Secure, scalable, and resilient business applications have become foundational for retail and consumer enterprises. This shift has placed retail and consumer enterprises in a challenging position, requiring them to swiftly adapt to evolving business requirements.
For those enterprises still reliant on legacy on-premises SAP systems, migrating to modern SAP S/4HANA cloud solutions is no longer a question of ‘if,’ but a matter of ‘how.’
This transition transcends mere cloud adoption; it is a strategic imperative that demands vigilant consideration of infrastructure capacity, scalability, and seamless platform integration – accessible anytime, anywhere. Migrating to SAP S/4HANA enables enterprises to meet current demands while future-proofing their operations in an increasingly digital ecosystem.
Here’s a high-level analysis that outlines the key considerations for retail and consumer enterprise leaders as they navigate this pivotal transformation.
The shift to SAP S/4 HANA: A new era in ever-evolving business applications
The transition to SAP S/4 HANA represents a giant leap, ushering in a new era of operational excellence in enterprise resource management. By adopting cloud-based SAP S/4HANA solutions – whether leveraging public, private, or hybrid cloud infrastructures – you can unlock strategic benefits such as superior security, unparalleled scalability, enhanced flexibility, and streamlined management.
Meticulously assessing and aligning infrastructure capacity with your specific business needs is the cornerstone of a successful migration. This precision approach not only ensures sustained operational efficiency but also strengthens the foundation for adapting to emerging market demands and enhancing global competitiveness.
Key benefits of SAP S/4 HANA cloud solutions:
- Security, scalability, and flexibility
- Managed infrastructure with industry standard best practices
- Simplified administration and deployment processes
- Continuous innovation and updates
Choosing the right cloud model – Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), or Software as a Service (SaaS) – is crucial for establishing a scalable, agile infrastructure that supports evolving business needs and future growth.
Additionally, Analyze, Approach, Apply Progress (AAAP) model plays a pivotal role for determining the optimal infrastructure capacity for SAP systems.
The AAAP Model: A strategic blueprint for optimizing SAP infrastructure capacity
1. Analyze: Defining the path to sustainable success
A robust SAP infrastructure begins with a thorough analysis of both legacy systems and transitioning SAP Cloud solutions and services, as well as any integrated systems targeting global markets. This ensures alignment with long-term organizational objectives.
Key considerations include:
1. Global peak utilization
2. Anticipated future growth
3. Operational Acceptance Testing (OAT): Addressing critical factors such as:
a) Usability
b) Reliability
c) Scalability
d) Maintainability
4. Failover and alerting mechanism
5. Requirements around IoT and mobile apps in the newly migrated system
To achieve optimized infrastructure and ensure operational resilience in today’s digital-driven landscape, retail and consumer enterprises must adopt a strategic approach centered on the following key elements:
Leverage sophisticated testing tools capable of simulating production-level demands, covering a broad range of SAP protocols and technology stacks, including web interfaces, GUIs, flat files, APIs, and reports.
Employ SAP T-Codes in conjunction with advanced Application Performance Monitoring (APM) tools to gain deep insights into system behavior and performance.
Cloud monitoring and API integration:
Utilize SAP Business Technology Platform (BTP) APIs to monitor and track activity across cloud environments, spanning SAP solutions, AWS, Microsoft, and Azure services.
This enables a comprehensive understanding of consumption patterns, alerts for deviations from planned usage, and dynamic resource scaling in alignment with business objectives.
Ensure testing capabilities extend to IoT ecosystems and mobile applications, safeguarding seamless performance across interconnected digital platforms.
Resources:
A robust expertise in performance testing tools and diverse protocols, complemented by a strategic command of APM tools. This is further enhanced by a deep, technical understanding of SAP applications and the behavioral dynamics of cloud solutions.
3. Apply – Comprehensive testing strategies
Applying production load testing is vital for validating the performance and reliability of SAP systems. The following outlines a strategic approach to ensure effective application and assessment across all components and global regions:
Comprehensive production load application:
Ensures optimal performance of SAP systems by evaluating all components across global regions through global benchmarking, lifecycle simulations, and testing of IoT devices, mobile applications, and cloud failover mechanisms.
