Why 90% of SAP Custom Reports Are Never Used Again

Let’s be honest.

Most SAP projects generate a long list of custom reports lovingly coded in ABAP, reviewed in UAT, and delivered with pride.

But fast forward six months after go-live?

Only a handful are used. The rest sit idle. Forgotten. Replaced by Excel. Or worse — they never worked the way the business wanted in the first place.

In many systems, Z-reports have become digital junk drawers.

This article is a hard look at why this happens and what smarter, modern alternatives we should all be embracing.

Why Most Z-Reports Fail to Deliver

1. Built for One Person’s Need, Not Enterprise Value

Many custom reports are born from one user’s urgent request not from a scalable reporting requirement. Once that person changes roles, the report dies.

2. Poor Design, No UX

Z-reports are often built without input from the end users who actually use them. There’s:

• No filtering logic
• No sort or aggregation
• No drilldowns
• No export-friendly layout

And users just go back to Excel.

3. They Duplicate What Standard SAP Already Offers

Many Z-reports just pull data from standard tables that are already accessible via:

• ME2N / FBL1N / MB52 / COOIS
• SAP Queries
• CDS views or Smart Business Tiles
• Or even simple ALV reports

Why build something new, when standard gets you 90% there?

4. They’re Not Flexible

Hardcoded selection screens. Static layouts. No real-time data.

When requirements change and they always do the report becomes obsolete.

What You Should Build Instead

CDS Views (Core Data Services)

These are the modern backbone of reporting in SAP S/4HANA.

• Built on HANA for real-time performance
• Reusable across apps, reports, KPIs
• Enable analytics, Fiori, and embedded dashboards
• Easy to expose to users with proper roles

Start with standard views (I_, C_) before you go custom. They cover more than you think.

SAP Query (SQ01/SQVI)

Still relevant, especially in ECC or for non-technical teams.

• Allows creation of flexible reports without ABAP
• Good for master data, basic list views, and joins
• Useful for business power users

Embedded Analytics + Smart Business KPIs

Use SAP Fiori apps to visualize data with:

• Filters, tiles, drilldowns
• Situation handling
• Alert-based workflows
• Graphical dashboards

They’re fast, modern, and available in every S/4HANA system.

Microsoft Excel Integration (Analysis for Office)

If users love Excel — meet them there. But securely.

Use embedded CDS views to feed data into AO. You get the flexibility of Excel without losing SAP security and governance.

What to Stop Doing Immediately

• Stop building reports that no one validated or will maintain
• Stop writing ABAP for data that’s already available in SAP tables
• Stop assuming Z-reports are the fastest route to value
• Stop saying “we’ll fix it later”if it’s wrong, they’ll never use it again

A New Reporting Mindset for Consultants

You’re not here to deliver a “report.” You’re here to deliver insights, actions, and adoption.

So ask:

• Will this report answer the business question quickly?
• Is it flexible enough to evolve?
• Can it be embedded where users work (like Fiori)?
• Does it reduce Excel dependency?

If not you're just creating another Z-report that no one will use.

Final Thought

The problem isn’t custom reports. The problem is building custom reports the old way, for the wrong reasons.

In the new SAP world, we need smarter, reusable, and user-centric reporting not just more Z-code.

What’s the most unused Z-report you’ve seen in a project? Or one that actually delivered lasting value?

Let’s reimagine reporting, together.

#SAP #SAPS4HANA #SAPReporting #ZReports #CDSViews #EmbeddedAnalytics #SAPConsulting #DigitalTransformation #SAPQuery #SmartBusiness #SAPFiori #SAPUX #ERPProjects