Everything that we hear in this fast-moving tech world is CLOUD, CLOUD & CLOUD! When we go specific to warehousing, newbies like Snowflake & Big Query are incredible. But many have a question how does the classic SAP BW or BW/4HANA still sustain in this cloud uproar? We have some answers for all these buzzes.
Stabilized Architecture
Data capabilities with advanced structuring that suits business needs are valuable features of SAP’s warehousing concept that keeps customers satisfied with their return on investment. LSA++(Layered Scalable Architecture) implements various layers for data propagation and architected data marts. The data from various SAP & Non-SAP data sources is sourced by connecting to interfaces and staging in an acquisition layer and then loading into necessary providers to serve the BI platforms. This makes SAP BW’s architecture a stabilized one for business usage.
Standard Business Content
SAP is very well known for its excellence in exhaustive business content categorized into modules in sync with the SAP ECC modules. SAP’s inbuilt standard data sources and building customized data sources have been a best business practice. Extraction from these sources into SAP BW or BW4/HANA is a cakewalk. BI Content of SAP NetWeaver Business Warehouse enables quick and cost-effective implementation. It also provides a model that can be used as a guideline during implementation. This model is based on experiences gained from other implementations.
Data Integration
SAP BW & BW/4HANA has marveled in integrating with both SAP & Non-SAP systems. Easy integration with 3rd party data sources, XML file uploading, transforming, data cleansing, consolidating the data & storing has gained confidence among the long-term SAP investors. Other cloud-based solutions are developing to introduce connectivity to other systems as they still have native connectors for loading data and rely on other integration tools.
Database Advantages
A columnar database with simplified modelling capabilities is accessible to both SAP & Non-SAP Data warehouse experts throughout the industry for easier data access. This has consistently served as the best methodology that places & combines master data, transactional data & historical data.
Par excellent in-memory HANA database supporting data warehousing has provided various advantages like real-time data replication and data access across multiple business applications. A large enterprise with 3+ legacy systems with fortified users following the recent updates of backed systems is happy with the flexible data warehousing that provides business users a critical insight into their financial supply chain reporting together with the BOBJ.
Data modelling key features
Thanks to SAP for bringing up Eclipse-based modelling that has eased development activity. The property to change a datastore object in a single-window has attracted a wider pool of experts to build different data models for different data management systems. Semantic grouping is one key concept that can be highlighted in this. ODP infrastructure that supports extraction and replication with various applications is a niche factor. Along with this, hierarchies at various levels, commonly called Unbalanced hierarchies & Embedded Analytics, make the warehouse stand strong among the competitors. The AMDP methodology, an optimized approach for using HANA procedures in ABAP is a spectacular innovation.
With the BW/4HANA upgrade, tasks have become much easier with the introduction of the Web Cockpit, a single platform for all administrative & monitoring purposes. The enormous growth in performance and a completely SAP HANA optimized process to extract huge amounts of data in real-time is some of the win-win that SAP has achieved for its customers.
Integrated Planning
Any company that needs planning of data will require a seamless functionality to do it. SAP BW IP (Integrated Planning) and BPC (SAP Business Planning and Consolidation) have been time-proven answers for all the planning-related queries. It is a process that gathers data from BW Objects converts them and gives input-ready objects[SB11] In detail, it is a process that involves creating data basis with suitable infoproviders and defining aggregation levels, data slices, characteristic relationships, using planning function types and creating planning sequences. To know more about this, click here. This helps business users to do advanced analytics that improves efficiency.
Reporting/End-user perspective
Simplified reporting and data analysis across multiple transactional systems makes it easy for end-users as they can connect Excel and extract data readily from BW to make their analysis with a slice & dice. Bex Query Designer, AFO is the best available tool for generating different reports and query structures beyond multi-dimensional models. Along with this SAC’s live access to SAP BW or BW4/HANA has been one of the success factors in making analytics. The end-users consider this as a stable and remarkable real-time reporting feature.
Security
The word best suits SAP’s Warehousing due to its top-notch security building. They provide a new light of confidence to their existing and future customers with their release of a security guide that explains how well each of the components under their model is secured enough, showcasing the ‘Data Trust’ that every organization majorly relies on.
No Surprise cost
SAP follows a standard billing methodology providing all its features under a single package. The cost will not vary irrespective of the workload or a concurrent number of users because the number of servers is fixed. Unlike the cloud solutions where users fall under the confusion of the bills, SAP has some of the great features like SAP BW IP under a single license with no additional investment.
Support
SAP sincerely values its customers with tremendous support. The team includes SI and Application management support partner, SAP support, HPE, and HANA infrastructure support to answer all the queries related to performance, BASIS, or any other unknown issues faced in the tool.
With a Standard business content, established process in various business modules, best integration & planning, simplified modelling, and satisfied reporting capability SAP BW & BW/4HANA will still hold feathers on their hat as they best suit an enterprise where a distinctive warehouse is necessary for their business towards finance, customer, sales, etc.
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