On SAP BO Skills Transitions, Roadmap Questions, and How Data Beats Chest Thumping

It’s still early in 2009, but in the spirit of the Academy Awards, we have an early nominee for over-used “SAP buzzword of the year.” That word, of course, is “insight.” Insight has become the oft-used catchphrase for the dreamy achievement of transforming ERP data into actionable information that can be used to make more informed business decisions. Now is a time when companies need all the “insight” they can get, so it’s probably not a surprise that this phrase is gaining, ahem, traction.

To further the collective desire to better understand the SAP BI product line, I’ve been working with PAC on an upcoming report on SAP Business Objects market opportunities. We’re currently conducting interviews and getting fresh perspectives on the BO roadmap from inside and outside of SAP. The focus will be on identifying the issues SAP customers are thinking about now that influence SAP BO buying decisions.

Up to this point, the responses I have been getting range from enthusiasm about the combined SAP BO offering to genuine confusion about pricing and long term product integration. There *are* two things I can confirm at this point in the research: one, not surprisingly, is that BI remains on the spending priority list even in this time of obsessive cost reduction. Two is that whether you are an independent consultant or a large SAP services partner, the edge you are seeking in the BI/BO consulting world requires more than just proven hands-on skills. You also need to be able to speak to SAP’s long term BI strategy and help customers understand how the products they are investing in now will (or will not) align themselves with where SAP itself is headed.

As we continue this evolution from “transactional ERP” to the era of (get ready for this catch phrase) “value-enhanced ERP via embedded analytics,” we know that the skill sets of ERP consultants are also changing. That was one of the biggest questions on my mind when I recently issued a podcast on SAP BO skills with Franz Aman, VP of Intelligence Product Platform Marketing for SAP Business Objects. Franz had an interesting take on the skills consultants should be pursuing to be relevant in the SAP BO world.

During the podcast, I asked Franz what technical SAP teams need to do in order to become bigger contributors on BI projects. He encouraged technical listeners to go beyond tools mastery and engage with the business problems at hand. “I always encourage IT folks to look at two sides of the coin: first, you have to have the product knowledge, so definitely brush up on BI technology, the SAP Business Objects portfolio and all that,” said Aman. “You have to have that technical knowledge, understand the products, what their value is, how to best deploy that to the business, but brush up on the business side. Really understand and build a bridge to the business side to make sure you know what problems the business has to deal with. Really understand what the questions are that the business is grappling with. Don’t just ask for requirements. The business, a lot of times, has a hard time spelling it out. And, as we know, business and IT aren’t always talking the same language.”

One of the big skills debates in SAP BI is about functional roles in BI. To what degree should the SAP functional consultant be working to expose themselves to BI technology? Franz responded by stressing the importance of turning the data you are working with and turning it into meaningful benchmarks. “From my perspective, what always helps in functional lines is to move away from ‘guesstimates’ and gut feeling and all that. Really train yourself to measure, understand data, make database decisions. Fundamentally, you can’t really manage what you can’t measure. It’s a really old expression, but it’s so true. So, really think about the KPIs, really think about what measures you have to put in place in order to drive certain outcomes.”

For me, one of the highlights of the podcast was when Franz described meetings where the room’s attention shifted to the person, regardless of role, who had the best information. “It’s stunning every single time when you get into a discussion, whether it’s at the board level or whether it’s at the project team level, the moment the person with data around the table speaks up, shows the data, the discussion immediately takes a turn,” said Aman. “I’ve seen so many of these discussions at all kinds of levels where people are arguing their points, they’re making great arguments, they’re very convincing, very assertive – but the moment the one person around the table with the data speaks up, all that crumbles and you have a whole different level of discussion.”

I was struck by what Franz was saying because the ERP blogosphere is filled with posturing on controversial issues, perhaps for the sake of getting page views. The arguments that ensue often seem designed to whip up emotionality for its own sake, rather than furthering the conversation. Franz has seen these same dynamics in boardroom settings. He believes that business intelligence, properly used by savvy individuals, can alter the conversation.

“What I’m encouraging everyone to do on the line of business side is to be that person around the table who actually has the data,” said Aman. “Contribute that point of view and take the discussion from people being assertive and chest-pounding. Go towards data, rational approaches, and make sure that everyone understands the business, understands your function, what’s going on. Drive it that way. You’re going to have better outcomes, and your company is going to be more successful.”

Finding the right BI skills mix depends on the individual, or in some cases, the focus of a consulting practice. But I know that in my own work, I left the podcast with Franz more determined than ever to compile useful data. I’d much rather be the one who shifted the conversation with good information than be the one who captured attention with a loud argument that was forgotten the next day when someone with better data came along. I’ll bet I’m not alone.