Nowadays, cloud solutions are the best way of generating a unified global HR framework across the different local offices of all kinds of international players. Here, a common cloud platform, like Employee Central (EC), with global reporting, analytics and a uniform user experience ensures an overall standard in the quality of information processing. Also, distance and periphery situation is not an obstacle anymore for any of the local offices to keep the pace of the entire firm regarding the issues previously mentioned. All what is needed is a good connection and your everyday computer or mobile device, minimizing costs in hardware capacities and maintenance inside the organization. In this way and in many others, cloud means value to your company.
If we agree that cloud products are the best solution for a unified international HR system, being international also means to maintain compliance according to all the local demands around the globe. Here, Globalization Services (GS) is the organization that makes the difference regarding global necessities in the right local context. It has 120 people with local market know-how located in over 40 countries and another 1300 people work on globalization topics.
On the development side, SAP is interested to deliver a tailor-fit solution to their customers. Hence, as of February 2014, EC has been localized for 68 countries, EC Payroll for 27 countries. Localization here is more than master data, language or format adaptations. GS interest also goes on the user experience area, rethinking the input process and making it comfortable for users with different languages and cultural backgrounds.
On the maintenance side, the increasing number and the complexity regarding legal changes requires a constant adaptation and support of the HR solutions. If a major legal change comes up somewhere in a (possibly remote) country, companies must adapt to this legal change, else you will face penalties that will lead to problems with the government, workers and other stakeholders. These problems can cost not only lots of money, but also important image damage. Here, Globalization Services delivers approx. 1500 legal changes per year, 600 in the HR sector, making of GS a key and trusted partner for this ever-changing legal environment. Either if it is a legal change on short notice or if the change is too complex, local product managers are in close-contact with local legislators and local legal advisors.
Like Paul D. Hamerman, Analyst at Forrester Research, said: Localization is something that SAP has in its DNA. Globalization Services is a proof of it, leveraging value for companies in a world, where internationality is not an option, but a necessity for firms that want to play a role in their environment. The cloud business enables a more adequate solution in a global context, making GS more relevant than ever.
