SAP S/4HANA implementation partner scorecard

• Functional consultantTransition pathShould we do a new implementation, a system conversion or a selective data transition, and what would make you change your recommendation?
• Functional consultantFit-to-standardHow do you run fit-to-standard workshops, and what comes out of them?
• Functional consultantBusiness PartnerOur ECC system has customers and vendors with years of history. How do you get them to Business Partner before a conversion?
• Functional consultantUniversal JournalWhat changes for our finance and controlling teams with the Universal Journal, and what do we need to decide before go-live?
• Functional consultantPlanningWould you run MRP Live or classic MRP for us, and how would planners work exceptions?
• Functional consultantSPROHow do you organize configuration in SPRO, and how do you control client-specific and cross-client settings?
• Functional consultantKey user extensibilityWhich of our gaps would you close without ABAP, and how do those changes move through the landscape?
• Functional consultantSimplificationsWhich ECC functions we use today do not carry over unchanged to S/4HANA, and how would you plan for them?
• Functional consultantData migrationFor a new implementation, how would you migrate our data and how many rehearsals would you plan?
• Technical consultantTransportsWalk me through how a change gets from development to production in our S/4HANA landscape.
• Technical consultantClean coreHow do you classify extensions under SAP's clean core levels, and what level would you target for us?
• Technical consultantBAdIsA requirement needs custom logic in sales order processing. Do you use a BAdI, a user exit, key user logic or a modification, and how do you decide?
• Technical consultantCDS viewsHow do you build CDS views in S/4HANA today, and what would you do with our existing DDIC-based CDS views?
• Technical consultantOData and RAPHow would you expose data to a custom Fiori app: SEGW or RAP? Walk me through either.
• Technical consultantCustom codeWe have thousands of custom objects. How do you decide what to remediate, retire or rebuild before a conversion?
• Technical consultantATCHow would you use the ABAP test cockpit to keep new custom code clean after go-live?
• Technical consultantConversion toolingDescribe the technical steps and tools of a system conversion from ECC to S/4HANA on-premise.
• Technical consultantFioriHow would you set up the Fiori launchpad and give users access to the apps for their role?
• Technical consultantIntegrationWe have IDoc interfaces to our warehouse and EDI providers. Do they survive, and what would you use for new integrations?
• Technical consultantPrivate EditionIf we run S/4HANA Cloud Private Edition under RISE with SAP, what does your team still do, and what does SAP do?
• Project leadPlanShow me an S/4HANA project plan you ran. Where are the Activate phase exits, test cycles and mock conversions or load rehearsals?
• Project leadTeamWho exactly will be on our project, with what allocation, and what happens if one of them leaves?
• Project leadScope controlHow do you control deltas and custom development on an S/4HANA project?
• Project leadCutoverDescribe your S/4HANA go-live weekend. What happens when, how long is the business down, and when do you decide to roll back?
• Project leadALM toolingWhich tool will hold our process documentation, tests and defects: SAP Solution Manager, SAP Cloud ALM or something else?
• Project leadCommercialsWalk me through your estimate. Which assumptions would trigger a change order?
• Project leadAI roadmapYou mention Joule and SAP Business AI. What exactly would we get on our S/4HANA deployment, and under what conditions?
• Project leadReferencesCan we speak to an S/4HANA customer whose project had problems, and what did you change afterwards?

Red flags in S/4HANA partner evaluations

• Senior people in the sales meeting, unnamed juniors on the proposal

  The team you interview should be the team you get. Ask for a key-person clause.

• Answers in ECC terms only (customer and vendor masters, classic MRP, WM)

  S/4HANA changed the data model and several functions. ECC experience alone is not S/4HANA experience.

• Plans to blueprint and rebuild every current process

  SAP Activate uses fit-to-standard workshops and a backlog of deltas, not an as-is copy.

• Comfortable with modifications and direct writes to SAP tables

  These are clean core level D and raise the cost of every release upgrade.

• No custom code usage analysis before sizing remediation

  Usage data from SCMON and SUSG usually shows code that can be retired instead of fixed.

• Business Partner and CVI left to the conversion weekend

  Customer and vendor synchronization and cleansing are preparation work before the conversion.

• No mock conversion or full load rehearsal in the plan

  Downtime and data issues are only known after a measured rehearsal.

• No transport strategy or changes made directly in production

  Uncontrolled transports cause sequence errors, missing objects and audit findings.

• Certifications claimed for the firm but not the named people

  Ask for each consultant's certification name, code and date and verify the badge.

• Low fixed fee with broad exclusions

  Excluded data, custom code and interfaces usually return as change orders.

• Says Private Edition removes all technical work for the customer

  SAP runs infrastructure and technical maintenance, but development, transports and many decisions stay with you and your partner.

• Unverifiable claims of exclusive status, guaranteed timelines or AI features

  Ask for written evidence and confirm eligibility with SAP. Real partners describe risks, not guarantees.