COA Programs - Why are they being changed?
Companies and clients often change their basic Certificate of Analysis (COA) programs to meet specific needs. This program SHOULD NOT be changed in most cases. There are often other ways to accomplish what is needed. FireFighter in Business Process Expert, Chemicals, Manufacturing, Product Lifecycle Management, SAP Developer Network [Feb. 10, 2012 04:31 PM | 0 Comments | Permalink]

Is “Customer Experience” the Only Business Value Measure That Matters?
If you attended the recent SAP Customer Experience Workshop or were following the tweets from #SAPcx, you might get the impression that this was what Lior Arussy of Strativity Group was asserting. Customer experience sounds nice, you say, but is it really the most important? Greg Chase in Business Process Expert, CRM, Organizational Change Management [Feb. 09, 2012 06:53 PM | 1 Comments | Permalink]

Why should SAP Functional consultants use SCN?
SCN is for the full SAP community. Currently it is more focused to the developer. This blog looks at why functional consultants should use SCN - the benefits it provides to them and the wider community. Mark Chalfen in Beginner, Business Process Expert, Enterprise Social Systems, Improving My Experience, Ranting [Feb. 08, 2012 01:55 AM | 17 Comments | Permalink]

The perfect internal auditor
What makes an internal auditor perfect? I share a piece from a decade or two again and ask how expectations have changed, especially given changes in technology. Norman Marks in Business Process Expert, Financial Excellence, Governance, Risk and Compliance [Feb. 07, 2012 03:14 PM | 3 Comments | Permalink]

Facebook for Project Management (lessons learned so far)
Facebook does work for grass-roots project management on a small scale. This is short overview of my experiences. Alan Rickayzen in Business Process Expert, Business Process Management, Higher Education, SAP StreamWork [Feb. 06, 2012 06:35 AM | 4 Comments | Permalink]

SEO: Google Panda and You
A brief history and overview of the Google Panda algorithm update that was first released a year ago and updated several times since. Jason Lax in Search, Business Process Expert, Community Projects, Emerging Technologies, SAP Developer Network [Feb. 06, 2012 03:59 AM | 4 Comments | Permalink]

Update on the New SCN Launch
An update on our progress toward launch of the new SAP Community Network (SCN) platform and our future new community site. Mark Yolton in Business Intelligence (BusinessObjects), Business Process Expert, SAP Developer Network, University Alliances Message Board [Feb. 05, 2012 08:54 PM | 10 Comments | Permalink]

SAP culture shift - post go-live processes
Why isn't master data creation and maintenance planned for better during projects? This often seems overlooked to me in many projects. Why isn't it a key focus of project management? FireFighter in Business Process Expert, Business Process Management, Data Integration and Quality Management, Manufacturing, Product Lifecycle Management [Feb. 02, 2012 03:11 PM | 0 Comments | Permalink]

To Blueprint or not to Blueprint - that is the question.
This blog looks at how SAP builds their RDS solutions and reviews the process to include or exclude a Blueprint as a deliverable. Mark Chalfen in Business Process Expert, Business Solutions, ERP, Improving My Experience, SAP Business Suite [Feb. 02, 2012 09:02 AM | 9 Comments | Permalink]

Café Innovation – Will 2012 be the year of the Cloud?
There has been considerable chatter about Cloud computing for a while. While there have been some significant milestones in its adoption story, many enterprises have been somewhat circumspect in embracing it. But now, concerns are beginning to ease and with the ubiquity of mobile applications perhaps the consumption of cloud services will get a boost as well. Puneet Suppal in Analytics, Business Process Expert, In-Memory Business Data Management, Mobile, On Demand and Software as a Service (SaaS) [Jan. 31, 2012 02:43 PM | 0 Comments | Permalink]

Blog posts about internal audit and risk management
If you are interested in risk management and/or internal audit, you might be interested in these posts. They were the most popular of my posts on the Internal Auditor (IIA) Online web site last year. If you are interested only in discussions around GRC, have a look at #13 which includes commentary on what the term should mean to executives, practitioners, and others. Norman Marks in Business Process Expert, Financial Excellence, Governance, Risk and Compliance [Jan. 31, 2012 01:50 PM | 0 Comments | Permalink]

