We’ve had a busy 2011 at AccM. Looking back at our blogs and calendar, we’ve spent most of the year introducing TOP Software to the SAP Community through ASUG meetings and conferences. We have also released 2 Service Packs while spending quality time with our customers and prospects discussing how to make TOP Software work best for their Contractor Management process.
We look forward to a great 2012 and wish all our customers, friends, and acquaintances a Happy Holiday Season.
2011 Activities
Top Software
We released Service Pack 2 in January and just released Service Pack 3 in early December. Looking forward to 2012, Service Pack 4 is planned for June and Service Pack 5 in November.
ASUG Events
We attended 11 ASUG Chapter Meetings and presented at 5 of them. We spent most of our time in the Western US and Canada Chapters. Attendance varied, but the atmosphere of learning and sharing was always present.
SAP Events
We exhibited at SAPPHIRE NOW in Orlando in May.
Customer Events
FortisBC hit their 1yr mark on TOP Software and celebrated with a luncheon.
Demos
We’ve done numerous online demos and several onsite demos for companies in many countries. All these businesses and industries are looking for ways to better utilize Standard SAP functionality and save money through efficiencies. It is always exciting for us to spend time understanding their process and providing insight.
Conferences
In addition to the SAP and ASUG events, we also attended the SAP-Centric EAM Conference and hope to attend several more in 2012. The enthusiasm for using and improving SAP business processes is contagious and the events are a great place to network and learn.
Consulting
We provided SAP, Project Management, and Engineering expertise to customers and will continue assisting these customers and others in 2012.
Service Purchase Orders and Service Entry Sheets aren't utilized in every SAP installation, but as businesses look for ways to manage their External Service Providers, we are seeing the usage increase.
If you are new to Service Entry Sheets (SES), please refer to our overview blog on Service Entry Sheets.
SAP Tables viewed with transaction SE16N are often a Business Analyst's best friend. By going to the SAP table, you can troubleshoot, test, and use the fields to build queries or programs. The following 10 tables are my favorites in relation to Service Entry Sheets.
| Table |
Description |
| EKKO |
Purchasing Document Header |
| EKPO |
Purchasing Document Item |
| EKKN |
Account Assignment in Purchasing Document |
| ESSR |
Service Entry Sheet Header Data |
| ESLH |
Service Package Header Data |
| ESLL |
Lines of Service Package |
| ESKL |
Account Assignment Specification: Service Line |
| ESKN |
Account Assignment in Service Package |
| ESUH |
ESM: Unpl. Service Limits: Header Data |
| ESUP |
ESM: Unpl. Limits on Service Package |
With these 10 tables you can get a good feel for the SAP Service Entry Sheet structure. There are many others which may prove useful depending on your situation.
If you are using SES and have other tables that help you during troubleshooting, please add them to the comments so others can learn from your experience.
We have been working hard the last couple months on Service Pack 3 (SP3) for TOP Software. We have 20 items planned for release next week and are excited to provide our customers with the new functionality.
SP3 enhancements cover several areas within TOP Software:
- Workflow Escalation Improvements
- Screen Updates for the VES Rejection Process
- Service Master Text Consistency
- Flexibility for the VES Submit & Approve Process
- Report Searching Capabilities to benefit both the Owner & Vendor
- Account Assignment Functionality
- Security Roles for Specific Business Access
- Efficiencies to Vendor VES Creation Process
In addition to SP3, we have slated several more items for an upcoming SP4.
As we meet with customers, potential clients, and their vendors; ideas emerge from all parties and with Service Packs, AccM can bring those ideas to reality.
AccM has a team of developers with a vast knowledge of skills including
- ABAP Web Dynpro
- NetWeaver
- Workflow
- Portal
They develop the ideas and then the AccM Functional Team tests across the various business cases before building a Service Package that is passed on to the customer.
TOP Software continues to grow and improve with every Service Pack and we look forward to our upcoming 2011 SP3 Release as well as more Releases in 2012.
I get mixed reactions in SAP circles when I talk about TOP Software and its ability to make the process of SAP Service Entry Sheets (SES) less painful.
The reactions can be separated into 4 groups. Which one does your business fall into?
A. Never heard of Service Entry Sheets
B. Tried them and it was horrible experience so we stopped
C. Use them, but not correctly and it is painful
D. Use them and find benefit
Service Entry Sheets are part of SAP External Services Management (MM-SRV) functionality.
Service Entry Sheets are required when you use Service Purchase Orders to record the performance of the services. You must have an approved SES in place before the Invoice can be processed. They are similar to Goods Receipt Documents used for Material Purchase Orders.
