Companies can potentially bleed staggering amounts of money implementing SAP APO (Advanced Planning Optimizer), with a mediocre results that requires extensive re-engineering. Here are the top five steps required to create a company – wide – lean – mean – APO machine.
1. Get the best of the best to consult and guide you. You will fail or create a nightmare APO design if you do not do your homework and hire the very best APO consultants. Not only must they be technically brilliant, they must also have the ability to create a clear vision and communicate that vision skilfully. You will fail if you do not network with industry executives who have solid experience with APO and can consult you. You will fail if you hire people that will tell you what you want to hear as opposed to what you need to hear. You will fail if you believe you are smarter than industry best practises and think, “but we have always done it this way, and it works fine.” Get the picture? Rock the boat and find the best.
2. You will fail without an executive vision. Without a question APO first requires a vision from up top. That vision should be built on long standing best practices and someone’s bullshit “expert” theories. People tend to jump in blueprint details without building a rock solid vision first. SAP APO provides extremely advanced planning tools (heuristics, optimizers…etc) that automates and quickens planning cycles from top to bottom. Because APO can provide detailed planning information at your fingertips (across the supply chain) you absolutely must remove silos between departments. The most successful companies create a lean and mean Supply Chain group that is fully accountable to drive all significant changes throughout the supply chain. Organizational changes will happen!
3. Clean up your master data. Books have been written about cleaning master data when implementing SAP APO so this goes without saying. APO is primarily a master data driven project. Don’t ever forget that.
4. Throw your reports in the garbage With APO Alert Monitors you can analyze and make critical business decisions within the supply chain almost instantaneously. Some companies even set up blogging type communication between departments so critical decisions can be made on the spot. Creating reports on top of reports explaining why you didn’t make a crucial business decision is a colossal waste of time. If you are unable to explain exactly why you missed a target AND identify the exact root cause within APO then you will most likely cover your ass with a fancy report. If you provide statistical modeling tools to forecasters and they cannot explain exactly why they missed targets (on the spot) then your statistical modeling tool has become one big fat empty box. Identify the top 5 reports that affect the bottom line and begin using Alert Monitors to drive changes and immediately become fully accountable for your supply chain decisions.
5. Train your people with the best training money can buy. Advanced planning tools require advanced people skills. A solid SAP APO training plan will not only provide the foundation to execute your supply chain well, it will also serve to motivate and inspire your people. Your most valuable asset on any SAP project is your people and they deserve the best training you can provide. I really, really, really do not understand companies that spend millions of dollars on a SAP APO implementation and then search the web for half assed cheap training or bring in a bunch of “trainers” that understand 1/10th of what APO can really do for you. Stop that bullshit right now and begin with what SAP.COM itself has to offer.