The Ultimate Guide to Outsource SAP

While 79% of Fortune 500 companies use SAP tools, let’s be honest — SAP isn’t the easiest technology to master. Trying to take full advantage of it and considering the significant costs involved in licensing, you probably want to ensure that every dollar spent on system development delivers value, not frustration.

However, finding skilled SAP developers can be challenging, and their expertise often comes at a higher price compared to more common skill sets, e.g. JavaScript.

In this situation, you need a trusted partner for SAP outsourcing services who can handle your system with the expertise it deserves and at a reasonable price. This article is here to help guide you through the outsource process.

While at Expert Soft we focus on SAP Commerce development, we will provide tips particularly relevant for the e-commerce domain. However, if you aim to find an SAP outsourcing partner for other SAP tools, you can still find valuable advice below.

Why SAP Commerce Cloud?

In a nutshell, SAP Commerce Cloud is a cloud-based platform that helps companies manage the entire commerce lifecycle, from sales and marketing to fulfillment and customer service, providing a 360-degree view of the customer.

The platform comes packed with a range of functionalities, including product information management, order management, and customer data management.

We particularly value SAP Commerce for its versatility. Originally known as Hybris with an on-premise model, it was designed to handle high traffic and large B2B orders. But it’s equally adept at managing B2C processes, which slightly differ in requirements compared to B2B operations.

And, of course, as the name suggests, SAP Commerce Cloud fully supports a cloud model, offering scalability and flexibility. This also means you can offload some of the infrastructure management to SAP, freeing up your resources to focus on what you do best.

With all this in mind, SAP Commerce (Hybris) is a reliable booster for global corps. The only thing is you need vast experience in SAP Commerce to implement the system correctly and not mess up the platform from the beginning. And this is where the assistance of an experienced SAP outsourcing partner truly shines.

Advantages of SAP Outsourcing Services

While there is no need to explain why outsourcing in general is beneficial for companies, we would like to focus only on the benefits of outsourcing SAP Hybris web development.

Having equipped with the required knowledge and expertise, a dedicated SAP outsourcing partner can cover almost any task that your company requires.

SAP Outsourcing Services Enterprises May Need

Actually, it can be almost any service. Accumulating the needs that our clients at Expert Soft bring to the table, enterprises often choose outsourcing SAP for the following tasks:

• migration of outdated e-commerce platforms to SAP Commerce Cloud;
• migration to a new SAP Commerce version;
• SAP platform extension and customization;
• migration to the cloud;
• new system architecture implementation;
• platform performance improvements (very often requested);
• system scaling;
• integration with new systems both SAP (AMS, BI/BO, BW) or external, such as payment tools, analytics, etc.
• support of a current SAP system.

Regardless of the service required, the outsourcing SAP team should be proficient enough in technologies and SAP standards to offer you high-quality solutions to your demands.

What Skills to Look for When Hiring the SAP Outsourcing Partner?

Tech stack

Obviously, the first factor here is the tech stack. Beyond proficiency in required SAP platforms, such as SAP Commerce Cloud, developers should be well-versed in the Spring framework, Java EE (with JVM to run and operate the system), database management, web services, APIs, and some DevOps tools.

Front-end developers should have a solid grasp of the basics — HTML, CSS, and JavaScript — along with experience in popular frameworks, such as React, Angular, or Vue.js. If you’re specifically hiring for an SAP Commerce project, we advise you to choose specialists proficient in Spartacus, SAP’s headless storefront, which allows for quick and efficient front-end development.

Also, consider whether the SAP outsource developers have relevant certifications. For example, if you’re focusing on integration, software integration certification will be a bonus that, along with expertise, shows relevant competencies. Similarly, if your project involves cloud infrastructure, professionals with IaaS certifications can bring advanced knowledge of security measures.

Business processes outsourcing certification can also be a bonus, but when choosing a technical partner, experience, especially with SAP products, is more important than a diploma.

Proficiency in technological trends

And we don’t talk about AI here. We’re referring to well-established and impactful trends like single-page applications, microservices, and headless architecture.