A Service Purchase Order uses Item Category D and can have Planned or Unplanned Services.
Two Golden Rules
- Create the SES as soon as the service task is complete.
- DON’T wait for the invoice to come in.
- SIMILAR to a Goods Receipt that is completed as soon as the Material hits the dock.
- Assign the SES creation (or at least approval) to someone that actually knows about the service.
- DON’T assign the SES creation or approval to someone that isn’t involved
- SIMILAR to a Goods Receipt that is completed by warehouse personnel as they receive the Material
We find that Business with processes that follow the 2 Golden Rules most likely fall into Group D. Sometime it takes implementing a solution like TOP to get to Group D and see the benefit of this Standard SAP Functionality.
Others struggle with the “meaning” of Service POs and SES since in most cases they are waiting for the invoice and then having an administrator create the SES directly from the Invoice without input from the Vendor or Business Owner of the Service. This can lead to frustration between departments and providers, late payments, and payment errors.
No matter what Group you are in, we can all learn from each other and make the Service Entry Sheet less painful. More screenshots and information on External Services Management and TOP Software are included in my ASUG Case Study Presentation, which can be downloaded here.
I’m looking out at a rainy Calgary from my hotel room after attending the ASUG Chapter Meeting. I enjoy my frequent visits to Calgary, but would rather have snow and cold than all this water. Hopefully it lets up a little so a walk to dinner or along the Bow River isn’t miserable. With reports of our first snowfall at home, it appears that winter has arrived.
This meeting was an ASUG Roadshow, one of 15 being held across North America between April2011 and April2012. I hadn’t had the chance to see a Roadshow yet, so was interested in the content. I was also excited to hear about ASUG’s future from CEO Bridgette Chambers, especially after getting a preview from June at the Seattle ASUG meeting. In addition to the ASUG presentation, the 3 sponsors (IBM, NIMBL, Kingfisher) filled up the agenda.
I mentioned after my last visit that the Western Canada ASUG Chapter was in need of volunteers and am happy to report that they now have a full team with 2 from Alberta (Tim and Janet) and 2 from Saskatchewan. This could mean future meetings will be held not only in Calgary but also in Saskatoon or Regina. At this point, the next meeting in June will be in Calgary. After a quick welcome and safety review by host TransAlta, Bridgette kicked off the Roadshow.
ASUG is celebrating 20yrs with 20 new improvements that will help us better utilize their services. Bridgette touched on 3 of the 20 (we learned that it is really 42 but “20 in 20” was more marketable).
- ASUGnews.com
- Set it as a favorite and visit often. ASUG membership not required.
- Features award-winning seasoned journalists Thomas Wailgum and Courtney Bjorlin
- Chapter Improvement Initiative
- Resources for ASUG Chapters to run meetings so they can concentrate on content
- ASUG.com
- Complete re-design is 2yrs in the making and beta version will be ready by end of 2011
She also spoke about navigating On Premise-On Demand-On Device solutions, Infinite SAP ROI, and SAP’s goal to reach 1 billion users by 2015. So much to look forward to!
The rest of the day included presentations on DB2, Business Analytics Consulting, BOBJ Lifecycle Manager, and Solution Manager Project Administration. There was also a Roadshow Panel Discussion where the sponsors gave their views on BOBJ, BW, HANA, etc. These topics are not in my daily SAP life, but they are very important for many customers and the future for SAP so it was good to get some overview and know some experts. Presentations will be available on the ASUG website, check them out and try to attend a future ASUG Roadshow in your region!
I was already in town for the FortisBC TOP Anniversary Celebration, so it was a perfect opportunity to attend the ASUG Chapter Meeting at the Downtown Vancouver SAP offices. The last BC Chapter Meeting I attended was in March when we presented on TOP Software at the BCIT campus. I was looking forward to visiting with the ASUG members again, a good agenda, and a chance to see the city and the SAP offices.
I turned my rental car in Wednesday morning at the airport and used the SkyTrain to travel downtown and check into my hotel. The SkyTrain is extremely efficient and easy to use. I jumped on again Wednesday for dinner and finally on Thursday afternoon to go back to the airport for the flight home. The payment honor system is impressive, as is the cleanliness of the stations and trains. With the sunny weather, I took the opportunity to walk around many of the city’s unique neighborhoods and also do some shopping on Granville Island.
