA Cloud has its merit.
The length of time it takes to implement the solution depends on the environment. I have done 15 implementations.
I rate the initial setup of SAP S/4HANA Cloud a six out of ten.
What other advice do I have?
The maintenance of the solution can be outsourced, done in-house by a selected team, or a hybrid of the two. Most companies have hybrid maintenance programs.
SAP S/4HANA Cloud is not one of the top solutions when evaluating other solutions on the market. This solution is a bit rigid.
I rate SAP S/4HANA Cloud an eight out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Public Cloud
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
Transformation Consultant at Dr. Pascal Sieber & Partners AG
A highly stable and exceptionally scalable ERP system
Pros and Cons
- "It is a stable solution...It is a scalable solution."
- "It is a complicated solution. So it should be easier to use."
What is our primary use case?
Speaking about use cases, it is a whole ERP system for a medical tech company.
What needs improvement?
It is a complicated solution. So it should be easier to use.
For how long have I used the solution?
At the moment, I'm not using the solution, but as a consultant, I'm looking at or evaluating ERP systems for customers. So, SAP S/4HANA is the last one, which I evaluated for one of our customers. Also, my customers chose the solution. So, I am a consultant for my customers. I provide consultations in a totally neutral manner for all the products.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It is a stable solution.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
It is a scalable solution.
In one of the projects I know, there are around 400 to 500 users using the solution.
How was the initial setup?
It's a hybrid solution. So a few things are on-premises like the local data is on-premises, and the rest of the software is in the cloud.
The biggest problem if you are involved in implementing SAP S/4HANA is that you are not working directly with SAP, meaning that you are dependent on implementation partners. The implementation partners receive the incentives only if they are selling cloud solutions. So they are cherry-picking in the market. So this means that the transaction phase will go much longer, and the companies with the most needs and the biggest backlog will be the latest ones in the last ones of the transformation, which will spread some competitive disadvantages.
What other advice do I have?
I would recommend the solution to those who are already working with SAP.
I rate the overall solution a seven out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Hybrid Cloud
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
Buyer's Guide
Download our free SAP S/4HANA Cloud Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros
sharing their opinions.
Updated: November 2024
Product Categories
Cloud ERPPopular Comparisons
NetSuite ERP
Oracle Fusion Cloud ERP
SAP Business ByDesign
Acumatica
Ramco ERP
Buyer's Guide
Download our free SAP S/4HANA Cloud Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros
sharing their opinions.
Quick Links
Learn More: Questions:
- What are the main differences between SAP RISE and SAP Business ByDesign?
- What is the cost per license for SAP S/4 HANA cloud a year?
- What would be your most recommended cloud-based ERP system for a medium-sized enterprise?
- What are the main components of an ERP system?
- What are your Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) predictions for 2022?
- What inexpensive firewall can provide the best performance and protection (food order service)?
- Which is a better ERP approach for a global roll-out: Big Bang or a Phased approach?
- When evaluating Cloud ERP, what aspect do you think is the most important to look for?
- Compare Deltek CostPoint vs Oracle NetSuite ERP
- How an ERP system can become a revenue generation source for a bank?