How can the SAP ecosystem help companies become experts at change?
For several years we’ve been talking about the fact that every business is now a technology business. In other words, that digital technology is now such a fundamental part of running an enterprise, that the technology strategy and the business strategy have become almost indistinguishable.
If anyone was still in any doubt about that, the pandemic has surely laid the question to rest. The scale of the digital acceleration we’ve seen over the past year or so has been extraordinary. And the thing about becoming a technology business, of course, is that nothing ever stands still. You’re now operating in a demanding world of constant digital change.
Given my role as Managing Director, Global Lead — SAP Innovation & Sustainability, what interests me is how the SAP ecosystem can support companies as they adapt to this new environment. SAP solutions and technologies are such an important part of the digital infrastructure in many large organizations, they’re clearly central to questions about how to lead with technology.
We’ve just published Accenture’s 2021 Technology Vision for SAP Solutions, which I think provides some of the key answers here. Let’s look at the five trends in this year’s report.
#1 Stack strategically
The first, Stack Strategically, reflects the fact that SAP customers have a huge opportunity to use the technology stack to drive competitive advantage and business growth. If you’re smart about how and where you use SAP and other solutions across the stack (including those from cloud hyperscalers and other cloud-natives) you can massively increase your organizational flexibility, innovation speed, connectivity and access to new insights.
For example, you can get real-time insights from SAP S/4HANA embedded analytics. And SAP Business Technology platform can help build a multi-cloud, API-driven “plug and play” technology architecture that includes platform-independent containers and microservices. That’s not only far more flexible, when combined with an agile DevOps operating model and unified data architecture, it’s also a very powerful way to increase your speed to market and your speed to insight.
#2 Mirrored world
One of the most interesting recent developments in enterprise technology has been the emergence of the digital twin. By simulating assets or even whole systems in a digital “mirrored world” in real time, you create new ways to test, analyze, predict, automate, and innovate across the business.
SAP solutions, technologies and data can be critical to making this work in practice. For example, you can use solutions like SAP Logistics Business Network to get end-to-end visibility across the supply chain. Or you can use SAP’s integrated demand-driven material requirements planning (DDMRP) capabilities to mirror the flow of materials and information.
It’s all about getting “digital continuity” across the organization, breaking down those structural siloes that restrict data sharing, and so enabling the organization to transform its analytical, planning and forecasting abilities.
#3 I, Technologist
The third trend is about fostering a more “organic” kind of technology-led innovation across the business. By that I mean capitalizing on the fact that some digital solutions are now becoming so accessible and user-friendly that anybody can make use of them.
An example is SAP Ruum, a “low-code” solution that lets business users proactively manage their own workflows and streamline their own processes with intelligent automation. Similarly, SAP AppGyver lets business users quickly and easily build web and mobile applications without needing to “code” in the traditional sense.
When technology is democratized like this, your people’s ability to solve business problems at the point of need is radically improved. And that’s a powerful way to accelerate innovation across an organization.
#4 Anywhere, everywhere
Of course, it’s hard to get away from the fact that many of us have been working in very different ways this past year. And many of these more flexible work arrangements will likely be permanent. Future organizations will be all about working, collaborating, and innovating from anywhere and everywhere.
SAP solutions can play a big role in enabling these frictionless distributed workplaces. We’re already seeing some exciting developments, such as the forthcoming integration between SAP’s solution suite and Microsoft Teams. Among other innovations, this will enable sales teams to access customer data in SAP systems directly from the Teams app during a meeting.
#5 From me to we
There’s no doubt that the amazing pace of change we’re witnessing right now brings added complexity as well as opportunity. Enterprises will need to find new ways to work more closely together across the value chain to manage that complexity.
For example, SAP announced SAP Business Network which aims to build a community that helps companies connect more easily with each other across the supply chain. The idea is that you have a single portal to give you a complete view of your supplier ecosystem — and a way to transform a fragmented supply chain into a unified and collaborative network.
Alongside that, we’re also seeing interesting developments in multiparty systems (such as blockchain and similar distributed ledgers). GreenToken by SAP, for example, is a solution that uses multiparty systems to provide transparency into complex raw materials supply chains. That’s a really hard thing to do using traditional techniques, and there are significant benefits to be gained in areas like sustainability and ethical working practices.
Let there be change
After such an unusual and often-challenging time, this really does feel like a pivotal moment. The pandemic has accelerated digital adoption and reset many of the priorities for both businesses and consumers. The business environment is now more demanding than ever. But there’s also a sense of huge opportunity and promise. It’s going to be fascinating to see who can adapt to these trends the fastest and emerge as winners.
Check out the new Accenture Technology Vision for SAP Solutions to find out more. If you’d like to discuss any of the above trends in more detail, or how we can help you use SAP technologies to manage a constantly changing world, I’d love to hear from you. So please do get in touch or drop a comment below.
