The effective application of SAP R/3: a proposed model of best practice

Although SAP R/3 has become widely utilised as a means to change IT systems and business processes, not all organizations embarking on its implementation have achieved their intended results. However, leading practices have demonstrated that success is essentially conditional on managing adequately the complex context of implementation, which necessitates organizational changes across various key areas related to strategy, business processes, IT, structure, culture, and management systems. This paper describes a proposed model presenting the implementation of SAP R/3 from an integrative and holistic perspective. The model is developed based on reported experiences of several best practice organizations. The central theme of the paper argues that at the heart of effective SAP R/3 implementation, a fully balanced perspective has to be taken. On the other hand, the exclusive focus on technical aspects, at the cost of change management elements, has proved to be far from successful.