Is SAP ByDesign Right for You?

Whether you have outgrown QuickBooks or want to switch to a more robust ERP or financial management system, SAP Business ByDesign is likely to be on your shortlist. But is Business ByDesign (or BYD, as most people call it) right for you? Here are some key points to consider.

SAP Business ByDesign Costs

If the total cost of a solution is important to you (meaning the cost of purchasing or upgrading servers, implementation costs, customization, training, and maintenance costs) then consider the following as it relates to BYD:

• Implementation Costs: As a cloud-based solution, there is no software to be downloaded or installed on your servers.  The application itself includes an imbedded implementation project plan that populates the tasks that need to be completed based upon the scope selected.  Excel based migration template are provided in the software to east the movement of your data from your legacy systems to ByD.  eLearning and extensive help resources are embedded.
• Customization Costs:  Easily extend the solution's functionality to adapt to your unique business needs.  Some of the more common customizations can be completed by your key users without the need to resort to costly and complex programming.  These include:
  
  
  • Custom user specific dashboards
  • Screen personalizations
  • Creation of user defined extension fields that are available in screens, reports and even web services.
  • Creation of mashups
  • Custom analytics
  • Integration via a standardized and extensive set of Web Services. 
• Ongoing Costs:  Access to BYD is provided through a low monthly subscription fee with no up-front investment. Pay based on your specific needs.
• Maintenance: Managed, monitored and maintained by SAP experts in world-class data centers you don’t have to worry about backups, patches, upgrades, or downtime.

Ease of Implementation

While other ERP or financial systems you may be looking at require extensive implementation cycles measured in months, if you cannot afford to wait to get a new solution up and running BYD is a great alternative. In as little as 30 days you can have a new business solution running at your organization. How? Because it is a cloud-based offering, BYD installation and customization is an easy process.

For a first-hand account of implementing Business ByDesign, check out this article “Lessons from an SAP Business ByDesign Early Adopter” published by ASUG News on February, 2011.

Breadth of Functionality

It is unlikely you will find an ERP system that is so far-reaching as ByDesign when it comes to system functionality. Finance, CRM, HR, Supplier Relationship Management, Compliance Management, Analytics, and more are all part of the core functions. And, if you want a simple yet powerful solution that can grow with your company, then ByDesign will fit like a glove.  The following quote from analyst firm Forrester Research summarizes SAP ByDesign strengths:

"Effectively, ByD functions as a one-stop shop for a medium-size organization looking to source the bulk of its business software from a single vendor. ByD supports 35 end-to-end business processes and can be adopted in a modular fashion so organizations don’t have to take on the entire suite from the get-go.” – Forrester Research

What Now?

These are only some of the factors to consider when evaluating SAP Business ByDesign. For a thorough analysis and comparison with best-in-class solutions, AMS can help. Our software selection service follows a methodical process for evaluating the best solution for your company, whether it is ByDesign or another ERP system.