IT is playing a major role in turning business strategy into execution. You are tasked with enhancing efficiency, while enabling innovation and strategy execution quickly.

According to AMR Research, "[most] CIOs are actively working to reduce the diversity in their application portfolios, forcing the business to standardise on a very small set of application vendors. Although some may complain that these policies limit innovation, they do promote stability and reliability, as well as reduce the cost of IT and business operations."*

With software and services from SAP and our partners, companies are:

• Increasing efficiency via consolidated IT environments and improved execution of critical business processes
• Consolidating, harmonising, and managing enterprise data across systems
• Implementing IT governance for improved visibility and business alignment
• Strengthening enterprise governance to ensure compliance, maintain security, and manage risk

Increase Efficiency Through IT Consolidation

With SAP NetWeaver and SAP services for system landscape optimisation, you can consolidate your IT environment and improve the operational efficiency of best-in-class business processes. You can run applications enabled by service-oriented architecture – such as SAP Business Suite or SAP-certified partner solutions – on a standards-based, open platform. Furthermore, through enhancement packages delivered by SAP, you can continuously consume SAP innovations while minimising disruption to ongoing business operations.

Consolidate, Harmonise, and Manage Enterprise Data

SAP BusinessObjects Enterprise Information Management (EIM) solutions, combined with SAP NetWeaver Master Data Management (MDM), help you to consolidate, harmonise, and integrate data from any sources to improve business insight – enabling better decision making. Furthermore, solutions from SAP and our partners help you manage your information life cycle, including effective management of legacy data and system redundancy.

Improve Visibility and Ensure Business Alignment

With SAP Strategy Management, you can define, communicate, and implement your strategy, while ensuring alignment with business needs. SAP Business Planning and Consolidation can help you better plan and budget resource requirements, so that your IT expenses are aligned with business demand.

You can use the profitability and cost management function within SAP BusinessObjects enterprise performance management solutions to accurately manage costs and cross-charge IT services. SAP Spend Analytics also enables improved monitoring and controlling of IT spending to achieve better value for money spent.

Ensure Compliance, Maintain Security, and Manage Risk

SAP and our partners can help you establish policies that ensure IT governance, deliver insight, and improve performance. Once policies are defined, you can track and manage risk and monitor key controls for business processes with SAP BusinessObjects governance, risk, and compliance solutions. In addition, SAP NetWeaver Identity Management helps you manage permissions across heterogeneous systems based on user role, simplifying administration and preventing unplanned access. Supported by SAP Services, it helps you to achieve effective governance, manage risk, and meet regulatory compliance requirements quickly.

*Safety First: The Future of Enterprise Applications," AMR Research, Jim Shepherd, 2006.