<ul><li>SAP is the world's leading provider of ERP software and services, with worldwide revenue in 2004 of $9.7 billion and a 57 percent market share among major business application providers; it is one of the world's largest software companies overall<li>ERP is a flexible, open technology platform that helps businesses run more efficiently (and profitably) by providing integrated management of key operations and supply chains<li>Written for IT professionals who find it hard to get through SAP's complex documentation, our book demonstrates how ERP can cut costs, provides a clear overview of how the ESA (enterprise service architecture) model affects ERP, and shows how to implement the new ERP in the real world<li>Topics covered include reducing the cost of an existing IT backbone, using the new ERP to address a company's "pain points" and challenges, and proving the value of ERP through ROI (return on investment) and TCO (total cost of ownership) studies</ul>