It’s no easy task to provide and manage an organization’s information securely—making it easily accessible, meaningful, accurate, and timely—and to do it at the enterprise level. But for enterprise information management (EIM) professionals, it’s just another day in the life.
Now, more than ever, information is key to drive a successful business. EIM professionals are the ones responsible for informing decision-making processes and day-to-day operations from a companywide perspective. They need to look at the complete picture and consider everything from data governance and management, to digital transformations and emerging technologies.
If this is your profession, then the ASUG Experience for Enterprise Information Management (EIM), held in Minneapolis Oct. 28–30, is your conference. You’ll have the opportunity to learn from industry experts how to leverage SAP solutions, and you’ll also learn from peers how to apply best practices to similar challenges.
Knowing the Enterprise Information Management (EIM) Challenges
According to ASUG research, some of the top EIM challenges include connectivity and data governance. Only 4% of companies feel they are operating at optimal levels of connectivity and information flow. Attendees of this year’s conference can learn how to deal with both challenges with sessions such as, “SAP Data Hub: A Deep Dive on How to Manage and Integrate Complex Data Landscapes.”
In this session, Lynne Lintelman, product manager, enterprise information management at SAP will explain SAP Data Hub and cover everything related to data management including integration, quality, governance, preparation, as well as complex data processing with machine learning. This hands-on session will allow attendees to try the solution and experience some exercises.
Last year, nearly a quarter of all respondents of an ASUG EIM study either had no corporate document strategy or didn’t know if one existed at their company. That’s a shock considering that data is a company’s most important asset and touches every function within an organization, especially in the digital era. “I think these sessions offer attendees the opportunity to talk to SAP experts to learn about where the product is going, as well as what new features and functionalities are in the solution that they currently own or may be looking at owning,” Lintelman said.
The Round Up for the Show Down
This year, sessions are focused around data governance, data management, digital transformation with SAP S/4HANA, and emerging technologies. In addition to hearing from industry experts, attendees will learn from other SAP customers from industries such as utilities, consumer products, and wholesale distribution, just to name a few.
“There is a lot of opportunity for networking,” Lintelman said. “But more than that, attendees get to talk to other customers and SAP experts and can figure out how best to approach a problem, implementation, or migration that they are planning themselves. It’s great to hear how other customers are solving challenges. Sometimes they’ll hear something that they may not have thought of yet or that they may have thought of and just haven't gotten around to putting at the top of their list to start addressing.”
There will be three days of learning and networking opportunities, including an ASUG Women Connect panel, interactive workshops, peer-to-peer roundtables, and seminar-style sessions. ASUG member and Data Services and Governance Manager for A.O. Smith Mike Dees will deliver a keynote presentation on his company’s journey to SAP S/4HANA.
EIM on the SAP S/4HANA Path
A.O. Smith is currently in the planning stage of adopting SAP S/4HANA, but wants to first have a strategy in place with lessons learned during its SAP ECC migration before tackling a move to SAP S/4HANA.
“We have put our business intelligence and business warehousing on SAP HANA,” Dees said. “But until we get a handle on our data management, we’ve held back with going forward with a move to SAP S/4HANA.” During his keynote, Dees will discuss the organization’s strategy for establishing a set of data quality rules to govern data, as well as an automated process to clean vendor, customer, and materials master data records.
In addition to Dees’ keynote, there will be a few sessions focused on SAP S/4HANA including, “How to Avoid the Potholes You May Encounter on Your Journey to SAP S/4HANA,” and “AGC Looks Ahead: Mitigating Risks for Your SAP S/4HANA Data Migration."
Managing Your Experience
This conference is designed for the frontline managers and their teams who are responsible for getting things done. It will bring together more than 100 companies from a range of industries. There will be more than 25 sessions to pick from, as well as several networking opportunities to connect with peers and experts alike.
“I like hearing other people’s approaches to things,” Dees said. “You don’t know what you don’t know, and you don’t know what’s possible until you learn more information.” There will be plenty of information about information itself, so make sure to plan your time and take away some practical tips along the way. “If you’re going with a colleague, spread out and attend different sessions,” Dees added. “Don’t be afraid to branch out into new areas. Just because it’s not in your wheelhouse now doesn’t mean it won’t be later.”
Each session will offer something different, whether you’ll hear about lessons learned, learn about product road maps, or discover best practices. “Be a sponge,” Lintelman said. “Network, introduce yourself, and reach out to people afterward.”
Register for the ASUG Experience for Enterprise Information Management (EIM) Oct. 28–30 in Minneapolis to learn from peers how to manage your data and meet business goals.