Man presenting SAP S/4HANA transformation roadmap to colleagues in conference room

Insight Arc | SAP, Enterprise Architecture & Supply Chain Strategy

How TOGAF® Stakeholder Management Technique Drives Successful SAP S/4HANA Implementations for Enterprise Architects

1. What Is the Stakeholder Management Technique in TOGAF?

Definition
In TOGAF®, stakeholder management is defined as a set of processes and techniques used to identify individuals and organizations with an interest in an architecture (EA) initiative, understand their concerns and level of influence, and engage them continuously throughout the project lifecycle.
TOGAF® recommends applying this technique first in ADM Phase A (Architecture Vision) to identify key stakeholders, and then refining and using it iteratively across subsequent phases.

Purpose
The primary goal is to identify high‑influence stakeholders early, secure their sponsorship, and increase the chances of success for the architecture initiative.
It also aims to capture stakeholder concerns and requirements and reflect them in architecture views, deliverables, and roadmaps.
Another important purpose is to surface conflicting interests and sources of resistance as early as possible so that alignment, negotiation, and change management strategies can be defined.
Finally, the technique supports planning targeted, structured communication and managing expectations across the entire project duration.

2. Overview of the Technique: Process and Key Elements

TOGAF’s Stakeholder Management Technique can be understood as a practical sequence of steps.

a. Identify Stakeholders
Start by scanning organizational structures, project charters, existing roles, committees, and governance forums to identify individuals and groups who have a stake in the EA or transformation.
TOGAF provides typical stakeholder types across categories such as “Business”, “IT”, “Operations”, and “Governance”, which can be used as a checklist.

b. Classify Stakeholder Positions
Next, classify stakeholders using a Power–Interest matrix, mapping their level of influence (Power) against their level of involvement or concern (Interest).
Evaluate whether each stakeholder is supportive, neutral, or opposed, and organize these insights as both risks and opportunities for the initiative.

c. Determine the Stakeholder Management Approach
Based on this classification, decide how often to interact with each stakeholder, through which channels, and for what purpose (information, consultation, decision, escalation, etc.).
For example, executives may join monthly value review sessions, while key users participate in weekly design or Fit/Gap workshops.

d. Tailor Engagement Deliverables
Prepare different views, reports, and communication formats tailored to each stakeholder’s concerns and level of understanding.
Executives may need high‑level roadmaps and investment/value slides, whereas IT teams need detailed target architecture diagrams and interface lists.

This cycle is iterative across all ADM phases and should be updated when new stakeholders appear, especially in Phases E/F (Opportunities & Solutions, Migration Planning) and G/H (Implementation Governance, Architecture Change Management).

3. Applying the Technique to an SAP S/4HANA Implementation

From here, the focus shifts to how an Enterprise Architect can apply TOGAF’s Stakeholder Management Technique in a typical global SAP S/4HANA implementation project.

3-1. Typical Stakeholders in an SAP Implementation

In a multinational SAP program including Japanese entities, typical stakeholder groups include:

  • Executive Management
    CEO / CFO / COO
    Concerns: ROI, governance, faster closing, risk exposure
  • Business Units
    Business unit heads; heads of Sales, Production, Procurement, Logistics
    Concerns: process standardization vs local autonomy, impact on KPIs, impact on current operations
  • Finance
    Head of Accounting, Group Consolidation lead
    Concerns: accounting standards support, closing processes, internal controls, IFRS/J‑GAAP compliance
  • IT Organization
    CIO, application leads, infrastructure, security
    Concerns: system landscape, operational workload, interfaces, alignment with cloud strategy
  • Key Users (Business)
    Key users for each functional area
    Concerns: usability, training, data migration quality, local business requirements
  • Project Governance
    PMO, EA team, internal audit, compliance
    Concerns: level of standardization, exception approval process, risk management
  • External Stakeholders
    SI partners, SAP vendor, audit firm
    Concerns: scope, contractual boundaries, review scope, go‑live criteria

These stakeholders map directly to TOGAF’s business, technical, and governance categories and can be organized accordingly.

