A warning to All Canadian Banks or Financial institutes, who are/ or willing to implementing SAP Banking/parts using Accelerated SAP(ASAP) methodology.
First try to understand that there are certain important things to iron out when using Accelerated SAP(ASAP) methodology.
Yes it’s very sexy and very attractive when you read about it on internet or wiki or by sale pitch by SAP sales person.
Time frame: Don’t be dumb and buy what sale pitch is selling you about time to implement for GO LIVE. They always try to fool you with short time period to implement SAP Banking or part. If they say ONE year, ADD 3 years to it, to get actual time frame to implement SAP Banking and accordingly budget you implementation.
Try to follow your own old, well established methodology. ASAP methodology is a generic approach methodology. It will not solve all of banking problems, why, because it is NOT specifically accurate. Each and every bank and financial institute has unique aspects and implementation will be affected by the organization.
Your bank is totally different from other banks constitute. Your reasons for implementing SAP Banking are different from other bank. An ASAP work in other organization doesn’t mean it work in your bank. ASAP methodology can’t be relied on to such a degree of flexibility.
An ASAP methodology will NOT describe every necessary task, and following every details of the methodology may result in unnecessary work.
In conclusion, don’t blindly start using ASAP methodology. Put into context of your business and its need in your bank. It should be used with an understanding of the needs by adopting those aspects that supports your banking business/goals and by abandoning those do not.
The default process for Loans in arrears is supported by the dunning process in SAP system. The dunning process is based on the dunning procedures. The dunning procedure is the collection of business rules defined for each contract account depending on the product type.
Frequently in all organization the business rules are mostly same based on Numbers of Days in Arrears verses Minimum Amount due as Open item. Here, if it’s Minimum Amount due is $100 as open item for 7 days in Arrears then Dunning Level, letter and workflow generated. However in FCC the rule is 3 months versus $500 due open items. So generally business rules are same however just days and amount changes and that’s called Dunning Procedure.
The dunning procedure is the central control attribute for the dunning process flow and defines the procedure for situations where a loan is in arrears. A dunning procedure consists of individual dunning levels and it is determined by the number of days in arrears reached by the due open items.
Each dunning level contains the business rules according to the amount of days in arrears. Each dunning level will contain the set of activities and recovery measures, which could be triggered automatically by the dunning run.
Dunning levels control the dunning process flow and describe the individual processing steps of a dunning procedure. Both the individual items in a dunning letter and the dunning letter itself, which corresponds to the dunning level of the oldest open item, have a dunning level. Depending on the dunning procedure, a dunning activity can contain items with different dunning levels. The dunning level of the dunning activity is usually the highest dunning level for the items contained in the dunning notice.
In my previous post: Use Case Template i post about use case template. In this post i'm posting general SAP CML Volume Testing template:
Volume Testing
Duration and Timing: 1. The duration of the volume test strongly depends on the complexity of the tested business scenarios. 2. Planning the timetable for testing.
Test Scenarios and Requirements: For each of the core business processes, identify the relevant steps and arrange them in several test scenarios. Dependencies between the steps need to be identified and the critical success factors for the steps must be defined.
Test Scenarios: 1 2 3
SAP CML Business Processes for the Test 1. Business Partner 2. Contracts 3. Disbursements 4. Payments
Time Table: Business Process//Processing Time//Frequency Type// Single user processing time per line
Create BP //15.00-15:30//Daily//Interface, Online//800 ms Master Data Transfer//22.00-24.00 (Europe) 9.00-17.00 (CT)//Weekly//Interface//800 ms Create correspondence //07.00-19.00//Daily//Online, Background//400 ms Create invoice //22.00-01.00//2 per month//Background//150 ms Create cheque //9.00-10.00//Daily//Background//800 ms Create PAP //9.00 – 12.00//Daily//Background//600 ms
Implement Test Tools: Manual Testing or Load Generators
My Experience with SAP CML(Consumer and Mortgages Loans) ...., huuummm....
10:57 pm: My +1 year experience with SAP CML(Consumer and Mortgages Loans) , is very educative, informative, problematic and so many tives and tics.... No seriously, i learned a lot, a lot. i think its time to sit down and review what fruitful i gained or profited from SAP CML(Consumer and Mortgages Loans). i'm just bulletin down what i have gained here.
1. Banking knowledge: An Canadian Banking System knowledge, before this project, i just have some or little bit Canadian Banking knowledge. But Now i have very sound knowledge of Canadian Banking system, like Loans, Debit Payments. Now i have experienced through project work the following one of the following areas: (i) Deposits (ii) Loans (iii) Disbursement (iv) Payments
2. SAP CML Architecture: I gained good experience in SAP CML Architecture / Customizing / CML Processes, include full Loan life cycle. Hands on design, configuration, data conversion, testing and cutover experience in a range of sub modules across SAP CML.