Returning Process Instance ID After Process Start
Many customers have requested to have a process identifier returned after process start. This blog explains how to model and implement a synchronous process start leveraging a new feature in SAP NetWeaver BPM 7.3 EHP 1. Ralf Schaub in Business Process Expert, Business Process Management, Business Process Modeling, SAP NetWeaver Platform [Jan. 30, 2012 01:57 PM | 0 Comments | Permalink]

Profitability Analysis Tools You Can Use to Substantiate Your Needed Investment in SAP HANA™
The focus here is to share some tools that you already have available in your ERP systems that can help you understand your current CO-PA system performance and to obtain facts needed for your SAP HANA investment analysis. Jeffrey Holdeman in Analytics, Business Process Expert, ERP, Financial Excellence, In-Memory Business Data Management [Jan. 30, 2012 01:29 PM | 0 Comments | Permalink]

Might HANA Help? Use Transaction KEDZ to View the CO-PA Read Interface Log
The focus here is to share some tools that you already have available in your ERP systems that can help you understand your current CO-PA system performance and to obtain facts needed for your SAP HANA investment analysis. Jeffrey Holdeman in Analytics, Business Process Expert, ERP, Financial Excellence, In-Memory Business Data Management [Jan. 30, 2012 01:29 PM | 0 Comments | Permalink]

Might HANA Help? Use Transaction KEUD to View CO-PA Assessment Cycle Overview
The focus here is to share some tools that you already have available in your ERP systems that can help you understand your current CO-PA system performance and to obtain facts needed for your SAP HANA investment analysis. Jeffrey Holdeman in Business Process Expert, Analytics, ERP, Financial Excellence, In-Memory Business Data Management [Jan. 30, 2012 01:29 PM | 0 Comments | Permalink]

Might HANA Help? Use Transaction KE28L to View the CO-PA Top-Down Distribution Log
The focus here is to share some tools that you already have available in your ERP systems that can help you understand your current CO-PA system performance and to obtain facts needed for your SAP HANA investment analysis. Jeffrey Holdeman in Analytics, Business Process Expert, ERP, Financial Excellence, In-Memory Business Data Management [Jan. 30, 2012 01:28 PM | 0 Comments | Permalink]

Might HANA Help? Use Transaction KEU5 CO-PA Assessment Cycle Analysis Tools
The focus here is to share some tools that you already have available in your ERP systems that can help you understand your current CO-PA system performance and to obtain facts needed for your SAP HANA investment analysis. Jeffrey Holdeman in Analytics, Business Process Expert, ERP, Financial Excellence, In-Memory Business Data Management [Jan. 30, 2012 01:26 PM | 0 Comments | Permalink]

Biggest enhancements in Feature Pack 3.5 of SAP Business ByDesign
New functionality available for #ByDesign in Feature Pack 3.5 Christian Happel in Business Process Expert, On Demand and Software as a Service (SaaS), SAP Business ByDesign [Jan. 30, 2012 11:26 AM | 1 Comments | Permalink]

Lessons learned from SAP GRC projects
SAP's Governance Risk and Compliance (GRC) solution has so much to offer that I can understand why some SAP customers might wonder if it is "overkill" or "too much for us." However, after several recent GRC projects, I am more convinced than ever that it has something for every SAP installation, large or small, public or privately held. I'll share some of my experiences, and you can see what you think. Gretchen Y Lindquist in Governance, Risk and Compliance, Business Process Expert, Identity Management, Security [Jan. 30, 2012 09:06 AM | 5 Comments | Permalink]

Some Answers about SAP's Products for the SME Market
One of the reasons for writing this blog is to answer a question I have been asked a few times by customers and prospects and that is “Is SAP Business ByDesign replacing SAP Business One?” In short, the answer to this question is “No.” There are clearly defined roadmaps for each product and this blog will aim to highlight a few of the key product differentiators and also to examine the target market for each. Tim Guest in Business Process Expert, In-Memory Business Data Management, SAP Business ByDesign, SAP Business One [Jan. 30, 2012 07:35 AM | 6 Comments | Permalink]

Organizational Gravity: Three Steps to Foster Continuous Improvement, Defy Obsolescence and Take Flight
Organizational gravity keeps an organization grounded and focused, contributing to a passion for continuous improvement at a tactical level. However, these improvements seem to arrive at the expense of innovation and adaptability. So what steps can an organization take to defy organizational gravity? James D. Murphy in Business Process Expert, Business Process Management [Jan. 29, 2012 01:02 AM | 0 Comments | Permalink]

