- SAP Managed Tags:
Dear Utilities Community,
Our first virtual SAP Utility Week exceeded all expectations. The interest was overwhelming, almost 2000 customers, partners, prospects, and utilities friends signed up for our session on May 11th.
First day's agenda was fully packed with the following topics:
SAP's Global Head of Utilities Miguel Gaspar Silva opened the session and informed about SAP's intelligent enterprise strategy. Read his blog here.
It was also addressed how we help you to respond to immediate challenges and prepare for the future in times of COVID-19. Thank you very much to Andre Blumberg for sharing insights how CLP in Hongkong is tackling the current challenges.
Look at the SAP utilities point of view on how utilities companies can respond quickly to COVID-19. Listen also to this podcast with Stefan Wolf and Marc Rosson from Snohomish County PUD discussing this topic.
A special thanks to all SAP speakers of the session: Miguel Gaspar Silva, Holger Schweinfurth, Stefan Engelhardt, Mateu Munar, Klaus Lohnert, Stefan Wolf, Stephane Dotto, Steven Bekink and our moderator Melanie Fiolka.
Further resources:
Please watch the session on demand here.
When entering the platform, you can download the slide decks from the "Resource List".
In the session, we announced “The Intelligent Enterprise Innovation and Experience Proposition for the Energy Utilities Industry”. Please send a note to SAPUtilitiesNews@sap.com if you want to have a copy.
Due to the significant interest and several questions during the session we also want to provide the most relevant topics through this FAQ:
Please contact us at SAPUtilitesNews@sap.com or enter your questions into the chat. We are happy getting back to you.
Our first virtual SAP Utility Week exceeded all expectations. The interest was overwhelming, almost 2000 customers, partners, prospects, and utilities friends signed up for our session on May 11th.
First day's agenda was fully packed with the following topics:
- Utilities Transition into an Agile Intelligent Enterprise
- Find more information here:
- Intelligent Enterprise Whitepaper
- Intelligent Enterprise Ebook
- Find more information here:
- SAP S/4HANA Utilities – Innovations and Roadmap
- Explore the SAP Road map with our new tool
- SAP Cloud for Utilities
- Find more information on the SAP Cloud for Utilities Community website
- Transformation Roadmap Overview
- Cloud Transformation
SAP's Global Head of Utilities Miguel Gaspar Silva opened the session and informed about SAP's intelligent enterprise strategy. Read his blog here.
It was also addressed how we help you to respond to immediate challenges and prepare for the future in times of COVID-19. Thank you very much to Andre Blumberg for sharing insights how CLP in Hongkong is tackling the current challenges.
Look at the SAP utilities point of view on how utilities companies can respond quickly to COVID-19. Listen also to this podcast with Stefan Wolf and Marc Rosson from Snohomish County PUD discussing this topic.
A special thanks to all SAP speakers of the session: Miguel Gaspar Silva, Holger Schweinfurth, Stefan Engelhardt, Mateu Munar, Klaus Lohnert, Stefan Wolf, Stephane Dotto, Steven Bekink and our moderator Melanie Fiolka.
Further resources:
Please watch the session on demand here.
When entering the platform, you can download the slide decks from the "Resource List".
In the session, we announced “The Intelligent Enterprise Innovation and Experience Proposition for the Energy Utilities Industry”. Please send a note to SAPUtilitiesNews@sap.com if you want to have a copy.
Due to the significant interest and several questions during the session we also want to provide the most relevant topics through this FAQ:
FAQ General
- How can one get access to SAP Advisory Customer Council for Utilities ("ACCU")?
Applications to join the ACCU can be addressed directly to the chairman (Andre Blumberg) or to SAP. The ACCU has an established process to decide on new members based on certain criteria, the decision is finally made by a vote of the whole group.
FAQ SAP S/4HANA Utilities
- From a security perspective, what challenges have you encountered in taking your solutions to the utilities and how have you addressed the same?
Security is one of our overall SAP product standards that is applied for all developments within SAP. GDPR and DPP are just some examples where SAP focuses on, next to the other security topics such as cyber-attacks etc.
- How many utilities are on SAP S/4HANA?
We have meanwhile more than 240 Utilities who are productive with SAP S/4HANA or are in the implementation process. SAP S/4HANA is in most cases combined with business transformations to ensure the optimal usage of the new technologies - and this causes consequently considerable change management efforts which require long term planning cycles.
- Do you have the ML-based exception management use case already deployed? Is it part of base or an additional license?
The ML scenarios were part of 1909 shipment and we have projects implementing SAP S/4HANA Utilities now. For the ML scenario we have done a PoC with a customer and the solution is part of the SAP S/4HANA Utilities license, i.e. no separate license.
- Releasing outsorted bill by Machine Learning concept - can we configure bespoke requirement there? Or it would require custom code?
It can run w/o any custom code.
- Looks like it is confusing the capabilities of SAP S/4HANA Interaction Center and SAP Contact Center 365. What is the difference in terms of capabilities? When to use what?
These two solutions augment each other. SAP S/4HANA Utilities for Customer Management is providing call center functionality within SAP S/4HANA Utilities, SAP Contact Center 365 is a multi-channel communication solution to provide support for telephony and other channels.
