User Experience is the overall experience of a person interacting with a product or service, especially in terms of how easy or pleasing it is to use.
The way people work, consume content, and experience technology to get things done is changing at a rapid pace and consumer-focused companies (Amazon, eBay, Twitter, Facebook) have redefined the standard requirements for usability in an era where technological interaction is now a frequent, daily norm for many of us.
Enterprise software performs most core business functions very well. It provides a company, visibility into inventories, manages customer order flow, automates corporate bookkeeping and financial reporting, and it keeps supply chain operations running smoothly. But enterprise software gets a bad reputation for not being particularly user-friendly. Densely packed interfaces, non-intuitive workflows, and the need for users to navigate endless screens to complete transactions result in confusion and frustration.
The first requirement for an exemplary user experience is to meet the exact needs of the customer. Next comes simplicity and elegance that a product or service interaction produces that are a joy to own, a joy to use. True user experience goes far beyond giving customers what they say they want or providing checklist features. Inherited from the consumer apps experience following are few expectations of end-users from enterprise software –
- Make simple things simple
- Don’t get in my way
- Don’t waste my time
- Know what I am doing
- Allow personalization
Some companies dismiss the value proposition of giving users the same intuitive experience with enterprise software that they enjoy with consumer applications. In the software experience vs. function debate, these companies give more preference to ‘function’.
SAP is a leader in enterprise technology has recently placed itself at the forefront as there is a growing expectation and demand in the workplace for consumer-friendly experiences when using technology to accomplish tasks.
SAP is using NEW – RENEW – ENABLE strategy to deliver a consumer-grade user experience to their enterprise software
NEW: With this part, SAP is designing all-new enterprise solutions with consumer-grade user experience. A few examples are – SAP Cloud for Sales, SAP Cloud for Customer, SAP customer financial fact sheet, Visual business, etc.
Tools & Technologies: Fiori, Netweaver business client, Floor plan manager, etc…
RENEW: Philosophy here is to ‘Renew most widely used top scenarios with consumer-grade user experience’ by following design principles
Role-Based: A task-based experience
Responsive: All sizes, devices
Simple: 1 user, 1 use case, 3 screens
Coherent: Apps that speaks the same language
Instant Value: Low barrier to adoption
Tools & Technologies: Fiori, Netweaver business client, Side Panel, Floor Plan Manager, etc…
ENABLE: To address customer-specific needs, SAP provides a set of tools and technologies that enables customers and partners to quickly simplify and enhance the overall UX of existing solutions to improve specific value scenarios.
Tools & Technologies: SAP Screen Personas, SAPUI5 application development tools, Theme designer, Floor plan manager, NWBC & Side panel
To fully benefit from SAP’s UX strategy, each customer should also create their own UX strategy considering their business and IT goals as well as what SAP is doing today and future roadmaps. Bringing in experienced and skilled designers who understand the need for specific use cases and apply the right set of tools and technologies to deliver the expected user experience is the key. The ultimate expression of increased sensibility towards user experience in enterprise software is to realize the UX value propositions and develop an internal UX center of excellence
GBSI UX Team
Write us at contactus@geniusbsi.com to learn more about our UX services. Genius Business Solutions is an ERP Consulting firm headquartered at Moline -Quad Cities, Illinois with clients based throughout the United States and India. Call us now to achieve the most ROI out of your SAP ERP investments. With over 12 years of industry experience and certified industry experts with software and business knowledge, we can help run your business efficiently by optimizing your ERP system and re-engineering your business processes to achieve unprecedented business results.
