Benefits of SAP GRC Upgrade to v10.1 Before Support Ends for GRC 5.3 (Part Two)
This is the second in a two-part NTT DATA Business Solutions blog series exploring the benefits of an SAP GRC Upgrade. In Part One, we discussed the new features and enhancements in GRC 10.1. In Part Two, we will examine the new workflow platform included in GRC 10.1 and factors to consider during migration.
Benefits of GRC Upgrade – The New GRC Workflow
GRC 10.1 brings a new workflow platform called MSMP – Multi Stage Multi Path workflow platform. This is a WYSIWYG tool where you can easily change some of the functionalities in GRC Workflow without having to call your ABAP programmer. In the 5.3 version, the workflow engine was built in the Java platform and the customization involved heavy Java programming. The benefit of using the GRC 10.1 system is to leverage the ABAP programmers in modifying the rules if necessary as they are all built using the SAP Function modules. Considering the fact that the workflow engine has now changed to MSMP and Business Rules Framework (BRF) instead of the GRC Java workflow engine in the past, there is a real automation process in the new version of GRC. Therefore, you will need to rebuild your GRC workflows and consider building BRF rules to match your triggering events.
More considerations for conducting a GRC Upgrade:
This is the section of the blog where you really need to pay attention. The process of migration from 5.3 to 10.1 is done using a migration program delivered by SAP. The first thing to consider would be to refer the migration guide which explains in detail the various steps in the process of migration. The steps shown in the document are clear and in my opinion well explained. The tool explains what data can be moved and what data cannot. This is helpful to know as you can be better prepared during migration.
Take note of the mitigation controls. This is an object that cannot be migrated to the 10.1 system. Mitigating Controls as we all know requires an organization unit assignment and this Organization Unit is defined using standard SAP HR Organization Unit in the 10.1 version. In the 5.3 version SAP HR objects were not used. During the process, I recommend you download the mitigating controls and use the mass import tool to import all the mitigating controls to the 10.1 system.
The nice thing is that both 5.3 and 10.1 can co-exist with each other, which means that during your project you can have both running side by side. Before the migration process is started it is important to download the master data from the 5.3 system and conduct a completeness and accuracy check. Only then it is recommended to move the master data using the migration tool. Do not move the transaction data but consider holding the Request ID’s as a backup for any future audits if necessary.
Migration from 10.0 to 10.1
Migration from 5.3 to 10.1 is very different from migrating your GRC system from 10.0 to 10.1. The transition to 10.1 from 10.0 is a technical upgrade and does not involve any migration tool to move objects from one system to another just like in 5.3. The functional upgrade process followed in the 5.3 version does not apply here and it is more or less a technical upgrade. The 10.1 from 10.0 upgrade is very similar to applying a support package in a bigger version. Some of the things to consider during this upgrade process is involving the basis team and the security team and co-ordinate their efforts for a successful migration to 10.1. Take note of the plugin versions in your backend system as this will be important to consider during the migration process. As mentioned above this is a technical upgrade and there will be no need to do any data migration from one database to another. It is important to consider a thorough testing process.
To conclude this long blog post, now is the time for your GRC upgrade to the latest 10.1 version not only because you have to do it as your maintenance support ends in Dec 2015, but also to make use of the new features of the latest GRC 10.1 system.