- What are the prospects for regional adaptability in South America, especially due to the legal and tax particularities?
We have a huge customer base LAM and are working with the customers to provide the local requirements as well in SAP S/4HANA. There is for instance a program on the way to bring the country-specific best practices of Brazil in the SAP S/4HANA standard.
- Can the customer only move to SAP S/4HANA for backend and keep their own front-end applications? or it is mandatory to have the complete SAP S/4HANA products to leverage the capability of SAP S/4HANA?
Customers can combine their own front-end with the SAP S/4HANA back-end, SAP provides the respective APIs, but integration must to be implemented and managed in the project.
- What type of S/4 implementation did the companies featured execute? Green/Brown/Hybrid? Can you discuss?
It strongly depends on the individual situation of the customer customer and we have seen all different approaches so far; there are detailed roadmap studies available, next to business case evaluation, methodologies etc.
- Is this settlement feature only available in SAP S/4HANA?
ECC EhP 7 as well Documentation
SAP Cloud for Utilities / Cloud Transformation
- How is SAP Cloud for Utilities (C4U) different from SAP Cloud for Customer (C4C)?
C4U addresses the holistic Lead-to-Cash process for Multi-Service-Utilities and C4C is an integral part of C4U.
- Is SAP Cloud for Utilities on top of Marking, Sales, Services & Billing Cloud?
All the mentioned components are part of SAP Cloud for Utilities.
- Where is SAP in terms of offering a fully end-to-end cloud solution for Utilities? What is their competition strategy against the already cloud-native SaaS products, e.g. ENSEK in the UK? Do you also think SAP is being late?
Under the SAP Cloud for Utilities (C4U) program, SAP is developing the new cloud suite to cover the end to end scenario for lead to cash of a utility's retailer. The first version will be released end of this year. This suite is composed by several cloud solutions that will be working as a whole, from an operation, integration, process orchestration and master data management. There are cloud solutions in the C4U suite that are already available and implemented in our customers, such us Service Cloud (C4C), Commerce Cloud, Marketing Cloud and others. We think that SAP is the only one capable to offer an end-to-end coverage in the cloud, and we are working to have it ready by the end of the year. Evolution of Commercial Systems in Utilities is a huge transformation program and business critical, in terms of functionality, regulation, scalability, innovation, performance, integration, new services, extensibility, ..., these are key investment areas in the Cloud for Utilities Program.
- Does SAP Cloud for Utilities (C4U) include a call center module for customer service representatives to access customer information?
C4U as a program includes SAP Service Cloud as the customer service solution. The relevant customer information is made available to the customer service agent in SAP Service Cloud by integration to the respective systems owning the data to avoid unnecessary copying of data.
- What is benefit of Customer Service Cloud of SAP Cloud for Utilities over CM component of SAP S/4 HANA?
There are differences in the functionality, C4C is deploying more Customer Services capabilities in comparison to the CM component in SAP S/4HANA. Determine which is the most convenient depends on every customer situation and requires individual evaluation.
- Is it foreseen to deliver courses to consultants interested in getting training in the new C4U modules? Will only SAP be responsible for the C4U implementation?
Yes. As part of the C4U program, there will be a learning journey for consultants.
- How is SAP Cloud for Utilities different from CIS?
It is a SaaS built on new components such as Sales, Service etc. Ultimative, it can run w/o SAP IS-U.
- When we say one invoice for all the customers does it includes different divisions and service charges for customers?
Yes. Using Convergent Invoicing for combining commodity and non-commodity products and services across different divisions.
- Does C4U include a call center module for customer service representatives to access customer information?
C4U as a program includes SAP Service Cloud as the customer service solution. The relevant customer information is made available to the customer service agent in SAP Service Cloud by integration to the respective systems owning the data to avoid unnecessary copying of data.
- Is the C4U solution on top of SAP S/4HANA and is it in the same box?
SAP Cloud for Utilities is a SaaS solution. It can run independent of SAP S/4HANA and a hybrid scenario in combination with an S/4HANA Utilities solution is possible.
- Is the model company already available?
Yes, they support different market roles as well
FAQ Miscellaneous
- Where is prepayment for utilities roadmap?
This is part of the Custom Development portfolio and depends on customer requirements.
- Cloud computing has gradually taken over conventional Data Centres. How cyber secure is cloud computing in metering?
Cyber security of our solutions and our cloud data centers is paramount to SAP. You can find comprehensive information on this in our SAP Trust Center.
- Does the Product Manager App replace Hybris products such as BRIM, CC and CI?
It is the front-end tool for selecting the relevant products (commodity and non-commodity) and is part of SAP Commerce. BRIM and CC, CI are the next solutions in the process sequence.
- When CM or C4C for utilities should be used?
This depends on the requirements and deployment strategy of the customer: C4C is SAP's customer engagement solution in the public cloud, CM is the on-premise equivalent. Both have deployment-typical pros and cons. I'd recommend discussing this question always in the concrete business context and we are more than happy to support this evaluation with the necessary information.
Please contact us at SAPUtilitesNews@sap.com or enter your questions into the chat. We are happy getting back to you.
