Measurement Technology Company

Delivering precision at scale requires advanced technology and seamless, connected operations. As a U.S.-based designer and manufacturer of measurement instruments expanded its global footprint across the United States, Europe, and Asia, the complexity of its sales and service processes grew alongside it. Disconnected systems, complex quoting workflows, and fragmented customer data began to create friction, limiting visibility and making it difficult to deliver a consistent customer experience across a high-volume, technically demanding sales environment.

With an SAP ERP Central Component (ECC) sunsetting deadline approaching, a Salesforce renewal decision on the table and new information technology (IT) leadership focused on driving business value, the window for a strategic decision had arrived. Rather than renew point solutions, the company chose to unify – partnering with Answerthink^® to implement a fully integrated SAP platform and establish a scalable digital core for its next phase of growth.

Challenges

The company faced compounding challenges across its sales, quoting and customer engagement operations:

• Complex, high-volume quoting process consuming disproportionate sales resources
• Disconnected lead-to-order workflow with limited visibility across the sales lifecycle
• Incumbent customer relationship management (CRM) not integrated with enterprise resource planning (ERP), leaving gaps in customer data and relationship insight
• Approaching ECC end-of-life and Salesforce renewal deadline, creating urgency for a consolidated decision
• Sanctioned party list compliance managed outside of core systems, adding risk and manual overhead
• New IT leadership and organizational focus on business value creation through technology adoption

The company needed a unified platform that could simplify its lead-to-cash process, support complex global quoting requirements, and integrate ERP and customer engagement in a single data model.

Why SAP and Answerthink®

Facing a Salesforce renewal decision for its customer experience (CX) requirements, the company evaluated options against a clear standard: unified platform, single data model, seamless integration and the ability to support global operations at scale. SAP’s comprehensive portfolio, including robust configure, price, quote (CPQ) capabilities; integrated ERP and CX; and native support for global trade compliance delivered where a stand-alone CRM could not.

Answerthink^® entered the engagement through a recommendation from the SAP account team recognized for its industry expertise and strategic approach. What won the partnership was Answerthink’s ability to articulate a clear, integrated vision – positioning the value of a unified SAP suite, generating momentum for ERP modernization, and building genuine confidence with senior leadership in the team’s ability to execute.

Key engagements that shaped the decision included an SAP showcase highlighting S/4HANA value alongside CRM, CPQ, integrated business planning (IBP) capabilities, and a readiness-check assessment with roadmap alignment that gave leadership a concrete view of the next two to three years of technology investment.

Together, SAP and Answerthink^® provided:

• A unified lead-to-cash platform across ERP and CX within a single data model
• Advanced CPQ capabilities supporting multi-quote, integrated approvals and mobile CRM
• SAP GTS for sanctioned party list checks and global trade compliance
• SAP IBP for supply chain planning and operational efficiency
• A structured roadmap for phased capability expansion, including human resources (HR), entitlement management and e-commerce

Implementation highlights

The company’s transformation program encompasses a comprehensive rollout of SAP solutions to modernize its digital core and customer engagement capabilities across a complex, multi-region environment.

• End-to-end SAP landscape: Implementation of SAP S/4HANA Private Cloud alongside Sales Cloud, CPQ and Integration Suite to enable a seamless lead-to-cash process
• Advanced quoting and sales capabilities: SAP CPQ deployed to handle complex, high-volume quoting with integrated approvals and multi-quote functionality
• Unified data platform: SAP Business Data Cloud connecting ERP, sales and operational data across the organization
• Global trade and compliance: SAP GTS managing sanctioned party list screening and regulatory requirements
• Supply chain optimization: SAP IBP integrated to enhance planning and operational efficiency
• Phased delivery: Guided by Answerthink^® through readiness assessment, roadmap alignment and structured implementation planning across multiple workstreams

Implementation is underway with a targeted go-live in 2026.

Outcomes

Through its partnership with SAP and Answerthink^®, the company is targeting meaningful business impact across sales, operations and customer experience:

• Simplified lead-to-cash processes expected to improve both internal efficiency and ease of doing business for customers
• Enhanced visibility into customer and sales data to enable faster, better-informed decisions
• Increased sales productivity through streamlined quoting, automated approvals and integrated CRM
• Improved global scalability through a unified, integrated technology platform
• Stronger compliance and risk management through embedded global trade capabilities

With implementation underway, the company is also exploring expanded SAP capabilities across HR, entitlement management and e-commerce – building on the foundation established through this engagement.