Third-party software Managing SAP Systems Automation

Reducing reliance on scarce SAP IT skills

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Automation and skilled personnel

In today's digital landscape, businesses are under constant pressure to innovate and stay ahead of the competition. However, maintaining SAP systems requires specialised IT skills that are now in short supply. IT teams struggle to retain in-house skills and attracting replacement skills requires creative thinking, particularly around things like salary and working conditions.

Reducing reliance on these specialised skills through the implementation of third-party add-on SAP IT automation software across a range of activities can result in highly beneficial outcomes.

SAP IT automation software

The scope for automating SAP IT operational activities is broad, and the benefits are far-reaching. There are lots of third-party automation solutions for SAP IT teams. These include solutions that can handle routine tasks such as system monitoring, backups, and upgrades, freeing up skilled IT personnel to focus on higher-value activities and reducing reliance on their skills and knowledge.

For example:

  • Although most monitoring of SAP systems and processes is automated in some way, monitoring and reacting to alerts is quite manual. Specialised monitoring tools not only alert users of potential issues in real-time, but can prioritise them, and in some cases, auto repair, allows high-priority alerts to be addressed before they become significant problems

  • Backing up SAP systems is a critical task that can be automated with specialized tools. Automating backups ensures that data is always up-to-date and minimizes the risk of data loss in the event of a system failure. Much of the work required to complete backups is still quite manual.

  • Testing SAP systems is a crucial step in ensuring that updates and changes work as intended. Automating testing processes can significantly reduce the time and effort required to perform this task while also improving accuracy, reducing the risk of human error, and reducing reliance on skilled testing personnel.

  • Keeping SAP systems up-to-date is essential for security and performance. Automating SAP version updates is not really an option for many, patch automation might be and ensures systems are always running with the latest patches installed without requiring a lot of manual intervention.

Automation benefits

By automating a range of SAP IT operational activities, the following outcomes in addition to reduced reliance on human skills are available.

  1.   Increased system uptime: Quicker identification and resolution of system issues, minimizing the impact on business operations.
  2.   Perform tasks consistently, ensuring that the same procedures are followed every time, regardless of who is performing the task.
  3.   Reduce the likelihood of manual errors, which can be costly and time-consuming to fix. 

Outcomes

Specialty IT automation solutions can provide significant benefits for SAP IT teams. By automating everyday repetitive tasks, streamlining processes, enhancing data accuracy, and lowering costs, organizations can optimize their SAP systems and improve their overall business performance.

Rick Porter

Rick Porter

With over two decades of working within the SAP ecosystem, Rick has met and worked with SAP IT professionals from broad backgrounds and experiences. Rick knows the stresses and strains experienced by those managing SAP systems and enjoys bringing these insights and reflections into conversations.

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