In the pursuit of greater efficiency and control, many B2B companies consider building their own in-house order management systems (OMS). On paper, a custom-built solution tailored to specific processes seems like the perfect idea. But in reality, these DIY projects often become costly, risky, and slow to deliver real value.
The DIY Temptation
For companies running on SAP, this path is usually driven by necessity. Their business models tend to be complex, with intricate pricing structures and a wide range of highly configurable products. Standard solutions rarely accommodate this level of complexity, causing companies to pursue custom builds just to meet their operational needs.
However, with that customization comes added complexity, and with it, growing technical debt. What starts as a well-intentioned effort to streamline operations often results in a system that’s difficult to maintain, adapt, and scale.
What’s often underestimated are the significant risks and overhead:
- Extended Timelines: Developing a robust OMS is not a short-term project. It can take months, if not years to implement, delaying ROI and tying up internal resources.
- High Cost of Ownership: Initial development costs are only the beginning. Ongoing maintenance, upgrades, and total cost ownership increases over time.
- Integration Complexities: Ensuring a custom OMS integrates cleanly with SAP is no small task. It often leads to technical debt and performance issues down the line.
- Resource Drain: Building an OMS diverts valuable IT and business teams from more strategic initiatives.
- Technical Debt: Over time, custom code and quick fixes can pile up, making the system harder to manage and slowing future improvements
In one example, a large distributor invested $3 million into building a basic OMS cockpit, only to discover, post-deployment, that the custom solution still fell short of meeting modern SAP-driven order processing needs. After being introduced to OMS+, they successfully transitioned and have been running all core order management processes on the platform since 2021. The shift brought immediate improvements to operational efficiency, order accuracy, and employee experience, demonstrating how the right platform can deliver results quickly and sustainably.
In another case, a major enterprise spent millions over two years developing a custom-built Point of Sale and Order Management solution in preparation for an SAP S/4HANA implementation. Despite the investment, the system failed at go-live, forcing the company to abandon SAP temporarily and revert to its legacy ERP. The experience highlighted the high stakes and risks associated with building from scratch, especially when timing, complexity, and business continuity are on the line.
Why OMS+ is the Proven Alternative
At DataXstream, we’ve seen this problem play out time and again. In fact, OMS+ was born from it.
Our founder, Tim Yates, spent years as an SAP consultant, working directly with companies struggling to manage complex order processes using a mix of custom code and disconnected tools. These organizations were investing heavily in systems that still couldn’t meet their business needs, especially at scale or in real time.
We knew there had to be a better way.
So we built OMS+ from the ground up to solve this exact problem. Thousands of hours of development, customer feedback, and deep SAP expertise have gone into creating a platform that delivers what businesses truly need: fast, accurate, and efficient order management, without the technical debt or long timelines. It’s a real-time order management system that delivers immediate impact:
Clean-Core SAP Integration
OMS+ is embedded within your SAP landscape, ensuring seamless interaction with core business data without disrupting the integrity of your system.
Faster Deployment
What could take years with a custom build, OMS+ delivers in weeks. This gets you to value faster and frees your teams to focus on growth.
Proven ROI
Customers consistently report significant improvements in order accuracy, speed, and efficiency, without the high cost of a DIY project.
Scalable and Future-Proof
Unlike bespoke systems that become harder to maintain over time, OMS+ evolves with SAP and industry best practices.
Built for Complexity, Delivered with Simplicity
The OMS+ core product is designed to meet complex order processing requirements out of the box. With a focus on selling directly from SAP and equipping users with the functionality and visibility they need, OMS+ removes the burden of building and maintaining a custom-built solution to extend your SAP SD.
In result, your organization gets a streamlined, intuitive, and powerful system that delivers consistent performance without disrupting your ERP foundation.
The Bottom Line
Whilst a custom-built OMS sounds perfect, the reality is that such projects often come with outsized risks and uncertain outcomes. OMS+ gives you the flexibility, integration, and performance you need.
If you’re considering building your own order management platform, it’s time to take a closer look at OMS+.