AG Consultancy & Apps Ltd (AG), our committed Partner

Join us for the captivating next chapter of our interview with the esteemed partner, AG, as they graciously share with us their journey of embracing SAP Build. Learn how they leverage the power of SAP Build Process Automation and SAP Build Apps to build and publish Out-Of-The-Box SAP Apps & SAP Process Automations enabling SAP Customers to deploy high impact solutions in days. Prepare to be enlightened as Nick Champion, Co-Founder & Director of Enterprise Automation, and Rahul Kumar, Technical Solution Lead, share their inspiring insights!

SAP has recently launched Enterprise Automation with SAP; how do you perceive its importance in the context of your customers journey?

There have been a myriad of technologies and platforms which have strong potential in delivering discrete elements of the functionality that SAP Build now occupies, but there have been major gaps. Until now there has been no platform that effectively covers the core spectrum of needs around Automation and Apps/Forms & Workflow man capable enough for what are often complex processes in SAP.

The capabilities of SAP Build not only close all the gaps and now delivers in all aspects of these core areas but with the pairing of SAP Signavio and SAP Integration Suite in the overall SAP Enterprise Automation platform all of a sudden have a cohesive platform which takes all things Business Process and System Process related (SAP + Non-SAP) and offers a simply stunning opportunity for customers to gain insight, to refine, enhance and optimise like never before….. it is only when (not if) every progressive SAP using organisations starts to realise and harness the potential and go large on SAP Enterprise Automation.

AG at SAP Build Roadshow

How do you consider low code generally at AG Consultancy & Apps Ltd.?

We recognise the enormous potential for Low Code and are keen to provide support and encouragement to our clients to develop and scale up their internal capabilities via Citizen Developers, etc. In practice our clients are typically Mid-to-large sized organisations and are often already busy and look to kickstart their journey with new technologies with support from expert partners like us.

In many organisations we find that there are still areas where governance, control and responsibilities between the business and IT are not yet matured and it is not yet commonplace for Citizen Developers to carry the full burden to deliver on the potential of such a model, but it is clear that things are changing and with the proliferation of tools such as SAP Build and with the confidence of seeing pathfinder peers establish successful models  there will be an ever increasing transition to Citizen Developers to unlock the full potential of Low Code for their organisations.

A really good example of how things are evolving is a Specialist Professional Services client who engaged us to provide some SAP Build Process Automation training, coaching and support for a small group of Citizen Developers who are  driving the automation initiative within the business. The team have engaged well and there is clearly lots of potential for  the team to deliver some great results. We are working with the client to see how we can help them to accelerate the realisation of their objectives by supporting their team (ensuring they are building the teams capabilities) and simultaneously deliver more complex but high impact solutions in parallel. We envisage that this flexible hybrid approach of using internal teams supplemented by external specialists will naturally become the de facto model.

“We approached AG Consultancy & Apps for support with SAP Build to help with the development of automation using robotic processing. We found AG Consultancy & Apps to be extremely responsive and very capable of developing a working solution in a short timeframe.”  Product Portfolio Lead for Maritime Transportation Company”

How did you start with SAP Build?

We are SAP specialists and have long and unique real-world experience of developing things like intelligent Automations for our SAP Customers using a variety of technologies over the last 10 years ago, so we have a real understanding of the opportunities and challenges in the context of SAP ERP based processes.

Years ago, we were building solutions using highly intelligent Excel based forms (with VBA/Macro’s) sometimes with SharePoint and sometimes with Winshuttle in the backend (for SAP Integration) and it might sound archaic by today’s standards, but we developed some pretty amazing solutions that we are very proud of. Fast forward a few years and with RPA becoming mainstream with the ‘Big 3’ RPA Vendors we focussed on UiPath and quickly became one of the UK’s leading UiPath Gold Partners (including the elite UiPath USN Services accreditation). We were and remain, the leading SAP specialist and UiPath Partner and we developed a myriad of high impact SAP Automations using UiPath.

SAP got on the RPA bandwagon and before you know it SAP Build was born. With AG being an SAP Consultancy first, it was natural for us to pivot and focus on SAP technologies and now we are also very happily leading the line with SAP Build. The ever-deepening relationship between SAP and UiPath cements our firm view that using SAP Build supplemented with UiPath for non-SAP Automations makes perfect sense and strengthens our position as the leading SAP Automation specialists.

