QUESTION 1: Why is SAP ?
Answer: SAP incorporates all the functions of business into one system; it is also referred as an integrated software system. Each department in the business needs to share their information with different departments SAP solves data sharing problem by incorporating all of these different functions into one system. Therefore, SAP makes available of information from one department to another immediately. This data sharing helps the organization to run the business smoothly and become more universal.
Question 2 : What is SAP?
Answer : Five IBM employees founded SAP which stand for “ Systems, Applications and Products in Data Processing” in Germany in 1972. These employees presented their idea to IBM who in turn refused to research and develop their product. These men and their company are now the 4th largest software company in the world. They are the largest provider of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) packages.
Question 3: What are the things involved in the SAP ?
Answer : SAP is user friendly because of the industry solution. Industry solutions are different areas that relates to the specific needs of each individual business. A few examples includes SAP Automotive, SAP Banking, SAP Healthcare and SAP Insurance. Each business has 4 main business process, they are manufacturing planning, making procurement (buying), customer order management (SD) and Finance/Management accounting and reporting (Accounting).
Question 4: Why SAP, not other packages like PeopleSoft, BAAN, OF/OM, JDEDWARD, Mainframe etc ?
Answer : SAP takes all of making, buying, selling and accounting processes and make them a complete functional chain in all departments have all company information available immediate. This availability of information is called real time. Other software programs use a system called batch time. Batch time requires that the information be made available to database in batches that are then swapped during non business hours instead of immediately. Business decisions are the matter of minute which is real time therefore speed is required with accuracy.
Advantages of SAP:
1. SAP is Euro enabled. This allows the company to do business with European Countries.
2. It is real time. The information is made available immediately rather than having process information available overnight.
3. There is only one single comprehensive database. This help in flow of data in streamline and also provides management with wealth of information.
Disadvantages of SAP
1. SAP is very expensive and time consuming for implementation.
2. There is also a chance that it may need to be installed many times before everything works properly.
3. SAP imposes its own logic on the company. Sometimes gives generic solutions to complicated problems.
4. It requires a company to implement radical changes.
Question : What is SAP R/3 ?
Answer : SAP R/3 is the client/server version of the software. The “3” in R/3 stands for the three – tiered architecture. SAP R/2 is the mainframe version of the software. The “2” in R/2 stands for two-tiered mainframe architecture. There are several releases of R/3, ranging from 2.x.. In R/3 architecture
1. Presentation Server
2. Application Server
3. Database Server
SAP R/3 terminologies:
Clients : The client is the highest level in R/3 system hierarchy. Each client is self contained unit which has separate master and a complete set of tables and data. Users must enter a client key and have a user master record in the client in order to log to the screen. Clients are used to divide data in a SAP system into various data areas for various purposes. For example, if a company wants to use its SAP system for both test and training purposes a client is created for each purpose. A client is identified via a three character code. Data can be moved via transport and correction from one client to another. When logging on to the system, the user has to select a client in which he wants to work. The users can then only access data in this client.
Company Code : A company code represents an independent balancing / legal accounting entity. The smallest organization element for which a complete self contained set of accounts can be drawn up. An example would be a company within a corporate group. Balance sheet and profit & loss statements required by law can be created at the company code level. Therefore, a company code is the minimum structure necessary in R/3. In an international business, operations are often scattered across numerous countries. Since most government and tax authorities require the registration of a legal entity for every company, a separate company code is usually established per country.
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