3-2. Example of a Power–Interest Matrix in SAP Projects

A typical Power–Interest mapping in an SAP S/4HANA program might look like this:

  • High Power × High Interest (manage closely)
    CFO, COO, program sponsor
    Global Process Owners (GPOs), CIO
  • High Power × Low Interest (keep satisfied)
    Certain regional executives, Board and Audit Committee
    Corporate risk management
  • Low Power × High Interest (keep informed and use as change agents)
    Site‑level key users
    Middle managers such as plant managers and sales managers
  • Low Power × Low Interest (monitor, provide information as needed)
    General end‑users, some peripheral system owners

Using this classification, the Enterprise Architect designs stakeholder engagement: who reviews which deliverables, at what frequency, and in which decision‑making forums.

3-3. Example Management Approaches and Deliverables

Concrete examples of how TOGAF‑style stakeholder management translates into deliverables in an SAP program include:

  • Executive Management
    • Deliverables: Roadmaps, investment and value realization scenarios, summarized risk register, one‑page global template strategy
    • Approach: Monthly steering committee meetings, quarterly KPI‑based value reviews
  • Business Leaders & GPOs
    • Deliverables: To‑Be business processes (e.g., BPMN), Fit/Gap lists, KPI trees by process owner, high‑level cutover strategy
    • Approach: Regular process design workshops, approvals through a Design Authority forum
  • IT & EA Team
    • Deliverables: Target application architecture, interface inventory, high‑level data models, non‑functional requirements matrix
    • Approach: Architecture review boards, solution design reviews, cloud/security architecture sessions
  • Key Users & Frontline Teams
    • Deliverables: End‑to‑end business scenarios, training materials, impact assessments (As‑Is vs To‑Be), UAT scenarios
    • Approach: Local and functional workshops, town hall meetings around UAT, dedicated Q&A channels

The entire configuration of “who, what, how often, through which channel” corresponds directly to what TOGAF calls the Stakeholder Management Strategy.

4. Blog-Style Summary for Enterprise Architects

TOGAF® Stakeholder Management: Designing “Whose Story” the Transformation Tells

Within the TOGAF® ADM, Stakeholder Management is positioned as a core technique and a prerequisite for successful architecture initiatives.
Put simply, it is a way to identify the actors in the transformation story and deliberately design which narrative should be delivered to each of them.

In an SAP implementation, this technique helps answer questions such as:

  • Who believes they will benefit most or lose out from this project?
  • Who ultimately holds the Go/No‑Go decision power?
  • Whose KPIs and accountability will be significantly reshaped?
  • Who needs what level of information and participation at which point in time?

If these questions are left vague, even the most elegant SAP architecture can be blocked by resistance, misunderstanding, or lack of ownership.

Step 1: Look at Stakeholders Through Their Concerns, Not Just Their Titles

The first step is to identify stakeholders, but the key is to list them together with their main concerns rather than just their job titles.
In an SAP S/4HANA program, examples might include:

  • CFO
    Concerns: ROI, faster closing, global management visibility, stronger internal controls
  • Global Process Owners (e.g., Order‑to‑Cash, Procure‑to‑Pay)
    Concerns: level of process standardization, handling of exceptions, ability to reflect business specifics
  • CIO
    Concerns: simplification of the IT landscape, operating cost, security and compliance, alignment with cloud strategy
  • Country Managers and Plant Managers
    Concerns: local legal/tax requirements, workload on operations, risk of disruption at go‑live

For Enterprise Architects, these concerns are the foundation for later designing architecture viewpoints.
For example, the CFO’s view should be built around “investment vs return” and “risk and controls”, whereas GPOs need views that highlight end‑to‑end processes and KPIs.

Step 2: Use the Power–Interest Matrix to Decide How Deep to Involve Stakeholders

Once stakeholders and their concerns are identified, use the Power–Interest matrix to map them.
In SAP projects, this matrix becomes the backbone for deciding membership of governance forums and who reviews which deliverables.

