How do you build an ROI case for SAP change impact analysis?

Build it from five numbers taken from your own systems rather than a vendor's ROI slide. They are the full cost of one regression cycle including functional analyst time, the number of cycles per year from transport import history, your real change rate, a defensible reduction figure and the cost of one escaped defect. The video explains where each number lives and who to ask for it.

Why shouldn't you rely on vendor ROI numbers for SAP testing tools?

A vendor's ROI figure was calculated against someone else's program, so it rarely matches your release cadence, change rate or defect costs. Once one soft number is challenged in a steering meeting, every other number gets a second look. A case built on your own regression spend, transport history and escaped-defect costs is one you can still defend six months later.

Your ROI Slide Is Wrong and This Is How to Fix It

Key Takeaways

01
Vendor ROI numbers are calculated against someone else's program and rarely survive scrutiny, so build your own model with your own data.
02
The cost of one regression cycle should include functional analyst time, which books to business cost centers and never appears on IT timesheet exports.
03
Pull cycles per year from actual transport import history rather than memory, and count emergency imports separately since they trigger partial regressions.
04
The time it takes your team to answer which test cases a transport touched is itself a measurement of why regression scope never shrinks.
05
The price of one escaped defect is usually the largest line item in the model and often closes the business case on its own.

Your ROI Slide Is Wrong and This is How to Fix it: transcript and chapter notes

Every software vendor will give you an ROI number. I sell software and I have handed out plenty. In this video I explain why you should throw those numbers out, including ours, and build your own instead. This video applies specifically to SAP Change Impact Analysis but the concept is applied across all software ROI metrics.

The blog linked below lays out the full model. This video adds some additional context, which is where each number physically lives, who to ask for it, and how long it should take to pull.

The five numbers we cover:

The cost of one regression cycle, including the functional analyst time that never shows up on IT timesheet exports
Cycles per year, pulled from your actual transport import history rather than anyone's memory
Your real change rate, and why the time it takes to answer that question is itself a finding
A defensible reduction figure you can stand behind six months later
The price of one escaped defect, which is usually the largest line item and the one that wins the case

If you run the annual regression spend calculation and it is not the first time you have ever seen that number, I owe you lunch. Fill out the contact form and tell me.

Read the full model here: https://www.merito.com/resources/blogs/your-sap-change-impact-business-case-needs-five-numbers-and-none-of-them-come-from-a-vendor

Want a second set of eyes on your numbers or help building your ROI deck? Bring your release cadence and your last regression cost and we will work through it with you. https://www.merito.com/book-consultation

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Frequently Asked Questions

Your ROI Slide Is Wrong and This is How to Fix it: questions and answers

It is the full cost of one realistic defect that reaches production: business interruption, rework to diagnose, fix, retest and retransport, hypercare staffing after the release, schedule penalties and audit exposure. The video treats it as usually the largest line item in an SAP change impact business case and often the one that wins it, so price a failure your team remembers instead of a hypothetical one.

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