Covers the entire journey from source systems to integrated platforms and downstream targets, ensuring seamless operation and alignment across all stages.
Component-level testing:
Assesses upstream systems, databases, integrated platforms, microservices, REST APIs, and their downstream impact, ensuring holistic performance and stability.
Leverages advanced testing tools across multiple geographies to achieve peak volume benchmarks, ensuring consistent and reliable performance across locations.
Daily lifecycle testing:
Simulates real-world production loads alongside backend batch processing, capturing critical insights into system behavior and performance.
IoT, mobile app, and cloud failover testing:
In collaboration with SAP service providers, ensures robust testing of IoT devices, mobile app performance, and cloud failover mechanisms, guaranteeing a resilient and scalable infrastructure.
4. Progress: Continuously monitoring and optimizing
As testing progresses and stresses the system, it exposes any capacity issues in the SAP infrastructure. Effective collaboration between the NFT (Performance and OAT) testing team and cloud infrastructure subject matter experts, combined with targeted optimization strategies, is crucial for ensuring that the infrastructure ensures achieving the right-sized infrastructure:
Optimization strategies include:
- Autoscaling to dynamically adjust resources.
- Right-sizing cloud resources for efficiency.
- Eliminating redundant resources.
- Reducing unnecessary data transfers.
- Leveraging advanced cloud monitoring tools.
- Utilizing on-demand spot instances to manage peak demand.
Conclusion
Leveraging the AAAP model is pivotal for achieving an optimized SAP infrastructure that delivers a spectrum of strategic benefits. A right-sized infrastructure underpins the development of a sustainable and environmentally responsible cloud framework, aligning with best practices for socially responsible SAP systems.
Furthermore, the adoption of cost-effective solutions and automated, reusable assets equips organizations to proficiently manage future testing phases, support continuous release enhancements, and seamlessly adapt to global market dynamics and emerging cloud trends.
Secure the future of your SAP infrastructure
Future-proofing your SAP infrastructure starts with a strategic approach today. At Qualitest, we excel in guiding enterprises through the migration and optimization of SAP S/4 HANA cloud solutions. Our expert teams are committed to analyzing your unique requirements, optimizing your strategy, and ensuring a seamless transition to a resilient and scalable infrastructure.
Reach out today to start your SAP journey seamlessly.
Meet the Author – Niruphan Rajendran
Niruphan Rajendran is a Performance Engineering Lead at Qualitest. He is passionate about leveraging cutting-edge technology to exceed business needs and address complex requirements. He brings extensive expertise in SAP, Enterprise Applications, IoT, Non-Functional Testing (NFT) Engineering, Mobile Performance Engineering, and Resilience. With hands-on experience in Agile project management, he excels in strategic planning, non-functional requirements (NFR) elicitation, and team development. A certified SAP Cloud Migration Architect, he specializes in IoT device security, telemetry data simulation, and cloud migrations. Committed to innovation and knowledge sharing, Niruphan has published impactful white papers on IoT, NFT, and SAP Performance. He is also an active contributor to software community meetups and conferences.
Connect with Niruphan Rajendran on LinkedIn
Meet the Author – Thothathiri Sadagopan
Thothathiri Sadagopan is a Performance Engineering Lead at Qualitest. With over 14 years of extensive experience across the full project lifecycle, he is a seasoned professional in Non-Functional Engineering. Thotha has successfully led numerous large-scale global programs across diverse domains, including Enterprise, Finance, Banking, Retail, and more. His core expertise lies in End-to-End (E2E) Non-Functional Testing and Engineering, covering Test Planning, Scripting, Execution, Monitoring, Analysis, Tuning, and Reporting. Currently, in his managerial role, he drives projects to successful delivery while ensuring excellence in execution. Passionate about continuous learning, Thotha is committed to exploring emerging technologies and staying at the forefront of innovation in his field.
Connect with Thothathiri Sadagopan on LinkedIn.