For instance:

  • CFO and program sponsor (High Power × High Interest):
    • Participation: Steering committees, major milestone Go/No‑Go reviews
    • Deliverables: Roadmaps, risk and mitigation summaries, investment/value scenarios
  • Local key users (Low Power × High Interest):
    • Participation: Fit/Gap workshops, UAT, local requirements reviews
    • Deliverables: business scenarios, To‑Be flows, training materials

Two practical rules are critical: avoid surprising high‑power stakeholders by excluding them from key discussions, and avoid turning high‑interest stakeholders into passive observers.
In SAP programs, the second point is particularly important for effective change management.

Step 3: Tailor the “Architecture Story” to Each Stakeholder

TOGAF® strongly encourages tailoring architecture views and deliverables to stakeholder concerns.
In SAP implementations, the same architecture information, when presented from different angles, can trigger very different levels of understanding and buy‑in.

Consider a target landscape centered on S/4HANA:

  • CFO View
    Focus on how far the global template will be applied, which countries migrate when, and how each wave contributes to faster closing and better control.
  • CIO / IT View
    Emphasize core vs peripheral systems, interface patterns (API/BAPI/ETL), operating model (on‑prem vs cloud), and security boundaries.
  • Key User / Frontline View
    Show end‑to‑end flows such as “Order → Delivery → Billing”, what is entered on which screen, and how data flows between systems.

The architecture does not change, but modifying the viewpoint and level of detail dramatically improves stakeholder understanding and commitment.
A core responsibility of the Enterprise Architect is to design architecture views that are not only technically correct but also expressed in the stakeholder’s own “language”.

Step 4: Revisit Stakeholder Strategy Across ADM Phases

Stakeholder Management is not a one‑off exercise done only at the beginning.
In TOGAF® ADM, it is assumed that new stakeholders will appear and existing ones will change their interests as the project moves from Phase A through E, F, G, and H.

In an SAP program, this typically looks like:

  • Vision and Concept Phase
    Core stakeholders: executives, key business leaders, CIO
  • To‑Be Design and Fit/Gap Phase
    Core stakeholders: GPOs, key users, process design teams
  • Migration Planning and Cutover Phase
    Core stakeholders: logistics and production leaders, site managers, IT operations, helpdesk
  • Post Go‑Live and Continuous Improvement Phase
    Core stakeholders: management accounting, continuous improvement teams, internal audit

At each phase, it is important to reassess who currently has the most influence and the highest interest, then update the Power–Interest matrix and engagement strategy accordingly.

Practical Tips for Enterprise Architects in SAP Programs

Finally, some practical tips for Enterprise Architects who want to make Stakeholder Management work in real SAP projects:

  • Treat the “stakeholder list” as a living tool, not a static document
    Keep notes on concerns, stance, and risks, and revisit them at each phase.
  • Design governance forums and decision processes as part of the architecture
    Clarify who decides what (e.g., deviations from the global template, handling of local requirements) alongside architecture principles.
  • Involve “likely opponents” early
    Engage stakeholders who are expected to resist (e.g., sites with strong local requirements) in Fit/Gap and prototyping stages.
  • Invest time in “translating” deliverables
    Re‑frame key diagrams and documents for executives, IT, and operations separately; this increases alignment speed more than it increases explanation effort.

TOGAF’s Stakeholder Management Technique provides a common language and thinking framework to support these practices.
In large‑scale transformations such as SAP S/4HANA implementations, it becomes a powerful tool for Enterprise Architects to act as architects of people and organizations, not just systems.

Please refer to this article for topics related to Enterprise Architecture (EA).
Enterprise Architecture – Insight Arc | SAP, Enterprise Architecture & Supply Chain Strategy

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Disclaimer

Parts of this article were developed with reference to generative AI suggestions and were reviewed, refined, and supplemented based on the author’s professional expertise and judgment.

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