Shared by Bill Baumann

For more than six years, Under Armor has been on a steady rise. At the end of 2016, this growth suddenly ended:

  1. The stock price dropped nearly 27%.
  2. Profits decreased by 58%.
  3. Issues emerged throughout 2017.

A flawed SAP implementation caused major disruptions in the company's supply chain. The company has partnered with SAP to start a software project. Purpose? To upgrade Under Armour's existing SAP ECC 6 platform to S/4HANA.

The ERP upgrade officially launched on July 1, 2017. It is designed to integrate the following Under Armor functions across North America and Europe:

  1. Warehouse management.
  2. Point-of-sale transactions.
  3. Inventory control.
  4. Product allocation.
  5. Sales.

Lessons learned to avoid failure:

  1. Change management is mandatory: Have a plan for training and upgrading users, not just software.
  2. Plan for system disruption: the larger the system, the longer the disruption.
  3. Prioritize ERP System Testing: While there are many different types of testing to perform, one of the most important is user acceptance testing. This ensures that the software is as user-friendly and accessible as possible. During this time, you can also identify any gaps that exist and make adjustments as necessary.
  4. Conduct Technology Assessments

Many companies struggle to migrate their SAP systems to S/4HANA. Reason? They often fail to analyze the readiness of internal systems to accept HANA infrastructure.

Solutions to help businesses save costs effectively

Purchasing Management

DETAIL