SAP Helpdesk to User: I know what you did in the last transaction

So the next generation software will improve the user-experience and also change the roles of users and developers. But how? Read the in-depth analysis of 3G Software by Shai Agassi. A part of Shai's post is quoted here:

• In that sense the users are going from Data Entry to Exception handling and co-authoring
• Systems are going from Aggregation to harmonization and more importantly Automation
• As structure is added into information, its ability to route intelligently increases by orders of magnitude, hence the value-add of data moves away from the store and into "right-time routing"
• forcing developers to go from transactional programming to Event centric resolution

I just thought of at least one area of improvement. The scenario is something like as described below:

A SAP user is creating an order on his transformed SAP system and encounters an error. He is now thinking about informing his SAP Helpdesk and about the interrogation process that he has to go through. Just when he has started writing about the details about simulating the error with the screen-shots/input data and actions, he receives a call/email from his SAP Helpdesk.

Don't worry son, I know you are facing a problem and I know exactly what you did in the last transaction. Relax we'll take care of it.

Well that's an exaggeration probably. But is it not an area of improvement for SAP? When my internet explorer crashes ( which is does every now and then ), I at least get that moral support pop-up from Microsoft Windows which begs me to send the information online with a click of button. As if they are going to solve the issue and it will never happen again.

Can we have something like this in SAP? So if a user is facing an error and wants to contact SAP Helpdesk, all he needs to do is to run the transaction with the tracker on and then send the information to SAP Helpdesk. With a click of button. All the related information regarding input required for error simulation, dump, error, authorization failure, user default settings, user-gui settings [ SAPGui ]/IE settings [ for Web-Gui ], navigation-path etc. will be send to the SAP Helpdesk with the in-built mechanism.

For SAPGui transactions, it sounds like sending the BDCDATA table of the recorded transaction through a workflow-task-method, which can be run by the SAP Helpdesk.
Almost similar to eCATT functionality but needs to be embedded within the transaction.

For web-gui transactions, navigation-path, click tracking, form-data....does not it sound like Sitemeter or MyBlogLog?

Also, the information can be recorded in two ways. One is to show the demo of screens, input and navigation sequence. More of a static representation of the flow like the flash-demo we see on websites.

Second one can be a guided procedure to actually run the transaction with the same set of data and navigation sequence.

Some of these click-tracking and navigation information can easily be recorded using the JavaScript in a same way that we do for our blogs and sites.

However, a refined framework will be required to completely build this mechanism. I think with the MVC architecture of BSPs and WebDynpro, it will not be too difficult to build the event driven data-collector for recording the input-data and screen change [ navigation ] etc.

Basically, the idea is that user will click on the "Start Tracking" button at the beginning of the transaction and then...when he encounters the error he gets a moral-support-pop-up.

What do you think?

Shai Agassi's 3-Axis of Innovation

Just for Fun, nothing serious here:-)
Read the Blog Post from Shai Agassi The Missing Sapphire Presentation

Ahead of the Time or Just in Time?

Shai Agassi wrote in his post 'Does ERP Matter?'.

Around that ERP Platform, many other products from the vendor and the partners can be loosely plugged and the overall system can stay compliant – as long as all products are adhering to a single eco-system set of rules. That is the vision of Enterprise SOA, and SAP is a few years ahead of the industry on the delivery of such vision.

May be I am just thinking loud.
But is it possible that in some cases being ahead of the time might actually act as a negative factor?

Do you think that the concept of 'Just in Time' can be considered even for these kind of disruptive changes. Traditionally, it is believed that being ahead of the time should be the key to success as you can have the leader’s advantage.

Should a company adapt a strategy of making changes when the environment is more receptive to that change? When the existing processes and the technology are being considered almost obsolete and a better alternative is welcomed universally. May be a situation that can be termed as JIT. Off course, someone has to work towards changing the environment to make it more receptive before the actual change can arrive. Also it is difficult to judge the timing correctly.

Which one should be considered better?
Right change at the right time or
Right change but ahead of the time.

Or Do you think that 'Ahead of the Time' is actually the 'Right Time'? :-)
I think it probably is..

Shai's Blog: Does ERP Matter?

Good news is that Shai has started his own Blog. A start-up will follow soon ;-)
Read Shai Agassi's post - Does ERP Matter?

When they ask a question of this nature e.g. ‘Does ERP Matter?’. [or Does IT Matter? for that matter]. Are they really doubting the role of ERP/IT infrastructure and thinking as if ‘ERP may not Matter'? [ And SAP/Oracle were running the biggest scam for all these years ;-) ]

I think it just indicates a thought towards, 'Is ERP a differentiator'? Or is it something that can be taken for-granted like the Earth and then differentiations will be coming through the ‘Satellite’ packages built on the ERP infrastructure but not exactly a part of it. In effect, the ERP infrastructure will provide a backend for innovation but the result of the innovation may seem to be a complete entity in itself.

However, as per the analogy, in most of the cases, it will still need the integration [attraction] of the Earth [ ERP ] to keep these ‘satellites of innovation’ moving.

UPDATED:
See Shai's response post :'What is ERP?'.

There is no doubt that ERP, which was a key differentiator for companies 10 years ago has become more context for some of the companies today, and for those who had bad implementations, even worse a costly commoditized set of processes (and if they picked a non-SAP product, a costly legacy set of processes).

Shai Agassi and his passion for SOA/ESA