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SAP UX / Design Thinking

Media SAP (sales order-entry)

A compliance information services company uses Design Thinking to shape its SAP order-entry experience

A North American Compliance and Regulatory Information Services Company Delivered 2017

Mindset ran a Design Thinking workshop to surface what users actually needed from the company's SAP order-entry process, then followed up with a code review of the existing application to map a practical reuse-and-rebuild path.

By the numbers

  • 2 engagements

    Design Thinking workshop followed by a technical code review

  • 1 application

    Order-entry app assessed for reuse, rebuild, and MVP path

Before

A decision point with no user data and no technical baseline

  • An existing SAP order-entry application with unclear reuse value.
  • No structured user research to guide the UX direction.
  • Investment decisions pending without a technical baseline or MVP scope.

After

User needs mapped and a build path defined

  • A Design Thinking workshop produced a user-centered view of the order-entry process.
  • A code review delivered a concrete reuse-versus-rebuild recommendation for the existing application.
  • A defined MVP path, timeline, and cost guidance ready to inform next-step decisions.

Why this matters

Two small, well-sequenced engagements did what a bigger project often misses: understand users first, assess the existing code second, then scope what to actually build.

The challenge

The company had an existing SAP sales order-entry application and a decision to make: rebuild it, extend it, or something in between. Before investing in new development, the team needed two things. First, a user-centered understanding of what the order-entry experience actually required. Second, an honest technical assessment of how much of the existing application was worth keeping.

What we did

Mindset started with a Design Thinking workshop in 2016, focused specifically on the order-entry experience. The workshop used structured facilitation to surface real user needs and frame the right SAP UX direction before any build decisions were made.

In a follow-on engagement in 2017, Mindset performed a code review of the sales order-entry application. The goal was a practical deliverables summary covering what could be reused, what needed to be rebuilt or built new, whether a further design pass was warranted, a minimum viable path to production, and timeline and cost-to-develop guidance. Mindset used Jira to track the review work under a dedicated project.

The outcomes

The Design Thinking workshop gave the organization a structured, user-centered view of its order-entry process that it could carry into any subsequent build or extension decision.

The code review produced a concrete reuse-versus-rebuild assessment of the existing application. The team left the engagement with a clear picture of the MVP path to production and the timeline and cost guidance needed to scope next steps.

If we built this today

Concept · not delivered scope

Order entry that drafts itself.

This is a forward-looking concept, not the scope we delivered on this engagement. It is the build we would reach for now, grounded in SAP that ships today.

The 2016 workshop asked how to make order entry feel right for the people using it, and today that same question lands on a Joule co-pilot that drafts the order while the rep stays in control.

The data product

Customer Intelligence

Grounds the agent in order history, buying patterns, and account context drawn across the sales data, so the drafted order reflects how this customer actually orders rather than a blank form. It gives the co-pilot real meaning to work from.

Intelligent Application on SAP Business Data Cloud

The Joule agent

Sales Order Entry Co-pilot

Reads the customer, product, pricing, and availability context as a rep keys an order, then proposes a complete, valid order with the right line items, dates, and any blocks already flagged. It catches missing fields and credit or delivery holds before submission instead of after.

SAP S/4HANA Sales (SD) · PROPOSE · order entry time and first-pass order accuracy

The Fiori app

Manage Sales Orders

The standard S/4HANA sales order app now carries Joule in the launchpad, so a rep can describe the order in plain language and have the fields drafted, then review and confirm. Order blocks and fulfillment issues surface in the same screen.

Embedded in the Fiori launchpad

We would mine the real order-entry process in SAP Signavio first, map the old app and its reuse value in SAP LeanIX, and let MIND accelerators carry the parts worth keeping from the old build into the new one.

The Joule Agent Factory Process intelligence

What we built

  • User needs mapped and prioritized for SAP UX planning

    Design Thinking workshop

    A facilitated workshop structured around the SAP order-entry experience, using Design Thinking methods to surface user needs and identify the right UX direction before build decisions were made.

  • Reuse-vs-rebuild recommendation delivered

    Application code review and reuse assessment

    A technical review of the existing sales order-entry application to determine what could be reused, what needed to be rebuilt, and whether a further design pass was warranted.

  • Timeline and cost framework for next-step planning

    MVP path and development guidance

    A defined minimum viable path to production, with timeline and cost-to-develop guidance to support scoping and investment decisions.