# SAP QM Maturity Assessment: How Well Are You Using Quality Management? > Source: https://netray.co/tools/sap-qm-maturity-assessment > Publisher: Netray (netray.co), AI and integration engineering for ERP and manufacturing systems. > Section: Free Tools ## Short answer Nine questions about plans, catalogs, notifications, integration and analytics give you a maturity score for your SAP QM use and a list of next steps. ## Category sap ## Erp SAP S/4HANA ## Industry Discrete Manufacturing ## Audience - Quality manager - SAP QM consultant - IT manager ## Tool **Kind:** assessment **Questions:** #### How are inspection plans maintained? **Options:** ##### Mostly outside SAP (paper, Excel) **Score:** 0 ##### In SAP but many are outdated or missing **Score:** 1 ##### In SAP, reviewed on change but not on a schedule **Score:** 2 ##### In SAP with owners, change control and periodic review **Score:** 3 #### How are inspection results recorded? **Options:** ##### On paper, entered later or not at all **Score:** 0 ##### Some characteristics in SAP, most on paper **Score:** 1 ##### In SAP at the workstation for most inspections **Score:** 2 ##### In SAP, with equipment interfaces for measured values **Score:** 3 #### How consistent are defect, cause and usage decision catalogs? **Options:** ##### Free text, no catalogs **Score:** 0 ##### Catalogs exist but are inconsistent between plants **Score:** 1 ##### Shared catalogs, partly used **Score:** 2 ##### Governed catalogs used on every notification and decision **Score:** 3 #### How do you handle supplier quality in SAP? **Options:** ##### Not tracked in SAP **Score:** 0 ##### Complaints in SAP, no vendor evaluation **Score:** 1 ##### Notifications and goods receipt inspection used **Score:** 2 ##### QM in procurement, quality score and evaluation drive decisions **Score:** 3 #### How do you use sampling and dynamic modification? **Options:** ##### Fixed 100% or fixed sample everywhere **Score:** 0 ##### Sampling procedures defined, little tailoring **Score:** 1 ##### Sampling tailored by risk for main materials **Score:** 2 ##### Dynamic modification rules reviewed against real data **Score:** 3 #### How are quality notifications managed? **Options:** ##### Email and spreadsheets **Score:** 0 ##### Used by quality only **Score:** 1 ##### Used across plants with tasks and owners **Score:** 2 ##### Used with tasks, deadlines, escalation and CAPA links **Score:** 3 #### How is QM connected to production and stock? **Options:** ##### Not connected, stock released by hand **Score:** 0 ##### Lots created automatically but usage decisions often delayed **Score:** 1 ##### Automated lots and timely decisions for most flows **Score:** 2 ##### Fully automated triggers, with monitored aging of inspection stock **Score:** 3 #### What reporting do you have on quality data? **Options:** ##### None beyond standard lists **Score:** 0 ##### Manual exports to Excel **Score:** 1 ##### A few maintained reports or dashboards **Score:** 2 ##### Governed analytics with Pareto, capability and trend by supplier **Score:** 3 #### How are authorizations and audit trail handled? **Options:** ##### Shared users or broad access **Score:** 0 ##### Named users, roles loosely designed **Score:** 1 ##### Roles by task, partial separation of duties **Score:** 2 ##### Reviewed roles, separation of duties and change documents checked **Score:** 3 **Bands:** #### Foundation stage **Min:** 0 **Max:** 34 **Verdict:** SAP QM is barely used, so quality still runs on paper and spreadsheets. **Recommendations:** - Pick one process, such as goods receipt inspection, and make it work end to end - Create inspection plans and basic catalogs before anything else - Name an owner for QM master data #### Developing **Min:** 35 **Max:** 64 **Verdict:** The basics exist but inconsistency limits the value you get. **Recommendations:** - Standardise catalogs and notification types across plants - Move result entry to the workstation for the highest volume inspections - Review lots waiting for a usage decision every week #### Established **Min:** 65 **Max:** 84 **Verdict:** QM is a working part of operations with room to use data better. **Recommendations:** - Tune sampling and dynamic modification rules against actual results - Build Pareto and supplier trend reporting on governed data - Review roles for separation of duties #### Optimised **Min:** 85 **Max:** 100 **Verdict:** You use QM broadly and with discipline, so gains now come from analytics and automation. **Recommendations:** - Automate equipment data capture where it is still manual - Use capability and trend data to drive supplier and process decisions - Keep catalogs and plans under change control as products change ## Content **Intro:** Many companies install SAP QM and then use a fraction of it. This assessment asks nine practical questions about plans, results, catalogs, suppliers, sampling, notifications, integration, reporting and security, and gives you a score with next steps. **Sections:** #### How to use the assessment **Body:** Answer for the plant or business unit you know best and be honest about the common case, not the best case. Ask a quality engineer and an SAP key user to answer separately and compare, because the gap between the two views is often the most useful finding. Use the score as a conversation starter for a roadmap, not as a certification. Export the result to share with your quality and IT managers. #### What the questions look at **Body:** The questions follow how value is created in QM. Plans and characteristics define what is inspected. Result recording and catalogs decide whether data is usable. Sampling and dynamic modification balance effort and risk. Notifications and supplier handling close the loop. Integration and reporting decide whether anyone benefits from the data, and authorizations decide whether you can trust it. **Bullets:** - Plans and result entry: is data captured at all - Catalogs: is the data consistent enough to analyse - Sampling and supplier handling: is effort aimed at risk - Integration and reporting: is the data used #### Reading your score **Body:** Low scores usually mean the first job is to make one process work end to end, not to add features. Middle scores point to standardisation: shared catalogs, consistent notification handling and timely usage decisions. High scores shift the focus to analytics, automation and governance. In every band, check that the plans in SAP match what inspectors do on the floor, because drift between the two is the commonest hidden problem. #### Common mistakes **Body:** Do not chase configuration before fixing ownership. Plans without owners, catalogs without governance and reports without a consumer decay quickly. Avoid a big-bang redesign when a few weekly reviews of open lots and notifications would bring most of the value. And do not confuse a high score with good quality: the score measures how well the system is used, not how good your parts are. **Cta:** If your score shows the data is there but hard to use, we can build a read-only layer that lets quality people ask questions of SAP in plain language, on-premises if required. **Faq:** #### Is this assessment specific to one SAP release? **Answer:** No. The questions apply to SAP QM in ECC and S/4HANA alike because they test how the process is used, not which screen is installed. Release specific features such as Fiori apps would be part of the follow-up discussion. #### Who should answer the questions? **Answer:** A quality engineer and an SAP key user, separately. Compare answers: differences show where the documented process and the real one diverge. A consultant can then help turn the gaps into a short roadmap. #### What score should we aim for? **Answer:** There is no universal target. A plant with simple goods receipt inspection may be well served at the Established level, while a regulated manufacturer will want to be higher on catalogs, security and audit trail. Set targets by risk. #### Does this replace a formal audit? **Answer:** No. It is a self-assessment to guide discussion. A formal quality audit or an SAP process review looks at evidence, such as records and configuration, and is the right step before certification or a major change. ## Search terms SAP QM assessment, SAP QM maturity, SAP quality management health check, SAP QM best practices, SAP QM improvement, is SAP QM worth it, SAP QM review, SAP QM usage audit --- Talk to an engineer: https://netray.co/contact?intent=erp_ai | Machine catalog: https://netray.co/agent/catalog.json