AG at UK ISUG

Can you share an example on how SAP Build Process Automation is helping SAP customers?

Over the years we have developed intelligent SAP Automations using a variety of technologies for Customers such as Glencore, Centrica and Venator (nee Huntsman)

We continue to support customer solutions built using legacy technologies and are transitioning our focus and our clients to adopt the next-generation SAP Build Process Automation platform.

We have recently developed and released a series of what we call AG Community Automations – which are real-world ‘Out-of-the-box SAP Automations’ and these have recently been published on the SAP Store – there are a batch of these as part of the first release with more coming through soon. Examples include processes such as: Accounts Payable (Match Parked Invoices, Payment Proposals and Exceptions, etc), Finance Month-End (e.g. Balance Sheet Reconciliation, In-Month-Clearing, etc) and Supply Chain (e.g. PO Confirmation & PO Closure, etc).

These are hot off the press and we are actively engaged with a host of clients who see the value of being able to be deployed immediately As-Is or which could be tweaked (now or later) to accommodate a clients specific wishes (usually within a couple of weeks) and these naturally offer a great opportunity to drive further value for existing SAP Build customers or to start the journey for new adopters.

These ‘Out-of-The-Box’ AG Community Automations can be deployed individually but the real benefits come when you combine and start to scale as part of a package. As an example, our entry ‘AG Automation Fast Start’ pack enables up to 3 x Community Automations to be deployed which would typically result in up to 5 x FTE savings – this is quite an impact considering the investment would typically be less than 1 x FTE costs.

“With the quality of work AG delivered, they gained our trust and the confidence to lean on AG team when needed.” – S4 program manager for Energy Company.

Can you share an example on how SAP Build Apps is helping SAP customers?

Over the years we have also developed a variety of intelligent SAP orientated Forms & Workflow solutions using various technologies for Customers such as BP, The Bodyshop & British Gas.

These solutions can be central to key business functions and often stand the test of time underpinning business processes for many years. We are helping our clients embrace some of these latest technologies and architectures to take advantage of the next generation SAP Build Process Automation platform (inc’s simplifying or aligning onto a single platform or moving to Cloud, etc)

We have currently developed a series of what we call AG Community Apps which are ‘Out-of-the-box’ SAP Form & Workflow Solutions which will be soon published on the SAP Store– these will initially be  a Work Order Deferrals App (Plan-to-Operate) and a Rentals Management App (Logistics).

These will be able to be deployed immediately As-Is or could be tweaked to accommodate a client’s specific wishes (usually within a couple of weeks) and as with our other SAP Build pre-built content offer a great opportunity to drive further value for existing SAP Build customers or to start the journey for new adopters.

Would you be interested in sharing some of your valuable experiences and significant milestones from your journey with the Next Level SAP Build program?

It was a very natural evolution for us to embrace SAP’s emerging offerings in the space of Intelligent Apps and Automations (i.e. SAP Build Suite) and I guess it was inevitable that we would start working with the core SAP BTP Team as we looked to build up our knowledge and apply these exciting technologies in practice.

We started working with Sohail, Roger (Joao) and the wider team and there was an instant and obvious synergy. When we also talked about our plans for converting some of the real-world SAP Automations into ‘Out-Of-The-Box’ marketplace type offerings then the stage was set for us to be fast-tracked as part of the pioneering Next Level program.

It has been fantastic to work closely with such an amazing team. It is not always easy pioneering and forging a path but the support from the team was exceptional and it quickly felt like there was always a way to get things done to the extent that every time you get on a call not only did you feel like you get things moving but also that you are collaborating with old friends.

I would strongly encourage others to get on board with the program and have the highest regard for the SAP who are delivering and supporting partners like AG on our journey – Thanks to all.

Watch Nick discuss their experience in the NEXT LEVEL SAP Build program with Sohail Mohammed, Senior Director of SAP BTP Partner Solution Adoption:

We extend our heartfelt appreciation to Nick and Rahul for graciously dedicating their time to partake in the interview. Their steadfast commitment to engaging customers through SAP Build solutions is genuinely commendable. We sincerely value their efforts and eagerly anticipate the opportunity to collaborate with them in the future.

▶️ Explore more about AG Capps’ SAP Build Process Automation solutions: https://www.agcapps.com/ag-sap-build-process-automation-store

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