SAP customers have made great progress over the past year in
working with the software company to meet concerns over maintenance
and pricing, says the SAP UK and Ireland User Group.
Alan Bowling, chairman of the SAP UK and Ireland User Group,
said that for the first time, user groups have been given easy
access to senior executives and have been able to engage with
them.
"We have made great progress in the way we work with SAP. Both
sides are learning how to work together effectively," he told
Computer Weekly.
The first results of SAP's collaboration with user groups, which
aims to
link maintenance costs to business value are due before the end
of the year.
In a
landmark agreement, SAP will implement the first of several
planned price increases in 2010 only if SAP enterprise maintenance
meets five of 11 KPIs agreed with users.
User groups raised concerns after SAP announced
controversial plans to standardise on enterprise maintenance
for all customers and begin a series of price increases.
The process has involved "frank and detailed discussions", which
have been difficult at times, said Bowling.
"This is uncharted territory as no other enterprise software
supplier has been brave enough to link price to value," he
said.
But Bowling said SAP still needs to get more involved in
discussions with end-users to help them get greater value out of
their investments.
Those discussions are beginning to happen through collaboration
between members of the user group, but SAP needs to join the debate
as well, he said.
"SAP is sitting on a wealth of information about end-user
organisations and how they use the software, and I want to share
with members of the user group," said Bowling.
Greater collaboration with end-users will help make SAP a
sustainable supplier that provides the systems that businesses
really need, he added.
Tim Noble, recently appointed managing director for SAP UK and
Ireland, said he had made it a priority to personally visit SAP
customers, including Yorkshire Building Society, Marks &
Spencer and Shoosmiths to strengthen SAPs relationships with
end-users.
"We want to be transparent and responsive to end-users. Listen
to their needs and find the best routes to meeting them," he told
the SAP UK and Ireland User Group Conference 2009.