The Big Miss - Why Don't We Understand Vertical Solutions?
SAP Best Practices is simply not understood for what it really is. Poorly marketed and misunderstood, few integrators and fewer customers understand the potential for changing SAP Rollouts Forever. We Missed it. Can we get it back? Richard T Jabbour in Best-Built Applications, Business Process Expert, Business Process Modeling, Business Solutions, SAP Business One [Jan. 28, 2012 02:51 PM | 0 Comments | Permalink]

The Detroit North American International Auto Show and Process Innovation
The North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) has just wrapped up in Detroit, Michigan. As the NAIAS reveals, organizations coming out of such an economic trough must be positioned to remain competitive with showroom glitz and buzz, and also with efficient processes that scale, contain costs, reduce risk, and most importantly, optimize cash flow. bpm_expert in Business Process Expert, Business Process Management, Business Solutions [Jan. 26, 2012 02:55 PM | 0 Comments | Permalink]

Join #SAP for a Day of Social Media Sessions during #SMW12
On February 15th, 2012, as part of Social Media Week, SAP will host a day of social media sessions in Palo Alto. Join the event onsite or via the SAP FB page. Natascha Thomson in Beyond SAP, Business Process Expert, Social Media and Social Networks [Jan. 25, 2012 07:05 PM | 0 Comments | Download Media | Permalink]

Uncovering the value of collaborative process modeling with SAP StreamWork
Most of you may be aware that the collaborative process modeling tool in SAP StreamWork is on public Beta as of late December 2011 and available to everyone who has an SAP StreamWork’s account to use it for free. With this great internal milestone past, I thought I would share some valuable scenarios and use cases where SAP customers (and also non-SAP customers) can get better results when using this collaborative process modeling tool. Eduardo Chiocconi in Business Process Expert, Business Process Management, Business Process Modeling, SAP StreamWork [Jan. 25, 2012 12:56 PM | 2 Comments | Permalink]

Get Involved Early On in the New SCN Discussions
Check out this quick guided tour of the new SCN Discussion Forums and get involved in the conversation early on! Gali Kling Schneider in Beginner, Business Intelligence (BusinessObjects), Business Process Expert, SAP Developer Network, University Alliances Message Board [Jan. 24, 2012 11:29 AM | 14 Comments | Permalink]

Supporting 5 releases at a time in the cloud
Operating cloud solutions is a lot easier as you have to support less releases. But with how many releases is the software vendor really dealing with at a time? Christian Happel in Business Process Expert, On Demand and Software as a Service (SaaS), SAP Business ByDesign [Jan. 23, 2012 11:47 AM | 0 Comments | Permalink]

A more radical view of what the Audit Committee should worry about in 2012
What should be on the audit committee agenda in the new year? Do we stay with the traditional set of questions, or should we take a more strategic view - such as the adequacy of information, the maturity of risk management, the quality of the external auditor, the adequacy of enterprise systems, etc? Norman Marks in Business Process Expert, Financial Excellence, Governance, Risk and Compliance [Jan. 22, 2012 08:13 AM | 0 Comments | Permalink]

Can Finance People Learn to Love the Cloud?
International standards prvoide internal controls assurances for both cloud providers and the firms who use them to safeguard their financial reporting data Jim Daddario in Business Process Expert, Financial Excellence, Governance, Risk and Compliance, On Demand and Software as a Service (SaaS), SAP Business ByDesign [Jan. 19, 2012 04:32 PM | 1 Comments | Permalink]

Bench-time and Family dynamics
Extended bench time for an independent can be a difficult thing in this economy. While many of us have personalities that deal well with this, we often forget it impacts the people around us. FireFighter in Business Process Expert, Beyond SAP [Jan. 19, 2012 04:11 PM | 2 Comments | Permalink]

Better Blueprinting 1.0
Business Process Blueprinting for SAP Solution Manager offers a comprehensive capability towards Documenting and Modeling the IT requirements of your SAP Implementation. In the weblog, I will cover 3 aspects:- 1. Main value proposition of BPB 1.0 2. Key Capabilities with BPB 1.0 and 3. Hit the ground running with 5 in-depth How-To guides Karthik S J in Application Lifecycle Management, Business Process Expert, Business Process Management, Business Process Modeling, SAP Solution Manager [Jan. 19, 2012 10:00 AM | 4 Comments | Permalink]

