Instinctively many organizations show a knee-jerk reaction to eliminate SAP from consideration as their core project management system. There are many reasons for that, not the least a bad reputation of SAP-PS or PM not being user friendly or lacking functionality.  

The reality is not quite as simple, though. Fact is that in terms of functionality SAP is not inferior to socalled "best-of-breed" project management systems. The SAP Project System (PS) has the capability to schedule as well as Primavera or MS Project, level resources, and of course provide elaborate cost control. Some of these functions are indeed so awkward that they sometimes may be considered dysfunctional (e.g., you need to navigate into many different transactions, layout changes are everything but intuitive, graphical gantt-chart based screens are somewhat clumsy). On the other hand and ironically, often the reason for such perceived shortcomings is SAP's strength in functionaliy.

There is a price to pay if one is not going to use SAP's project management capabilities. Frequently the above reaction reflects an incomplete look at the full picture. Project owners too easily forget that they are part of a whole. Quite often the overall organization benefits substantially from using process standards across operational and project management functions. Examples are materials management, HR, purchasing, sales, accounting, or treasury.  

More so, the integration with such functions can also directly benefit projects managed with SAP. Reconciliation efforts can be significantly reduced, the pool of labor trained to perform purchasing functions (for example) is suddenly much wider, the information flow between sales orders and project deliverables or milestones can reduce coordination requirements and the management of customer expectations, and so on.  

There is also one often underestimated reason why people are reluctant to grant a stronger role to SAP. The move from a PC-based project management tool like MS Project or P3 to a client-server based environment like MS EPM (Enterprise Project Management) or Primavera Enterprise (P3e/P6) was or is a quantum leap for many project management professionals. Suddenly visibility gets greater, but the need for coordination and adherence to standards is significantly increased as well. If one then defines a job narrowly, there is no value-add. Visibility is for others, coordination and standards are limiting ones flexibility, and so on. Frequently, people consider this too much control granted to others. How much more must they then see SAP as a threat!  

Of course this neglects the fact that they get better and more information faster, and that they can focus on analyzing and interpreting data (could that be a definition of "project management"?) instead of entering, reconciling and communicating.  

Lastly, Primavera or MS Project are not comprehensively enough covering critical processes like purchasing, HR, controlling, costing, or accounts payable. While they often are considered "best of breed", they are not "real" enterprise software in the sense that they cover an "enterprise range" of business functionality. They are narrow in their focus and reach limitations almost immediately when going out of the realm of scheduling or resource management. For example, Primavera's cost management capabilities are limited compared to SAP's, and in MS Project they are even less available. Purchasing functions and time and expense (T&E) transactions are project focused and not integrated into other functions. SAP on the other hand has all of that. This is then the reason why it simply seems more complicated - because it adds capabilities and so changes the job profile of project managers.  

All in all, there is little reason to not at least integrate some of SAP's project management capabilities into the overall process and system, definitely on the enterprise and project layer. It will allow to reap the benefits of integration into critical supporting areas and functions and improve productivity in the big picture. While the individual job profile may be changing (widening in some areas, being reduced in others), the overall effect certainly is positive. SAP needs to be the centerpiece of any solution, even if some important project management functions may be performed by other tools.

Copyright © 2007 Competitive Edge International, Inc.