SAP is Software of Choice for BUworks

The rigorous software selection process began in September 2008 when the project team released a detailed RFP to selected vendors. It was capped at the end of June the following year when Boston University and SAP signed a software purchase contract. Reaching this milestone was an effort that involved multiple steps: vendor RFP responses were studied, software demonstrations and question/answer sessions with the vendors were held, and reference checks were conducted with a sample of universities currently using the ERPs under consideration.

Many members of the University community participated in these events. The 15 members of the software selection team, who were drawn from business and technical areas, spent a great deal of time reading and discussing the proposals. At the same time, over 200 University employees from academic and administrative units on both campuses attended the multi-day software demonstrations and information sessions and provided feedback to the evaluation team.

Ultimately, the team felt SAP was the best fit for Boston University for several reasons, including:

• A greater percentage of BU functional requirements are standard. Joseph Mercurio, Boston University’s Executive Vice President, expanded on this differentiator: “We ultimately selected SAP for the robust functionality of its software right out-of-the box and the need for very little customization to meet the University’s current and future needs.”
• Lower total cost of ownership over the life of the software.
• Tight integration among the many modules that comprise the ERP.
• SAP’s demonstrated commitment to, and increasing presence within, the Higher Education community. President Brown spoke to this point when he noted, “We are excited to join the many other leading institutions running SAP including those such as Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the Johns Hopkins University and Health System, and Duke University.”

Read more about the choice of SAP in this BU Today article.