Future of SAP APO

[Former Member]

Hi Experts,

A few general questions about SNP, PPDS and GATP modules:

1. With more and more consultants getting experienced in SAP APO modules like SNP/PPDS/GATP -- is there really a good future for all ? I mean will not be there a problem of plenty as many good consultants will be around and still world economy is sluggish.

2. As of now we do not see any other SCM software competing with APO -- and even if some new software comes --it will take 5-10 years to grab the market share. So, this way is SAP APO in a very safe territory ?

Ofcourse SAP itself is coming out with new applications like HANA,EM etc but their area of application is different-- not core --supply chain management.

Kindly answer both the points.

[somnath_manna · Accepted solution]

Well the question was posted on Friday and a reminder put on today already asking for responses

GIG SL you must be either desparate or have a career decision to be made today / this week.

Jokes apart as Dogboy and Satish has replied and I agree with their points.

Let me put a different take based on my experience and how I see myself doing SCM consulting for at least reasonable future (I do not make enough money to retire early nor do I intend to move over to the dark side of project/ delivery management).

1. According to basic economics there is demand-supply curve and equilibrium on that determines the price. So as more and more consultants are coming into SAP (not just APO modules) supply is rising but at the same time demand in form of more and more clients implementing / optimising / running SAP applications is increasing. Economy is really not sluggish compared to say late 2008-09 and if there are some old-times then back in 2001-02. The market has matured and so have client needs - with most of the major companies already implemented / invested in SAP the focus is now on how to recoup the investment and how to derive value from IT. At the same time CIO budgets are under pressure. Bottomline there is still demand but one needs to be either a deep specialist in a particular application module or generalist with expertise in one area and knowledge of related areas / application. The first specialist hopefully gets called out for his deep experistise to solve specific problems faced by clients and second generalist called out for architecting an end to end solution serving a business process that may span across multiple applications.

2. While it is true right now there is not many SCM applications from other competitors so much in attention like SAP, remember in early to mid 2000s it was not so. In fact APO was struggling compared to i2 and even Manugistics was going strong. Yes that has changed but there are still niche softwares in SCM space focused by industry (like Chemicals, Process industry) that have good usage. What set APO apart was the tight integration with SAP ERP which is still the case till date. You plan in one application but keeping it in sync with your Execution system and seamlessly transfer plan to action is a big big plus for APO. That was not possible for most of the competition and according to me that is where they took the back seat.

There are white spaces in APO that we all know of and let me give few examples

a) In PPDS certain clients still use 3rd party Scheduling applications especially in chemical and process industries (just look at the amount of functionalities brought out in SCM 7 onwards)

b) Safety Stock Planning (actual Safety Stock and Target Norms) is done outside APO. Many companies used SmartOps which SAP has bought out.

c) Value based planning and Promotion planning / tracking in APO DP - most CPG companies go for CRM or TPM (Trade Promotion Management) and BPC applications.

Finally coming to new applications that you mentioned "HANA, EM" well there are completely different things. HANA is a core technology somewhat like the Netweaver ABAP stack that provides the base for the applications to run. So no point comparing that with SCM. As for EM (Event Management) it has been around for a long time - it does not compete with SCM. In fact when Auto-ID and EPIC were hot in Supply Chain / Logistics space, EM rode with it. Over time it got sidelined but now EM is back in action thanks to SAP TM (Transportation Management). EM again is more of a core technical functionality similar to if I can dare to say BI. It can be used in multiple process areas be it supply chain, production, marketing, finance, asset management etc.

If you are interested then have a look at this blog on my presentation at TechEd Banaglore.

Well this may be a long answer for a Monday but then I have some time to spare before my US client wakes up and comes online .

Hope this helps and gives you some perspective on future of APO.

Somnath

[Former Member]

My opinion on your two queries:

1) Future is definitely good. If you know the module very well; knowledge is respected and rewarded. You are right that there has been some crowd formation; I have seen in the recent time when hoards of fresh college graduates are being given basic training and absorbed in projects for mundane transactions to begin with. IMO yes, there are some concerns.

2) You are right. APO is robust and there are not many true and serious competitive offerings.

[Former Member]

Hello GIG SL,

Already this your query you have marked as answered ...Somnath, Satish has already put good points to work as a SCM - APO consultant.

Tthought to share my experience and reality...

Even though lots of new technology, products are available on SAP for SCM,  Basic Demand Planning, Supply Network Planning, Production Planning, GATP, TM, EWM consultant's requirement is very high for Re-Implementation, Implementation, Rollout, Enhancement Projects.

Who's basic concepts of Supply Chain is very good, they can grasp any new upcoming SAP SCM product fast.

Business Process wise APO, SCM are same with new additional functionality like dashboard, simulation processes,

As technology changing, SAP is adapting new technologies such as HANA, Cloud to support and best utilize SCM products.

Thanks and Regards,

Anjali

[Former Member]

Gig,

is there really a good future for all ?

No.  There is not a good future for ALL.  And, I am not just talking about software consulting, I am talking about employment in general.  For career planning,  'good' futures require many stars to be in alignment.  The best criteria for increasing your future economic well-being is to be born of parents that are both rich and generous to their children.

The future for SAP APO software consulting is no worse than any other software consultants.  There is no safe path to guaranteed employment, no matter what direction you pursue for your career.

You might want to close this post and re-post in the Career Center.

Perhaps they will not paint such a pessimistic picture as I have done.

Best Regards,

DB49

[former_member205751]

I used be a farmer with zero knowledge in SAP , after connecting with DB i became a senior consultant and project manager , then how do you say "no future ".

future or no future depends on who is guiding you

[satish_waghmare3]

Hello GIG SL,

Here are my views(may not really answer your queries).

#1. It doesn't really matter much. I will rather focus on exceling my skills and knowledge than worry about who(and how many) else is getting trained/experience in my area of specialization or interest.  Besides application knowledge, I always try to understand the process part of it, how particular business processes works and how it can automated or mapped to functionality within an application(like APO).

#2. It is not question whether APO is safe territory or not. It is we individual how are we making ourselves ready for this new technologies/application. I believe Change is only thing which is continuous and it is good for all of us.  Besides, there are endless opportunities to learn and know about these new technologies/applications.  It is good to focus on and know about these new technology trends. One can do that only if he maintain the passion for the knowledge.

Hope this will help.

Thank you

Satish Waghmare

[Former Member]

Experts --please respond....