New Version of SAP BusinessObjects GRC Launches
Is SAP’s new GRC release 10.0 really the most comprehensive GRC suite in the market? I heard this marketing phrase thrown around at SAP and wanted to know if there is validation behind this claim.
Jim Dunham, the solution manager for SAP BusinessObjects GRC solutions, gave me the download about the new version. And in fact there are a lot of enhancements. More importantly the solution brings together three critical components of managing risk and compliance:
- Manages compliance
- Monitors the enterprise
- Gathers the data from 1 and 2 for analysis
From the backend customers of the SAP BusinessObjects GRC system hook into other systems a customer might run, as well as SAP systems this is possible via an OEM link
This seems pretty comprehensive to me and these are only the highlights. I am not an expert in risk and compliance; I’m adverse to risk and tend to be conservative (especially when it comes to money)! So what I found interesting about the new 10.0 release was “bow-tie builder,” a drag and drop tool. What a perfect name! Jim explained that this is a feature that risk managers can use to explain the steps they have taken to mitigate risk to the line of business. Check out the demo Jim gave me of the bow-tie builder.
SAP has enhanced over 20 areas of its GRC version 10.0 where there are updates in the individual solution areas: Access Control, Global Trade Service, Risk Management and Process Control. Here is a summary of the enhancements:
- The solution now has a common look and feel that is easier to navigate and easier for customers to train their organization.
- SAP Business Intelligence is embedded into SAP BusinessObjects GRC for visualization of compliance across the enterprise.
- Through the SAP Ecohub, customers can pull content provided from partners to let the customers tailor the solution for their specific industry needs.
- The bow-tie builder gives the risk manager a graphically pleasing visual tool that is easy to display.
I wanted to know how many customers are moving to version 10.0 and Jim did not hesitate to answer that over 50 customers are already ramping up. Right now only existing SAP customers can get the new version, but come June the version will be generally available.
Three SAP customers claim that because of only one new feature they will upgrade to version 10.0. I will follow-up to this blog with some of the customers he mentioned. They will upgrade because of the cost saving from efficiency gains made to the upgrades of SAP BusinessObject Access Control solution.
Here is what sold them. Within SAP Access Control there is a component called super user privilege manager, AKA Firefighter (another creative name!). Rules are set-up in the system to protect a company of risk, i.e. segregation of duties. If a company needs to change the rules because of an issue or emergency they now can, but only through a monitoring capability, allowing the company to watch any changes being made. This created a lot of log of changes, which takes a lot of time for an organization to review. With version 10.0 this log is now segment- able and can be made into a workflow for distribution to the organization for assistance in resolving the issue. This will save companies tons of time and money in tracking all changes made to rules.
In my opinion, the new version does create a comprehensive GRC suite that addresses a lot of the demands from SAP’s customers.
What do you think? Is this the most comprehensive GRC solution in the market?
SAP launched the SAP BusinessObjects GRC new release today.