3. Complete SAP CML implementation project cycle: I mean i have under my belt, 3 full implementation project life cycle, including CML. SAP CML implementation is my really great achievements. In SAP CML implementation i learned very minute and small things which were very important to make project success full. Integration experience with upstream source systems and downstream reporting systems.
4. Project Experience:Review application requirements, identify critical testing factors and prepare test strategies.Review SQAP (Software Quality Assurance Plan) and Test Plan documents for the BI project.Create and execute test cases and test sets using HP Quality Centre. Report defects and provide feedback to business analysts, developers, system architects and project managers.Prepare test scenarios for the integration of the BI project with other projects.Co-ordinate with QA analysts and project managers of other projects in system-wide integrated testing and application implementation.
Stop testing this; this is now, out of scope from CML.
The day was Friday, and time was about 3:00 pm. I was in very deep, in creating last test data scenarios, to test Correspondence for the new revolving and non revolving loan products for SAP CML. Friday was the deadline to me, to finished testing. After thislast executing correspondence process in CML, i am done with this task. I was little bit happy. That i was about to end my task on time. I was working on this correspondence testing from Monday @ 12 hours every day till this Friday afternoon. At that time I was verifying the payments on cash flow on loans. I just realized some shadow just near to me and it touch my shoulder, scared me, it take hell out of me!
After, scared out and regain myself. I looked at the person who scared me. He was my project manager. The first thought came to my mind, was that he must be for, status report on test Correspondence for the new revolving and non revolving loan products. And he utter, “how’s testing going?” I replied,” oooh.. It’s going smoothly and I will finish this testing after end of Friday, that’s our deadline.”
“Ok stop testing this, this is now, out of scope from CML…”
For the few seconds I was startled, I don’t have any idea what he utter, I asked him “what, what, what…” he reply, “ Yes, these product are out of scope of project”, he pause for few moments and then utter again, “ I am sorry, to inform you that what you are testing, is out of scope.”
I was staring at him, trying to find out, from my mind, what kind of emotion I should express to him. Should I express my happiness or sadness? I was totally confused with emotions. Reason for happiness was that, thank god it’s gone. It’s finished. I should be very happy; the task that was on very high priority and very complex is gone.
But my mind was thinking something else. Then my face expression changed. My face fills with sadness, rage and anger. These all take just second, to get this expression.
Now my project manager, get my silence reply. While informing about out of scope, he was smiling. But after getting my silence reply, his face was also become low.
He said, “You know, how project sponsor and project requirements changed so frequently, in these time.” My mind was thinking, something else, so I was not paying attention to his speech, but yes I was still staring to him, and nodding my head. But my mind was running somewhere else. My mind was asking questions. My mind was looking for questions to questions. My mind was searching answers to this question. And I was in deep thought to try to find questions and there answers. I am not sure when my project manager left my desk, because my mind was running for questions and answer to “out of Scope”.
Questions that striking to my mind was:
Ok, task is out of scope, but what about my time, I utilized, no I would like to put wasted? Yes what about my time I wasted on something which is now out of scope?
Isn’t project sponsors and project staked holders should take this decision, before Monday? Or mid of week?
Isn’t project manager should, wait for the project sponsors decisions, before telling me to go and test the task?
Why its take so long to make decisions, it’s that kind of decisions should be finalized in Project Scope?
Why there is communication gap between project manager and project sponsors about business?
Isn’t it shows, there is blur planning?
Isn’t it project manger are just messenger? They don’t have to make decisions?
Isn’t it shows poor management skill from all level?
Isn’t it, it’s a waste of resources?
Isn’t it, it’s a waste of time and money?
My mind was yelling WHY? WHY? WHY?
While my mind looking for answers. My outlook emails make dang sound, I open emails. There were two unread emails. Both emails from project manager. One was about broadcast of “Out of scope” to all team members. Second one for me. He want to talk to me.
I gulped few drop of water and with in few minutes I was in front of him. He said “as you know that, this is out of scope, so I have rescheduled your task.” He animated, “now you don’t have much to do till Monday. Let’s see if we found some job for you on Monday, or we are thinking to move to other project.”
Huum, I just nod head, and said, “Ok.”
Came to my desk, do some leftover jobs, and it’s already 6:00 pm. And I end the week with this surprise. So let’s see what will happen on Monday!!
