Urgent: SAP APO needs to be replaced, now!
This year we wrote & published two blog posts regarding SAP APO and its end of life by 2027:
These two blog posts are by far the most popular and most read posts on our website. But we do not see any action from the market. In our assignments, we do not come across customers that want to replace APO with something else. It seems that the awareness to do something is there (looking at the traction the two blogposts generate), but the sense of urgency is not there (yet).
In this blog post we will explain that if you want to replace SAP APO, you need to start now!
Why now
Replacing SAP APO with another option could be a lengthy process, we all know that. If the IT strategy is “SAP unless….”, the obvious choice would be to replace APO with SAP IBP. Knowing that SAP IBP runs on S/4HANA, the project to implement IBP will take some serious time. Depending on the size of the project, at least one to two years are needed for a full implementation, testing, training of users and go-live. Knowing SAP APO has it end of life by 2027, you need to start now, else you will be too late!
You need to start to raise the budget for the new licenses, the consultancy needed during implementation and support. You need to setup the project team, internal as well as external. An overall project plan needs to be created in which business, IT, Procurement and Legal are all aligned. The plan should build additional slack for unforeseen activities, additional work, rework and alignment.
And you have to take into account the missing functionality! SAP IBP does not have the full functionality compared to SAP APO. So there might be additional solutions needed to replace these missing functionalities in SAP IBP, resulting in additional costs, resources needed and project activities to manage.
All in all, if you go for the SAP IBP route, if you did not start yet, you probably are too late and it might be very challenging to have IBP up and running before the end of life of SAP APO.
Options
Another option could be to look for alternatives. Alternatives that are less costly from a license perspective, less costly to implement and maintain and that can support the required functionality. There are a few alternatives out there, but there is one that really stands out: Pigment!
We did team up with Pigment for several reasons: the flexibility of the platform, the ability to use large data sets, the out of the box scenario functionality….and many more reasons why we believe Pigment has the solution to support resilient planning. And looking at the Product Roadmap that was presented in September this year for Partners and Customers, we genuinely believe that the Pigment platform is very well positioned to replace SAP APO.
The new functionality that has been added to the platform is enormous, the speed of innovation is unmatched. AI, Machine Learning forecast algorithms and much more make sure that supply chain use cases are supported. Based on the current Pigment functionality and the Product Roadmap we believe Pigment is very well suited to replace SAP APO. With its low-code/ no-code platform, its beloved user interface, the out of the box functionality, the platform does support advanced planning use cases. From demand forecasting, outlier detection, consensus demand, supply planning, net requirements, allocations, lead times, minimum order quantities, batch sizes, all functionality that can easily be translated into the Pigment platform.
And the good news is that Pigment licenses are much cheaper compared to SAP’s license structure. Another benefit is that the implementation of Pigment takes less of the time compared to SAP. Within 3 to 4 months we will have the first supply chain use case up and running, tested and live! So in both ways (licenses, implementation), you spend less with Pigment and get more!
Conclusion
The current life cycle of SAP APO ends by 2027. If you opt for SAP IBP, you need to start now. Given the lengthy implementation cycle, you should start now to make the implementation on time. But there are alternatives out there that costs less, are faster to implement and supply full advanced planning functionality.
Reduce the risks of any tool implementation is not always mitigated by opting for the choice of the established names. New technologies resulting in faster and more resilient planning, more capabilities and a richer user experience. Pigment is ready to support the supply chain uses cases where the return on investment (ROI) is achieved much faster and in the end is higher. And we are here to increase the awareness in the market, to promote Pigment as alternative for SAP APO.
If you are interested in Pigment, our advice would also be to start as soon as possible. By reaping the benefits of the Pigment platform as soon as possible, your planning becomes much more agile and resilient. You are much better able to cope with the increased uncertainty in the market. And the option to run scenarios with just a few clicks adds so much value to the business, providing businesses another option to choose for Pigment.
Interested what Pigment can offer, what the ROI will be for your organisation? Don’t wait, and reach out to us now! Send us an e-mail (jan.veerman@planadigm.com) or call us (+316 – 5188 4701) so we can investigate your options.
