What are the main advantages and disadvantages of SAP?

One advantage of SAP is its flexibility. SAP allows companies to create their own rules within the SAP structure. These rules set the parameters for acceptable and unacceptable transactions. For example, the system will not allow a journal entry to process if it doesn't balance. Companies determine which employees access each area in the SAP environment. Only qualified personnel receive access to personnel data, such as wage rates. SAP also has the flexibility to integrate its data with a variety of databases. Users can download information into spreadsheets for further analysis

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A disadvantage of SAP is the high cost of purchasing and implementing this program. The company must purchase the software and hardware necessary to run the programs company-wide. Costs include labor costs of internal information technology (IT) employees or external consultants overseeing the process. Once the company implements the software, employees need to be trained. This involves training each employee in the functions they have access to. Ongoing costs include software maintenance and periodic upgrades.

The First and best advantage in SAP is everything is recorded. There is no way to hide the wrong records and error records. Except for table level deletion, which is not legal.

Here the Key Advantages of SAP

• Covers Many Business Functions
• Strong Workflow Capabilities
• Can Handle Many Different Types of Complex Transactions – Data Entered One time, One Place, At the Source
• Implemented in Many Large, High-Tech Firms
• Impressive process and data documentation
• Supported by ALL Major Hardware Vendors

Disadvantages of SAP

• Expensive
• Very Complex
• Demands Highly Trained Staff
• Lengthy Implementation Time
• Inter-modules functions least understood by business, but high on list of reasons to buy
• Creates internal conflict in organizations
• SAP rolls out new versions every 6 months

Disadvantage of SAP:- is the complexity built into the software.

SAP is the high cost of purchasing and implementing this program.

Advantage of SAP:- is its flexibility.

 allows companies to create their own rules within the SAP structure.

Advantages and Disadvantages of SAP Advantages and Disadvantages of SAP SAP Advantages: 1. Integration Integration can be the highest benefit of them all. The only real project aim for implementing ERP is reducing data redudancy and redudant data entry. If this is set as a goal, to automate inventory posting to G/L, then it might be a successful project. Those companies where integration is not so important or even dangerous, tend to have a hard time with ERP. ERP does not improve the individual efficiency of users, so if they expect it, it will be a big disappointment. ERP improves the cooperation of users. 2. Efficiency Generally, ERP software focuses on integration and tend to not care about the daily needs of people. I think individual efficiency can suffer by implementing ERP. the big question with ERP is whether the benefit of integration and cooperation can make up for the loss in personal efficiency or not. 3. Cost reduction It reduces cost only if the company took accounting and reporting seriously even before implementation and had put a lot of manual effort in it. If they didn't care about it, if they just did some simple accounting to fill mandatory statements and if internal reporting did not exists of has not been fincancially-oriented, then no cost is reduced. 4. Less personnel Same as above. Less reporting or accounting personnel, but more sales assistants etc. 5. Accuracy No. People are accurate, not software. What ERP does is makes the lives of inaccurate people or organization a complete hell and maybe forces them to be accurate (which means hiring more people or distributing work better), or it falls. Disadvantages:1. Expensive This entails software, hardware, implementation, consultants, training, etc. Or you can hire a programmer or two as an employee and only buy business consulting from an outside source, do all customization and end-user training inside. That can be cost-effective. 2. Not very flexible It depends. SAP can be configured to almost anything. In Navision one can develop almost anything in days. Other software may not be flexible.

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