At SAPPHIRE, I often found myself explaining what Service Management was and how it worked in SAP ECC. It really got me to thinking. Is it really a module within SAP? And I guess the best answer is yes and no. Let me explain a little further, and maybe you can tell me what you think. So, if you look within SAP Configuration (SPRO), is there a folder for Service Management (or even Customer Service). Well, yes there is. However, the interesting part is that the majority of configuration for SM is not contained within this folder. In fact, nearly every part of the configuration is performed within Plant Maintenance or Sales and Distribution. A little is in the logistics execution, but in general, to set up the SM processes, you use PM and SD.
Now, if this is the case, it sure sounds like it is NOT it’s own module, at least not in the way I describe it. Here is why I do think it is still it’s own module. Within each of these big subsets (SD & PM), there very specific pieces of configuration that only apply to SM. Further to the point, SM is really only SM because these two modules are so closely linked. No matter how you perform your service, you need both SD (to do some billing) and PM to collect some cost, in order to make it SM.
One of the biggest issues, IMHO, is the connection between these 2 modules. The process works, and is effective. Unfortunately, there isn’t good reporting or visibility of the entire process out of the box in SAP. SAP does a great job of showing you the PM stuff, and a great job of showing you the SD stuff. What is missing is the full picture. Because these 2 interact so heavily, to get a true understanding you need to see the SD & PM at one time. This is where I come in. My dashboard was the first piece I built that really helped with this. Being able to look at a repair sales order or a service order and see the revenue and cost in one place. Since then, I’ve built tools on the back-end that also show you the front end info that spawned it, and vice versa. My goal with my applications to give the business an end to end picture, no matter which variation of SM they are using.
Thanks for reading,
As always, thanks for reading and don't forget to check out our SAP Service Management Products at my other company JaveLLin Solutions,Mike