This is particularly crucial if you’re building your system from scratch or transitioning to a new platform or architecture. Laying a strong foundation during the initial planning stages can pay off in the long run, providing you with a more flexible and scalable platform.

However, if your team lacks the necessary skills, that solid foundation can turn into a weak realization, leading to future issues. Therefore, it’s essential to thoroughly vet the expertise of your potential vendor for SAP outsource.

Expertise in your industry

While SAP Commerce Cloud is designed for e-commerce, different industries have unique nuances. For example, selling telecom services is not the same as selling food in a supermarket chain.

Therefore, ask a potential outsource partner to provide you with the cases in your industry and SAP technologies and tell about successful projects that helped global corporations gain profits and cut expenses. This will allow you to understand whether this partner is competent enough to work on your projects.

Full-cycle services

Probably, with SAP outsource, you don’t seek task-oriented workers. You need strategic thinkers and consultants who can analyze your system, requirements, and market trends to deliver the most effective SAP solutions. Equally important is the ability to adjust strategies when things don’t go as planned.

So, look for a partner that offers full-cycle services, from consulting to deployment. This approach can save you time and money by investing in a single team with expertise across a wide range of areas.

Soft skills

It’s all about people. Developing goes beyond delivering code in time and gaining significant benefits for your business. Strong communication, problem-solving, and analytical presentation skills are essential traits of a great developer, no matter if in-house or outsource.

Your implementation partner will be in constant collaboration with you, so it’s essential to choose outsource developers who share your mentality and have a strong command of English. Therefore, during interviews, pay attention not just to technical skills, but also to how well they might fit with your team.

Security assurance

Ensure that your outsource partner adheres to industry standards and best practices for data security and regulatory compliance. They should have robust security protocols to protect sensitive business data and familiarity with relevant industry standards, e.g., GDPR, CCPA.

Let’s summarize all criteria

To wrap up, here’s a checklist to help you evaluate a potential partner for SAP outsource:

• Focus on SAP development.
• Expertise in your industry.
• Portfolio with relevant cases and preferably with real references from past clients.
• Relevant tech stack for both efficient SAP Commerce development and your current system.
• Proficiency with several architectural approaches.
• Security compliance.
• Expertise in integrating with other SAP tools.
• Proven Quality Assurance services for SAP projects and large-scale initiatives, including unit, integration, performance, and deployment testing.
• Suitable working model.
• Strong project management practices.
• Soft skills.

And one more tip. After several rounds of initial communication, ask your potential outsource vendor to conduct a preliminary estimation for a SAP project and explain their proposed solution for your needs. This will help you assess whether their plans align with your budget and roadmap. It’s also a good opportunity to gauge how well the vendor works with the available information and the adequacy of their proposed solutions.

Cost for Outsourcing SAP Project

SAP outsourcing services can cost you an arm and leg when cooperating with a team with unreasonable prices. But at the same time don’t forget that pay cheaply, pay twice.

So, try to find the outsource team with the perfect price-quality ratio. It’s smarter to choose professionals with a higher rate, but with great expertise. They can perform the tasks faster and more accurately than their cheaper colleagues with their substandard quality of work.

Why Consider Outsourcing SAP to Expert Soft?

Being overly pushy isn’t our style, so we’ll give you an impartial overview of our skills, allowing you to form your own opinion about Expert Soft.

And on a lighter note, we’re just a great team with a strong technical background. We love creating innovative solutions, exploring new technologies, and tackling seemingly impossible challenges. It’s what we do best while delivering on time, being transparent, and taking full responsibility for the results.

If our values resonate with you, you want to learn more about our expertise, or you have any questions about SAP development, feel free to contact us. We will get back to you within one business day.

Wrapping Up

To make a long story short, it isn’t a breeze to find experienced SAP outsourcing partners. Especially when you need to scale up your project in a very short period. SAP outsource eliminates this problem and gives access to a great experienced talent pool with lower rates.

We’ve provided you with an overview. The ball is in your court now! By wisely considering what skills to look for when hiring an outsourcing development team for your SAP project, you can find a gold mine and gain significant benefits for your business.