Like many SAP Offices, the lobby was very inviting and included two plant walls that were constructed with fabric, real plants and a water system. The plants are placed according to water needs, with high users at the top since the water starts there and flows down the fabric leaving only a few drops to hit the floor. Inside the conference room area, there were 2 large flat screens with interactive HANA data. You stood back and used your hand image to choose analytic parameters and swipe thru screens. There were comments that it looked a bit like Star Trek, but the analytics were real and fast. I spent a couple breaks comparing sports equipment revenue across countries.
Thursday’s meeting was well attended, considering many were at SAP Inside Track on Tuesday and may not have been able to get away for both events. Over 30 of us filled the presentation room, which included a mix of companies, vendors, and BCIT students. Similar to the March meeting, it was encouraging to see the student’s fresh faces and their excitement about entering the workforce. They are obviously in a supportive program and their presentation outlined past achievements and future plans. I can’t imagine how much stronger I’d have been coming out of school if I also had CAPM and SAP TERP10 certification.
All the presentations were useful and covered automated testing, accounts payable invoice automation, mobility, and SAP’s new social network Streamwork.
The Accounts Payable solution at Tim Horton’s was great to see, since we are also in the business of providing some relief for Accounts Payable departments. As mentioned, AP is a strategic part of all companies, especially when you factor in early payment discounts. Anytime you eliminate paper invoices and provide the means for the vendor and owner to communicate, you are gaining efficiencies and improving the business process for all involved.
Streamwork has a unique look and feel but clearly utilizes all the benefits of existing social networks. It is cloud based and will integrate with your On-Premise SAP and 3rd party systems, but more importantly provides the means to collaborate without email. The goal is to combine people, data, and tools and it went live in March2010 with 140K current users. In the live demo, we saw familiar functionality like feeds, hashtags, @ references, invites, and activities but also saw many sets of tools that help with project management and decision making. We have used Chatter at AccM and I look forward to trying out the free version of Streamwork. All presentation details are on the ASUG website.
During my last trip to Vancouver to visit our client FortisBC, we discussed the idea of celebrating their 1st year on TOP Software. On Tuesday, almost 30 employees, contractors, and vendors joined together for a celebration lunch at a local golf course. The event included a few speeches, recognition awards, and statistics from the past year. We all feasted on the buffet lunch and spent a few hours reflecting on the implementation and looking forward to another year on TOP.
Charlie and I attended from AccM and enjoyed seeing the continued collaboration between FortisBC and their contractor Canadian Utility. There is genuine respect and friendship for each other and a desire for each to be successful.
Congrats to the Project Team for these fantastic results!
Year in Review Achievements
- Implemented SAP Service Masters = 645
-
Vendor Entry Sheets created = 13000
- Vendor Payment Requests created = 2500
- Contractor Payment Terms = reduced by 15 days
- “Dirt to Cash” for Contractor = reduced by 20+ days
- Eliminated Invoice Mismatches
- Implemented ERS Invoicing = 800
- Achieved Audit and Financial Compliance
- Portal reduced queries between Owner and Contractor
In a coordinated and great move, the 1st Pacific Northwest Utilities Day was held on Friday, Sept 9th, following the Pacific Northwest (PNW) ASUG meeting. Both were held at the Microsoft Campus in Redmond, Washington. As I wrote in my lengthy (sorry) PNW ASUG blog, the facilities and weather were outstanding and there were many attendees, 75 at this meeting!
The ASUG Utilities SIG is led by Marc Rosson and Sue Daulton. Marc is a high-energy guy and seemed quite organized and prepared considering this was their first meeting. We heard a great story on Thursday about Marc’s passion and how the Utilities group influences the SAP Utilities Industry Solution. There was also a lot of passion and energy in the room as the meeting started. Companies from the Pacific Northwest and beyond were in attendance and ready to learn and contribute.
The Utilities Industry is a great fit for TOP Software and it is important that AccM understands what SAP is developing in this arena as well as what the Utility Customers are excited about, whether issues or enhancements.
The agenda included a Keynote and then 4 sets of breakout sessions with 3 choices in each. That’s 13 presentations for the 1st turnout – awesome! Every session I attended was outstanding, with industry experts sharing best practices and lessons learned. I think it helped that none of the companies compete for business, so everything was out on the table. I encourage you to go to ASUG and download the presentations and sign up for the next Utilities Day!
The Pacific Northwest (PNW) ASUG meeting was held in Redmond, Washington, at the Microsoft Campus. In addition to the all-day meeting, there was a golf outing the day before and a Utilities SIG meeting the day after. Although I wasn’t able to attend golf, it was a perfect opportunity to catch both meetings on one trip.