TOP SAP Experts - You can have yours!!
This blog originated from the blog from Bernhard Escherich (link above), and was also a suggestion from a friend and brilliant mind in consultants recruiting, Michelle Crapo. It brings many sides of the SAP Expert recognition, valuable participation X overrates, cultural features and many other branches of this interesting subject. So, please, feel free to add your thoughts, critics and suggestions to this blog and its comments. We promise a very profitable debate!! Alexandre Carvalho in Beyond SAP, Business Process Expert, Idea Place, Partnership, SAP EcoHub [Jan. 18, 2012 08:47 AM | 15 Comments | Permalink]

Integrating business planning, performance management, and risk management
An article about integrated business planning and performance management talks about surprises but fails to mention risk management. Don't you need to integrate risk management if you are to optimize performance? Norman Marks in Business Process Expert, Enterprise Performance Management, Financial Excellence, Governance, Risk and Compliance [Jan. 16, 2012 10:21 AM | 0 Comments | Permalink]

BPC 10 MS/NW - Sending and retrieving comments in an EPM Add-in input form
Very frequently, while customers are opening their planning period to entity owners or managers, they would like to attach some comments, explaining their figures. In the new EPM Add-in, if you use the standard way of inputting or retrieving comments (via the comment button), you are not able to see them directly in Excel cells, but in an Internet Explorer window instead. In this blog, you’ll learn how to use the EPMCopyRange formula in order to dynamically send and retrieve comments in an EPM Add-in input form. Patrick Favre in Business Process Expert, Enterprise Performance Management [Jan. 16, 2012 09:54 AM | 2 Comments | Permalink]

EPM Add-in report with multiple Categories in SAP BPC, version for Microsoft and NetWeaver 10
With the new user interface in BPC 10, one might wonder how to create a report rendering two different Categories: Actual data for closed months and Plan data for the outlying months. Follow the below instructions and you will impress your client in no time. Robert Marshall in Analytics, Business Process Expert, Enterprise Performance Management [Jan. 16, 2012 09:53 AM | 0 Comments | Permalink]

Customer Exit: Create your own key figure for BPMon AND Business Process Analytics
This customer exit framework is ABAP OO based and allows the development of new monitoring objects and key figures that can then be used for Business Process Monitoring as well as Business Process Analytics. Volker von Gloeden in Application Lifecycle Management, Business Process Expert, Run SAP, SAP Solution Manager [Jan. 14, 2012 07:23 AM | 0 Comments | Permalink]

SAP Business One - Help and Support
Are you a user of SAP Business One? Do you feel isolated & tired of the poor support you receive from your SAP Partner? This Blog explains how you can learn, network with other SAP Business One users and includes links to helpful sites. Tim Guest in Business Process Expert, Idea Place, Partnership, SAP Business One [Jan. 11, 2012 08:22 PM | 5 Comments | Permalink]

Cloud-Centered IT Strategy Should Consider the “Whole Pie"
In my recent article for SAP Insider: “End-to-End Business Processes in the Cloud – A Tour of Today’s Business ByDesign”, I show how cloud computing can also become basis for transforming entire companies. ERP Software as a Service offerings (SaaS) such as SAP Business ByDesign are key to this by: Managing common processes through best practices Reinforcing competitive advantages with customization Keeping companies agile by reducing technical complexity Greg Chase in Business Process Expert, On Demand and Software as a Service (SaaS), SAP Business ByDesign [Jan. 11, 2012 07:59 AM | 0 Comments | Permalink]

How to assess the effectiveness of internal control
The new draft internal control framework from COSO includes guidance on how to assess whether the system of internal control is effective. In this post, I summarize what the document says. I then ask your views on whether you agree with this way of assessing the adequacy of internal control. Why is this important? The COSO framework is globally accepted and affects every risk, control, assurance, and governance professional. Norman Marks in Business Process Expert, Financial Excellence, Governance, Risk and Compliance [Jan. 10, 2012 02:41 PM | 2 Comments | Permalink]

