Copyright West Trax International December 2013

Process Mining in SAP systems

Managers In organisations using SAP® often complain about the lack of alignment between the business and their IT systems. Often, due to changes in the business environment, systems cannot be effectively used as originally planned and implemented. As a consequence users develop workarounds, often on an ad-hoc basis.

This results in the development of a "shadow IT" environment within companies with a variety of associated disadvantages. Process steps are executed in desktop applications such as Microsoft Excel or Microsoft Access. Data is frequently transferred back and forth manually between desktop applications and the SAP® systems by the users. The resulting inefficiencies in the business processes are often not transparent to the management. The impact may only become apparent when financial results are worse than expected or when surveys indicate a surprisingly high level of employee dissatisfaction.

Process Mining makes the processes which are actually used in SAP® systems visible. It creates the basis for management to identify inefficiencies and risks in business processes and selectively initiate changes. In addition to continually optimising business processes to reduce costs, process mining can also be used to verify compliance with legal, data protection, organisational and regulatory requirements, e.g. Basel II or Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX).

Process Mining: How does it work?

SAP® systems store details of the transactions processed during business process execution. The process steps actually executed are recorded and additional information about particular transactions can be applied. As a result, each execution of a transaction leaves a trace in the SAP® system from which variations and processing frequencies can be reconstructed. The variations reflect the slightly different versions of a business process employed by individual users with different working styles and habits.

The reconstruction of processes carried out by process mining is conducted entirely without questionnaires, interviews or workshops because these methods often lead to incomplete information influenced by the perspectives of the people surveyed or interviewed.

Process mining is not limited to SAP® systems. It can be applied to all IT systems that support business processes and monitor the progress of processing. Algorithms are generally used in order to reconstruct the processes, the majority of which originate from system history and so are ultimately statistical algorithms and procedures.

In the event that Process Mining is only applied to SAP® systems, more specific and more efficient statistical algorithms can be used. Standard process models of SAP® systems are already supplied. this information simplifies and speeds up Process Mining. West Trax experts take advantage of this when performing Process Mining for SAP® systems.

Method of process mining

In process mining, there are three different groups of methods:

1. Recognition of processes,

2. Assessment of conformity of requirements and process models to process flows,

3. Correction and extension of existing process models.

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Recognition of processes

Methods for detecting (Process Discovery) provide an objective insight into the processes through automated reconstruction of processes from SAP® system data.

Process models do not need to be manually created. Thus, process models can be created faster and more accurately reflect the actual processes. The process models generated by process mining are based solely on the evidence from the SAP® systems and not on estimates made by users.

Assessment of conformity to requirements and process models against processes

With the process mining compliance procedures, specifications can be checked in the form of rules or manually created process models, as can the extent to which processes actually comply with the requirements in the SAP® systems. Deviations can be highlighted visually, the match between requirements and the actual processes (Fitness) can be determined using specific indicators. Process mining thus effectively supports compliance audits, internal audits and amendments.

Correction and extension of existing process models

The process mining method can be used to enhance existing manually or automatically created process models or correct and optimise process models based on the information gained from the actual processes.

West Trax Process Mining

West Trax Process Mining for SAP® systems supports all three process mining techniques and is available in offline and online versions.

Offline version: In the offline variant the SAP® customer uses instructions provided by West Trax to extract data form the system where process mining is to be performed and transmits it to West Trax. West Trax prepares links and loads the data into an application which shows the processes with process steps and different variants in graphical and tabular form. A prepared and extendable business management performance measurement system is implemented in the application. This can be used at various points to determine standard values, perform as acquired NOMINAL values, SET / ACTUAL comparisons, what-if analyses make projections and much more in the extracted processes. The user can create rules with the application to carry out compliance audits. The extracted model can be fully or partially exported into other applications such as B. ARIS or SAP® Solution Manager and can be used there for expansion or correction of existing process models.

Online version: The online version provides the same functionality as the offline version but the application is delivered as a cockpit. This connects online with the SAP® system and automatically performs the extraction of the process data from the system. The online version can process metrics in real time to continuously evaluate and perform compliance tests. Should compliance rules be violated, this information can be sent to the appropriate staff in the company.

Following a brief implementation period of three to four weeks both versions immediately provide insights into the actual events experienced in an organisation’s business processes and identify existing vulnerabilities and risks. By using West Trax Process Mining, targeted improvement measures can be

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rapidly initiated to generate valuable business benefits.

West Trax Process Mining at Deutsche Post DHL

A special variant of West Trax Process Mining (West Trax HCM Analyser) has been used successfully in a project for Deutsche Post DHL’s SAP® HCM systems.

Norbert Achterwinter, Deutsche Post DHL, Head of Department - HR Services Solution Design, comments:

"West Trax used its HCM Analyser to analyse two important HR processes (Hiring and Exits). The results made optimisation possibilities transparent in our high-volume business in terms of process implementation. West Trax provided quantitative facts about the business case calculation, based on data from the last three years. As a next step, the process owner must now decide how to translate the potential identified into concrete process improvements and process optimisation. Due to the quality of these analysis results we are convinced that we have the knowledge to implement significant simplification and improvements to the processes."