5 ways to reduce the risk of scope creep during your S/4HANA migration

In S/4HANA migration, scope creep is a critical challenge. Left unchecked, it can derail timelines and balloon costs.

“Having clear requirements is vital,” says Melanie Byrne, Director of Business Analysis and Business Process Management at Expleo. “And that means non-functional requirements too. People tend to forget about that bit. Then it’s, ‘Oh, that could take a few months’ and ‘That will cost x amount more.’”

“It’s worth investing time upfront to get those objectives clear before any development begins,” she adds.

But that’s just the start. “Things will change. So it’s about controlling the outcome.”

Here, Melanie shares five essential strategies for staying in control and adapting to curveballs for a smoother and more successful transition.

1. Outline your requirements upfront

Begin with a clear understanding of where you’re starting and set detailed requirements upfront. Knowing how things currently work and what you want to get out of the migration is crucial. This has to be properly unravelled upfront – it ties into your strategy and roadmap. If this detail isn’t flagged very early on with open discussions, scope creep is the result.

Make sure your requirements cover not only the obvious functional aspects but also non-functional ones like disaster recovery and security. Think about the hours needed for transitioning and ensure there’s availability for going live. These are the things that people tend to forget about, which can lead to delays and increased costs down the line.

2. Develop a stakeholder comms plan

Understanding your stakeholders and having a communication strategy is so important. SAP implementations aren’t quick fixes – they can take years. During this time, business objectives might shift, prompting changes to the project scope.

To stay ahead, keep lines of communication open with stakeholders. By involving them from the start, you’ll be better prepared to handle any changes along the way. This way, everyone stays informed, and adjustments to the scope are smoother and less disruptive.

3. Have a strong change control process

When changes do come along, it’s vital to have a formalised process in place. This way, each change can be properly scoped and evaluated. Sometimes, a change might not be necessary immediately and can be put on hold until after the go-live.

Having this process in place allows for open discussions about the potential impact any change may have on timelines and budgets. It means, even when changes are unavoidable, you can still make sure the outcome is controlled.

4. Ensure project governance and traceability

Having those candid conversations about when changes can or can’t happen is about change control but it’s also about good project governance. Defining everything upfront means you can have requirements traceability too.

Traceability means you can make sure everything is being addressed from project kick-off to delivery. Without it, changes can be missed. You’ll get further down the line and someone in finance will say, “Oh, I thought we were going to change this?” but it’s got lost along the journey.

Having a clear trail to refer back to is essential. So if something does need changing, it must go through the formal change control process.

5. Establish a design authority early on

It’s crucial to set up your design authority from the outset. Made up of representatives from the business as well as key project stakeholders, the design authority ensures any proposed customisation is essential and aligns with the agreed-upon strategy. This is where support from a partner like Expleo can help as we can put this in place.

This controls the scope really early on, then your project governance and traceability maintains it in the longer term. Often, businesses lean towards out-of-the-box solutions at first but they end up with more customisation than anticipated. In those cases, only the design authority should be able to change the scope. Crucially, these adjustments should be made pre-development so that when you’re selecting vendors, they can quote based on the correct information. By going through some pain upfront, you’ll get a more accurate cost and timeline estimate.

For example, when we worked with a client recently they aimed for an 80-20 split in their project strategy. But as we progressed, more customisations arose during the design authority’s review. Some were necessary and resulted in a 70-30 split. Crucially, because this adjustment was made pre-development, vendors were able to quote based on the correct information. By going through all that pain upfront, we got more accurate cost and timeline estimates.

In the ever-evolving landscape of S/4HANA migration, avoiding scope creep is critical to success. By being proactive, you can manage inevitable changes along the way and minimise their impact on the business.

At Expleo, we offer expertise and support to help you put the strategies you need in place. Together, we’ll navigate the complexities of your migration, unlocking the full potential of your journey to S/4HANA.