First a quick story about my travel on Wednesday afternoon. The plane boarded on time and just as we had all settled in, the pilot announced that he had seen bird remains in one of the engines. He had called for a detailed inspection and the decision had been made that the plane was not safe to fly. We all needed to return to the boarding area and wait on instructions. At this point, I should mention that the majority of the people were elderly and on the 1st leg of their Vacation Cruise Tour and one of the tour coordinators looked like Elvis. You can imagine the confusion and slow responses – but who cared, it was more entertaining than sitting in the boarding area. We quickly learned that the next flight would be in 2 hours, but within 5 minutes of that announcement, we were told they found another airplane and would board as soon as it was ready. More confusion, excitement, and Elvis with his clipboard! We finally boarded and landed in Seattle only an hour or so behind. Unfortunately that put me on the Shuttle Express during peak rush hour and it took us much longer than I expected to reach the hotel.
Ok, back to ASUG. There were 160 registered for the meeting on Thursday, but not as many attendees. This included 35 installation companies and 29 associates/vendors. We were in the Microsoft Visitor Center (Bldg92) and had several of the rooms and hallway on the 2nd floor. I had never been to the Microsoft Campus but it was as expected and could be compared to a University setting with plenty of funding. I saw a few familiar faces, but most attendees were different than those that attended the February ASUG meeting in Tacoma.
AccM did not sponsor at this meeting, but there was a room setup for the sponsor tables that also included the refreshments and food. As a sponsor, I preferred the layout in Tacoma where the sponsors were in the open space used for networking. We all attended the Opening Keynote by SAP, then there were 4 Breakout Sessions to choose from each hour until the Closing Keynote by ASUG. I think all of us snuck downstairs to the Microsoft Store during lunch to do a little shopping or over to the Commons which included a soccer field, restaurants, and more shops.
As most ASUG meetings this Spring and Summer, there were several sessions on Business Objects (BOBJ) and they appeared to be the most attended. I haven’t had the opportunity to get involved on a BOBJ project, but I do like the energy that the group had and their focus on improvements. In the Opening Keynote, we heard the Nike SLO (System Landscape Optimization) success story and how they are leveraging SAP to reduce downtime. All the breakout sessions I attended were informational and showcased customer case studies. I encourage you to go to ASUG, review the meeting agenda, and download any of the presentations that are of interest.
The Closing Keynote on SAP Influence was inspirational. June Keszeg, ASUG HQ, told an entertaining story about her history in IT and how she ended up at ASUG. As SAP Community Members, we have the means to interact and influence SAP and believe it or not, SAP wants us to influence them! June described the new Executive Exchange which meets in October, the 60+ Influence Councils, and the Customer Connect process coming in 2012 to address small ideas and quick wins. We were also asked to jot down some ideas on an index card so she could take them with her and begin to action. These included both things we could do to make ASUG better and also what ASUG/SAP could do to make our lives easier. I noticed as the meeting wrapped up and prizes were raffled, June was reading thru the cards and most everyone turned one in.
That evening, I was able to take advantage of the amazing weather and wandered around Marymoor Park. Everyone was out enjoying the sun and warm temps – I saw bicycling, softball, cricket, rugby, rock climbing, model airplanes, and lots of parties. I had such a good dinner the night before at a small Asian restaurant that I returned and tried a different menu item. The owner asked if I would be back the next day, but I had to disappoint and let her know I was flying home.
After such an informative day and relaxing evening, I was anxious to return to Microsoft the next morning and attend the Pacific Northwest Utilities Meeting.
I had the pleasure of introducing a potential client to an existing TOP Software Customer last week. We made a quick trip to Canada to spend a few hours reviewing TOP in a live environment both from the Owner and Contractor's perspective.
Thanks again to our Customer for taking the time to explain their business process and arranging an off-site visit to their largest and 1st Contractor on TOP.
During the off-site, I witnessed the amazing relationship between the Owner and Contractor. They began the TOP journey together over a year ago and continue to collaborate on daily activities and future enhancements.
Although the Contractor took on some additional work with TOP Software, the reduced payment terms, reporting, and 24x7 portal access were favorable benefits. They have slightly adjusted their TOP business process since Go-Live to become more efficient and look forward to future reporting enhancements.
Both the Contractor and Owner offices have reduced paper and they agree that the ability to log on to the portal and see the same data for quick resolution reduces payment bottlenecks.
We did have a few hours to visit a popular Vancouver tourist attraction. The Capilano Suspension Bridge Park is amazing and perfect weather made for an incredible experience.