Indirect access has been a source of fear, uncertainty, and doubt in the SAP ecosystem for years. It refers to any scenario where a non-SAP system accesses data in an SAP ERP system. For a long time, SAP’s official position was that any such access required a Named User license, a position that led to a number of high-profile lawsuits, most notably the one against the beverage giant Diageo.
In 2018, in an effort to clarify its position and provide a more predictable licensing model, SAP introduced the Digital Access model. This model moves away from licensing individual users and instead focuses on the volume of documents created by external systems.
The Nine Document Types
Under the Digital Access model, all indirect access is licensed based on the number of documents created annually across nine specific document types. These nine document types are:
- Sales Documents: Sales orders, quotations, and contracts.
- Invoice Documents: Invoices, credit memos, and debit memos.
- Purchase Documents: Purchase orders and scheduling agreements.
- Manufacturing Documents: Production orders and process orders.
- Material Documents: Goods receipts, goods issues, and material movements.
- Quality Management Documents: Quality notifications and inspection lots.
- Service and Maintenance Documents: Service orders and maintenance orders.
- Financial Documents: Journal entries and other financial postings.
- HR Documents: Documents related to personnel administration and payroll.
Each of these document types has a specific multiplier that is used to calculate the total number of “Digital Access documents” you consume. For example, a sales order might count as one document, while a financial document might count as 0.2 documents. The list price for Digital Access is around $0.80 per document, but this is highly negotiable.
The Digital Access Adoption Program (DAAP)
To help customers transition to the new model, SAP introduced the Digital Access Adoption Program (DAAP). The DAAP offers a two-part incentive for customers to adopt the Digital Access model:
- Financial Incentive: For a limited time, customers can choose to license Digital Access based on either the number of documents they create or a percentage of the license value of their existing user portfolio. This allows customers to cap their financial exposure during the transition.
- Audit Forbearance: As long as a customer is participating in the DAAP, SAP will not pursue them for past, unpaid indirect access license fees.
The DAAP has been a popular program, but it’s not a silver bullet. To participate, you need to have a clear understanding of your current indirect access landscape, which can be a major undertaking.
The Challenge of Measuring Digital Access
The biggest challenge with the Digital Access model is measurement. Most organizations have no idea how many documents their non-SAP systems are creating in their SAP ERP system. To figure this out, you need to conduct a thorough analysis of all your third-party integrations. This can be a complex and time-consuming process, but it’s a necessary one.
SAP provides a tool called the “SAP Passport” to help you measure your document consumption, but it’s not a perfect solution. The tool can be difficult to use, and it doesn’t always provide a complete picture of your indirect access landscape. Many organizations turn to third-party tools and services to help them get a more accurate measurement.
Optimizing Your Digital Access Costs
Once you have a clear understanding of your document consumption, you can start to optimize your Digital Access costs:
- Negotiate your document price: The list price of $0.80 per document is just a starting point. If you have a high volume of documents, you should be able to negotiate a significant discount.
- Review your integrations: Are all of your third-party integrations necessary? Can you consolidate or eliminate any of them to reduce your document consumption?
- Explore alternative architectures: In some cases, you may be able to re-architect your integrations to reduce the number of documents they create. For example, you might be able to batch multiple transactions into a single document.
Digital Access is a complex and often confusing topic, but it’s one that every SAP customer needs to understand. By proactively measuring your consumption, participating in the DAAP, and negotiating a favorable contract, you can minimize your financial risk and ensure that you are in compliance with SAP’s licensing policies.