SAP S/4HANA Roadmap & Discovery
- 30+ years of SAP and compliance experience
- Industry expertise in Life Sciences
- SAP Silver Partner
Why a Preliminary Phase for SAP S/4HANA Transformation Is Crucial
For life sciences companies, the transformation to SAP S/4HANA is one of the strategically most important and complex IT projects. Without a clear strategy, risks quickly arise: unclear transformation approaches, rising project costs, underestimated system complexity or regulatory rework in the GxP environment.
A structured SAP S/4HANA roadmap and discovery phase creates the necessary decision-making basis here.
Together with you, we develop a clear transformation strategy for your SAP landscape – technically, technologically and regulatory secured.
This creates a solid foundation for a successful transformation program.
Challenges of SAP S/4HANA Roadmap & Discovery
Define Transformation Strategy
Which S/4HANA transformation strategy – greenfield, brownfield or selective – fits your system landscape and corporate strategy?
Design Processes and Target Architecture
Which business processes need to be redesigned and adapted to SAP best practices as part of the transformation?
Managing Risks, Compliance and Project Scope
How can costs, risks, regulatory requirements and project timelines be realistically planned?
SAP Discovery Phase as Foundation
A successful SAP transformation does not begin with implementation – but with a clear strategic roadmap. It creates transparency about:
- Transformation strategy
- Project scope and system complexity
- Target processes and target architecture
- Regulatory requirements
- Budget and project planning
In the SAP S/4HANA Discovery Phase, we jointly analyze your existing SAP landscape, evaluate transformation options and develop a robust target architecture for your future system landscape.
This creates a well-founded decision basis for your transformation program – and the prerequisite for a secure, economical and regulatory-compliant S/4HANA transformation.
More about the SAP S/4HANA Discovery Phase?
DHC Consulting Services
The discovery phase provides a solid decision-making basis for your SAP transformation.
At the beginning, we analyze your current SAP architecture as well as existing business processes, integrations and custom developments.
We specifically examine:
- Existing SAP systems and system landscapes
- Integrations and interfaces
- Customer-specific developments
- Organizational and process framework conditions
Result:
Transparency about your starting situation and the complexity of your transformation.
For the path to SAP S/4HANA, there are basically three transformation approaches:
- Greenfield
New implementation based on SAP Best Practices - Brownfield
Technical system conversion of the existing SAP ERP - Selective Transformation
Combination of migration of existing data and targeted process redesign
Together, we evaluate which transformation strategy best fits your system landscape, business processes and strategic goals.
Within the discovery phase, we analyze your existing business processes and compare them with the SAP best practice processes in SAP S/4HANA.
Typical focus areas are:
- Finance
- Supply Chain
- Production
- Quality Management
- Master Data Management
Result:
An initial target process architecture for your future S/4HANA system landscape.
Together, we define the future architecture of your SAP landscape.
We consider among others:
- Cloud or on-premise strategies
- Use of the SAP Business Technology Platform
- Integration architecture
- Extension concepts following the Clean Core principle
This creates a clear architectural target for your future SAP platform.
In regulated industries such as pharma or medical technology, SAP systems must additionally meet GxP requirements and be validated.
Already in the roadmap phase, we therefore define:
- Computer System Validation (CSV) strategy
- Regulatory requirements and compliance framework
- Documentation concepts
- Audit and inspection requirements
Result:
An integrated transformation and validation strategy for your SAP program.
The Life Sciences Alliance
SAP transformations in regulated industries require a broad range of competencies – from industry processes through technical integration to operations and compliance.
That is why DHC founded the Life Sciences Alliance (LSA) together with the All for One Group and INFORMATICS Life Sciences GmbH in 2020.
The Alliance combines the SAP Life Sciences know-how of three specialized partners and enables a harmonized, GxP-compliant implementation of SAP S/4HANA transformation, implementation and operations.
The VITAL® Process Model
Together with the Life Sciences Alliance, we developed the VITAL® process model.
VITAL integrates SAP transformation and computer system validation in a harmonized project methodology.
This allows SAP transformations in regulated industries to be implemented efficiently while considering regulatory requirements from the start.
→ More about SAP S/4HANA Transformation and Validation with VITAL
Why DHC – Your Specialist for the SAP S/4HANA Discovery
We combine SAP expertise with deep compliance know-how and ensure that the right course is set for a secure and efficient transformation already in the discovery phase.
At the end of the preliminary phase, you receive a clear, structured decision basis for the further project course. This allows you to decide securely and strategically sound on starting your SAP S/4HANA transformation – and avoid later risks and costly adjustments.
Typical results include:
- A well-founded transformation strategy (greenfield, brownfield or selective transformation)
- The target architecture of your future SAP landscape
- An aligned process and scope definition
- A realistic project roadmap
- Transparent budget and timeline planning
- An early risk and compliance assessment
SAP S/4HANA Discovery
Trust through Experience
We are the specialist for all SAP Life Sciences solutions.
“The completion of the SAP release change at the end of June 2015 is another milestone in the successful collaboration between Rottendorf Pharma and DHC that has existed for many years.”
“With SAP S/4HANA on Azure, we have a state-of-the-art, secure, validated and autonomous platform for our business processes that supports Wörwag’s long-term growth.
Together with our partner Life Sciences Alliance, we want to shape the future together.”
Frequently Asked Questions about the SAP S/4HANA Discovery Phase
Which business areas should be involved in the discovery phase?
A successful roadmap phase should not be driven by IT alone. Typically, business departments such as finance, supply chain, production, quality management and compliance are also involved. This allows business processes, regulatory requirements and technical architecture to be evaluated jointly.
How does a discovery phase influence the costs of an SAP S/4HANA transformation?
A structured discovery phase increases the effort at the beginning of a transformation program, but often reduces the overall project costs. Through a clear transformation strategy, realistic project planning and early identification of risks, costly changes during implementation can be avoided.
What special considerations apply for SAP S/4HANA discovery in regulated industries?
Companies in regulated industries must ensure that their SAP systems are operated in a GxP-compliant manner and meet regulatory requirements. Therefore, validation strategy, documentation and audit requirements should be considered during transformation planning.
How does an SAP transformation differ from a purely technical system migration?
A pure system migration technically transfers existing systems to a new platform. A transformation, on the other hand, also uses the switch to SAP S/4HANA to modernize business processes, data structures and system architectures. Many companies therefore combine technical migration with process optimization.
What role do data quality and master data management play in the S/4HANA transformation?
Data quality is a critical success factor for SAP transformations. Inconsistent master data, redundant data structures or missing governance can significantly complicate the transformation. Therefore, the data strategy is often already evaluated in the discovery phase.
SAP S/4HANA Discovery