We are living in an ever faster-changing world. From the cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) to blockchain and the Internet of Things (IoT), new digital technologies are changing how we live and work.
Digital transformation was a line item on many business agendas long before COVID-19, but the pandemic catapulted it to the top of the priority list for virtually every organization in the world. In the blink of an eye, COVID-19 has significantly disrupted working practices, making it imperative for businesses to react quickly to changing market demands and make informed decisions based on real-time data.
Regardless of the size or industry of an enterprise, in the digital age you need to run your enterprise seamlessly across the value chain. But many of our customers have expanded their IT landscapes over the last few decades by buying point solutions to solve specific business needs. This has resulted in fragmented stacks, poorly integrated software, disconnected duplicate master data, and an inconsistent user experience (UX) — all of which both frustrate users and slow down innovation.
To turn data into meaningful insight, enterprises need to integrate all of their functions and processes based on a harmonized data model, get the complete picture in real time, and make decisions with knowledge of all interdependencies within the organization. Otherwise, you cannot make use of the billions of data to offer personalized experiences for your customers or manage demand and supply seamlessly in real time.
In February this year, I introduced our integration road map document, which provides a comprehensive overview of our integration plan in the cloud. It focuses on the significant value customers get from holistic technology and business process integration, SAP-to-SAP, but also to any third-party application in hybrid customer landscapes.
Since then, all teams have been working relentlessly so that we continue to execute on our road map. Out-of-the box integration for our software-as-a-service applications remains key for us. Gartner has just ranked us a leader in the Magic Quadrant for Multiexperience Development Platforms, and we’re making excellent progress to deliver a seamless business process integration, including key elements like harmonization of SAP’s data domain model, user experience, workflow management, and real-time steering. Currently at 50 percent, we expect to deliver up to 90 percent of these cloud integration suite qualities to our customers by end of this year.
Today, I am happy to announce an update to SAP’s Integration Road Map in the Cloud.
- It includes updated timelines for our key processes for the intelligent enterprise — recruit to retire, lead to cash, design to operate, and source to pay — along our suite qualities. This provides our customers with a clear road map for their transitions into intelligent enterprises.
- We enhanced SAP Cloud Platform Integration Suite, our open and modular iPaaS supporting a comprehensive set of enterprise-wide integration scenarios, with further integration templates. Adding to already more than 1,500 prepackaged integrations and over 160 open connectors for SAP to non-SAP applications, these templates for example include SAP S/4HANA to Salesforce integration or SAP Qualtrics Surveys integration with SAP Cloud Platform Process Visibility.
- Our integration suite offering is completed by SAP Integration Solution Advisory Methodology, which helps customers to define and execute an integration strategy for cloud and hybrid landscapes by providing proven integration patterns and architecture blueprints that we have recently enhanced in close collaboration with our customers.
- To guide our customers on their journey to become intelligent enterprises, we also offer integration services — from strategy and planning through implementing to operating and optimizing such an intelligent enterprise.
These are just a few of the highlights. Check out “Progress Report and Updates to SAP’s Integration Road Map in the Cloud” by my Executive Board colleague Juergen Mueller for all the details.
I couldn’t be prouder of what the teams have achieved already, and I am convinced that our integrated intelligent suite is a true game changer — now and in the future.
Christian Klein is CEO of SAP SE.