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SAP Super User: Roles & Challenges

Updated Feb 13, 2021

If a company works on the SAP platform or plans to implement one, they require technical support. This support is provided to them by a team of skilled professionals called SAP Super Users. They are the first point-of-contact and help in the communication between the development and the implementation team.

The people in the SAP Super User Group are selected from each department by other employees. They are chosen based on their deep knowledge of business processes and user requirements. Thus, the Super Users help to make the SAP implementation process simple and effective.

So, if you are a professional looking to know more about SAP Super Users – what they do, their skillset, responsibilities, and their impact on the business – this article will help you out.

Let us get into the details.

What is SAP Super User?

SAP Super Users are a team who let you communicate easily with the implementation, management, development and other departments. This team is vital for handling project requirements throughout SAP's lifecycle.

Being an SAP Super User is tough. As they have no specific set of responsibilities, they act as the primary source of information for employees and clients. You can consider them the SAP know-it-alls! During the SAP implementation or usage process, if you need to connect with the various teams such as development and management, they are ones to reach out to.

SAP Super Users

Integration activities, project documentation, transaction, understanding a functionality, or handling a user issue – SAP Super Users will help you out. These professionals will support you during the various phases of the SAP Development Life Cycle. When a company decides to upgrade SAP, these folks provide constant suggestions for improvement.

Furthermore, SAP Super Users also perform testing and provide training to other professionals if required. That’s why they need to have a thorough understanding of all the business processes and the project that the company is working on. So, if there’s a project requirement, it has to be initially analyzed by these team members. Then, it will be released to the development team.

Thus, SAP Super Users play an active role in making the switch to SAP systems. They also have to understand the SAP solution so that they can support the end-users.

Role of SAP Super User

The primary roles and responsibilities of an SAP Super User are –

  • Filter user requests and pass on the important requirements to the concerned teams
  • Act as the primary mode of communication between the company and other stakeholders
  • Training and supporting end users. Also, monitoring their performances
  • Analyzing and understanding various business processes such as AS IS and TO BE processes
  • Determining the integration points within business modules and communicating with the team members as and when required
  • Understanding project documentation and documenting every project detail
  • Preparing project specifications and technical specification documents
  • Constant monitoring of business processes and quality assurance before service delivery
  • Providing one-on-one and classroom training to recruits about the business operations
  • Testing various business processes and identifying defects. They also report these faults to the respective teams
  • Identifying training requirements

Prerequisites to be an SAP Super User

To be an SAP Super User, the professional has to be very good at communication. He or she must be able to effectively communicate requirements to the departments. Super Users have to understand instructions from one team and implement them properly. Whatever they do, it must contribute to the company’s improvement.

Apart from strong communication skills, they also must have good interpretation skills. Understanding project requirements and processes is a continuous process. An SAP Super User needs to pick up new details about the project quickly. Then, they have to start working on them. And, find ways to improve these processes any way they can. All this enhances the company’s efficiency.

Another important prerequisite for becoming an SAP Super User is documentation skills. This is because SAP Super Users need to go through tons of project documents and functional specifications. They need to create more project documents and specifications based on these documents. Plus, they have to update user documentation and develop training documents.

Lastly, a professional can become a successful SAP Super User if he/she has SAP experience. Knowledge of the working of the SAP platform, its various functionalities, and sub-modules is important. All this will benefit the company when they choose to implement SAP for their project.

Quality and Traits of SAP Super User

An SAP Super User has to be a people person. He or she has to constantly communicate between the members of the business, development, and implementation team. They must be able to reduce the communication gap between all the teams involved in the business process.

The other quality and traits required to be an SAP Super User are:

  • Analytical mindset and problem-solving skills
  • An attitude to constantly learn new concepts and implement them efficiently
  • Patience, calmness, and the ability to handle a large workload
  • Willingness to understand the needs of other team members
  • Solid knowledge of SAP systems and their implementation
  • Troubleshooting abilities
  • Testing expertise
  • Through knowledge about the routines of various teams
  • The ability to provide information to the process owner in their desired format. They also have to update this information when required
  • They have to be self-motivated and keen to understand the reason behind each business process that is being implemented
  • Coaching skills and creating an environment of continuous improvement among the employees

Challenges faced by SAP Super User

The challenges faced by SAP Super User are:

  • Loss of Communication

The SAP Super User may face communication issues while working with multiple teams. For example, if there are language barriers between the IT project and the implementation team, discrepancies in the processes may not be rectified properly.

  • Lack of Support

Sometimes, the SAP Super User may feel a lack of support from other employees. It’s because team members may get too dependent on SAP Super Users for their tasks. So, when the Super User needs help, they might not get much.

  • Poor Training

Some employees are not properly trained about SAP platforms. They might have basic knowledge, but don’t know the user issues that might arise while implementation. These situations can get very tricky for an SAP Super User.

How to maintain your SAP Super User Network?

To maintain a proper SAP Super User network, the company’s management has to be supportive. The members of the upper management, IT staff, team leaders, team members, testers, and users all have to contribute towards the growth of the network. For this, a strong Super User model is required. The model must have the following features:

  • Technical Support
  • Proper communication between all stakeholders
  • SAP training
  • Supportive tools preferably at the front end to make the Super Users tasks simple
  • Documentation
  • Storing performance indicators, metrics, and analysis reports

Conclusion

SAP Super Users are an irreplaceable part of any company that wants to work or implement SAP systems. Some companies even rotate the roles of Super Users to distribute knowledge among others. But for a company to succeed, all employees must do their bit along with the Super Users. In the end, business growth and customer satisfaction will be guaranteed


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