Supplier Management and internal cost allocation

Supplier Management plays a key role in Service Management. It manages Suppliers, typically third party, although some can be internal suppliers, and services they provide to the client. The aim is to ensure quality, consistency and value for money, in other words, at the right price. (Source ITIL).

The License Optimizer is part of the Supplier and Contract Management Information System (SCMIS) and ensures that the measurement of the SAP software usage (system measurement) as well as the detailed allocation of cost to the internal users is done correctly. The typical users are IT units.

Conformity with ITIL standards

The IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL), is a set of detailed practices for IT service management (ITSM) that focuses on aligning IT services with the needs of business. ITIL describes processes, procedures, tasks, and checklists which are not organization-specific nor technology-specific, but can be applied by an organization for establishing integration with the organization’s strategy, delivering value, and maintaining a minimum level of competency. It allows the organization to establish a baseline from which it can plan, implement, and measure (Source Wikipedia).

In sum, ITIL is a collection of best practices in a series of publications that describe the implementation of an IT service management (ITSM) and internationally recognized as de facto standards.

The License Optimizer is strictly aligned with the ITIL standards. The databases, functions and processes are accordingly in line with the requirements of ITIL in terms of terminology and tasks.

Usage analysis as basis for billing and optimization

In order to measure the SAP software usage (system measurement) or the detailed allocation of cost to the internal users correctly, it is crucial that user master records possess the appropriate types of licenses. The License Optimizer ensures that the used type of license follow the policies In line. Thereby the License Optimizer follows the following basic principle: What a user actually or potentially can use, decides about his license type.

The License Optimizer supports the following main functions:

• Optimization of external license measurement and internal cost allocation
• Optimizing of role usage
• Analysis of system usage

The License Optimizer is managed centrally in a single SAP client. The client selects all data in the connected SAP systems and centralizes the results in the License Optimizer system. Additionally, the License Optimizer updates the decentralized updates of license types in the user master records, that are necessary for the system measurement.

Configuration

User groups, analysis components and logical systems

First, it has to be determined which analysis components, for which user groups, in which logical SAP systems have to be processed.

The user groups are formed by using fields from the user master records as selection criteria.

The following analysis components are freely combinable and assigned to the user groups:

• Potential usage
  • SUIM Access Manager roles
  • Which roles, created by the SUIM Access Manager, are assigned to the user?
  • Which SAP roles, created by the SAP profile generator, are assigned to the user?
  • Objects via Open API Which other objects are assigned to the user?
• Actual usage
  • Long-term usage
  • Which transactions have been carried out by a user? (The data on long-term usage are only available, if the SUIM-Application Tracer is used.)
  • Short-term usage: Which transactions have been carried out by a user (during the time the system load monitor is available)?
  • Objects via Open API which other objects does the user have carried out?

License types

The different license types must be determined for the internal cost allocation (ILV) as well as for the calculation of the total software costs (system measurement for/by SAP).

The license types typically correspond to the performed IT services and thus mirror the usage by the user. Whereas the license types for the system measurement correspond to the contractually agreed types.

Assignment of license types

It must be determined for each element in the analytical components (SUIM roles, SAP roles, transactions, and APIObjects), which target license type should result from the usage.

Additional configuration options

All other necessary customizing settings (like period since the last login, validities, default values, etc.)

Analysis

Usage analysis for internal cost allocation and external system measurement

The analysis results are presented as a hierarchical ALV list.

• Level 1 shows an overview of all used license types used in the areas of ILV and system measurement.
• The quantities, percentages and cost/revenues are displayed per license type.
• Level 2 shows the target and the actual license type per user in the two areas of ILV and system measurement.
• Level 3 shows the actual usage per user/system consisting of SUIM roles, SAP roles, transactions and API objects, as well as the resulting license types.
• Level 4 shows details of the SUIM roles and the SAP roles.

Update of the license types in the SAP user master records

After analyzing the results, the users can be selected and start the update of the decentralized systems.

Analysis/Optimization of role usage

The following questions will be answered:

• Which SUIM roles or SAP roles include transactions that are not used.
  • Transactions can be removed
• Which user has associated roles with associated transactions he does not use?
  • Roles can be removed

Analysis of system usage

The used transactions per user are shown. The transactions are grouped according to their application component. The maximum level of detail shows all transactions per day per user (number of uses per day).