SAP NetWeaver BPM @ Full Throttle
SAP NetWeaver BPM has been in the market from more than 3 years and has gained a lot of market adoption. As many customer projects increase complexity of the implementation, there is also a need to run high-volume and high-throughput scenarios. This blog discusses and releases a joint case study between IBM and SAP where latest performance data is provided for SAP NetWeaver BPM in a typical three-step approval scenario. Ralf Schaub in SAP NetWeaver Platform, Business Process Expert, Business Process Management, Business Process Modeling [Jan. 09, 2012 05:13 AM | 0 Comments | Permalink]

My 2012 SCN SAP HCM Wish list
Some of the things I want to see on SCN this year, in respect to SAP HCM. Luke Marson in Business Process Expert, ERP, Human Capital Management, Idea Place, On Demand and Software as a Service (SaaS) [Jan. 08, 2012 05:00 AM | 2 Comments | Permalink]

Managing Project Architectural Challenges
The original title was “Managing Projects Implementing Crap”… but I thought that was a little too harsh… Occasionally the architectural principles of an EA Strategic implementation, or related project, are sacrificed, even when architectural governance is in place. Why? In this series of blogs we will look at: 1. Some of the typical reasons and principles that are broken; 2. Try to understand why the decisions are made; and 3. How to manage and respond to the architectural issues that arise. Darin Paton in Business Process Expert, Enterprise Architecture, Governance, Risk and Compliance [Jan. 07, 2012 11:54 AM | 2 Comments | Permalink]

Norman’s most popular 2011 posts on GRC, risk management, audit, and more
Norman Marks in Business Intelligence (BusinessObjects), Business Process Expert, Financial Excellence, Governance, Risk and Compliance [Jan. 05, 2012 03:36 PM | 5 Comments | Permalink]

A Renewal Of Enterprise Landscapes
How the SAP HANA in-memory technology is helping transform businesses Vishal Sikka in Business Intelligence (BusinessObjects), Business Process Expert, In-Memory Business Data Management, SAP Developer Network, University Alliances Message Board [Jan. 05, 2012 06:55 AM | 2 Comments | Permalink]

Moderator Spotlight – Mauricio Bento Ghem
Our newest moderator spotlight in the series is dedicated HCM moderator and skydiver Mauricio Bento Ghem. Gali Kling Schneider in Business Intelligence (BusinessObjects), Business Process Expert, SAP Developer Network [Jan. 05, 2012 04:14 AM | 0 Comments | Permalink]

How to Build Your Reputation on the New SCN
This blog makes the important distinction between creating an online brand and online reputation for SCN members. The video provides a glimpse of features in the New SCN that will help members build their reputation while improving their presence. Jason Cao in Social Media and Social Networks, Business Intelligence (BusinessObjects), Business Process Expert, SAP Developer Network [Jan. 04, 2012 09:49 AM | 11 Comments | Download Media | Permalink]

Enterprise Mobility and Performance Impact Objects
Mobility Analyst and SAP Mentor Kevin Benedict shares his insights on enterprise mobility and performance impact objects. Kevin Benedict in Analytics, Business Process Expert, Enterprise Asset Management (EAM), Mobile, Professional Services [Jan. 04, 2012 08:09 AM | 0 Comments | Permalink]

Supply Chain Risk Management
In the survival of the fittest paradigm supply chain operations need to be more cost conscious, flexible ,innovative, and agile.Supply chain starts at one corner of the world and ends thousands of miles away in a different continent.Now a days localized event’s effect is experiences across the globe due to decentralized supply chain model. Supply chain operations are exposed to risk from a number of internal factors, which are easier to be addressed, or external factors, which are beyond the control. Kaushik Choudhury in Beginner, Beyond SAP, Business Process Expert, Consumer Products, Manufacturing [Jan. 03, 2012 05:55 AM | 0 Comments | Permalink]

My governance, risk, and assurance wish list for 2012
Norman Marks in Business Process Expert, Financial Excellence, Governance, Risk and Compliance [Jan. 02, 2012 02:04 PM | 6 Comments | Permalink]

Executive Coaching and Debriefing for Corporate Leadership Development Programs
In today's management environment, new forms of corporate leadership development programs have emerged. One of the most popular development tools is executive coaching, as corporate leadership development programs frequently utilize these services. However, the fundamentals of executive coaching have actually been around for many years in the form of debriefing. James D. Murphy in Business Process Expert, Business Process Management, Organizational Change Management, Professional Services [Dec. 28, 2011 04:08 AM | 0 Comments | Permalink]