It’s been a wild decade so far - COVID, accelerated climate change focus, now a Russian-triggered energy crisis. Throw in supply chain issues, mass resignations, diversity and other crises, and Churchill’s famous quote “never let a good crisis go to waste’ comes to mind.
So, I have been asking every vendor what have you done to take advantage of the last two years? More importantly, what have you done to help your customer through these shocks and chaos?
At its Sapphire event next week, I expect I will hear plenty from SAP. Sure, lot of it will focus on S/4HANA, RISE and cloud properties. But one on one, I have heard plenty more.
It started last September when I approached Peter Maier to present on various verticals in the Analyst Cam series. Here is the index to the presentations SAP executives made.
There was a big difference in what I heard from SAP compared to most other vendors. They were talking thematic trends which cut across multiple industries, geographies and business processes – Direct to Consumer. Circular Economy. Everything as a Service.
Similar is happening in their ecosystem. The SAP.iO Foundries have been organizing bi-annual cohorts of startups in their 10 global accelerators based on themes. Here are some I profiled in the Sustainability and Circular Economy cohort.
I have seen presentations on an Industry 4.0 automation center and a Retail customer experience center. I will see a few more at the show floor at Sapphire.
So why is all this different? It’s not horizontal,or vertical or geographic positioning. It is what I call orthogonal. In comparison, most vendors and my fellow analysts are still talking market categories which were born in the 90s. (So is SAP – they still need to make their numbers). All those recessions and crises later and we are still talking an ancient language. I personally take blame for acronyms like ERP!
I went back to Peter and to Thomas Saueressig and I said you are doing something very different. Their response was we could show you much more. So, over the last couple of months I have had a chance to interview many of their thought leaders around Energy Transition, Digital Health, Smart Government, Autonomous Enterprise and many other themes.
I have heard more about the hydrogen fuel cells, nuclear fusion, LNG logistics from them than I have from any other vendor. Not just high-level ESG metrics, operational details. Patient-driven Data Networks. Industry Networks which tackle direct Tier 1 and 2 type suppliers not just paper/pencil and MRO suppliers.
Next, they are introducing me to customers and partners who are working with them to create next-gen applications. I am learning a ton and the content will be released in book and other formats. The important thing is SAP is speaking a brand-new language and helping customers survive and thrive in this crazy decade we find ourselves in.
The 1920s started off well but ended badly for most countries. I have a feeling we are reversing course in the 2020s. We are paying it forward. Things can only get better. But we all – especially my side of the aisle - need to get used to a very different script. It’s about new energy, new medicine, new algorithms.
Let’s not let this mother of all crises go to waste.
