SAP called out by German user group for Rise U-turn

German SAP user group Deutschsprachige SAP-Anwendergruppe (DSAG) has expressed issues over the software program provider’s newest information about product enhancements. The user group stated SAP’s choice to make enhancements obtainable to cloud prospects solely would have a direct influence on current on-premise prospects.

According to a transcript of SAP’s second-quarter 2023 outcomes, posted on the Seeking Alpha website, CEO Christian Klein unveiled how the corporate deliberate to construct out the SAP Rise enterprise. In the transcript, Klein described Rise as the corporate’s “signature offering”, which he claimed would assist prospects transfer to the cloud and rework their enterprise processes on the identical time.

During the ready speech, Klein revealed how SAP would ship innovation going ahead: “SAP’s newest innovations and capabilities will only be delivered in SAP public cloud and SAP private cloud using Rise with SAP as the enabler. This is how we will deliver these innovations with speed, agility, quality and efficiency.”

Specifically, Klein stated any new improvements from SAP wouldn’t be obtainable for on-premise or hosted on-premise enterprise useful resource planning (ERP) prospects on hyperscalers.

SAP’s rationale is that companies that desire to run their ERP on-premise, and those who use hyperscalers to run customised SAP choices, have knowledge fashions that aren’t aligned to Rise.

The German user group warned that corporations working S/4Hana on-premise would additionally not be eligible for sure upgrades. DSAG board chairman Jens Hungershausen described the ERP firm’s choice as a U-turn, calling it a serious blow. “It amounts to a paradigm shift,” he added.

When questioned throughout the earnings name, Klein stated there can be a 30% premium for prospects wishing to make use of the bogus intelligence (AI) and sustainability “bolt-ons” to Rise. “We are not offering generative AI [artificial intelligence], sustainability, capabilities and differentiating capabilities in our line of business products on-prem,” he stated.

Klein stated there was the usual model of Rise, plus a premium providing that embeds generative AI capabilities for improved decision-making or to enhance automation or transportation administration.

“Those who have relied on S/4Hana on-premise so far will be left behind by SAP’s new strategy,” stated Hungershausen. “Customers who have already invested in S/4Hana on-premise may now get the impression that they have wasted millions. That doesn’t build trust if SAP doesn’t show customers clear development paths for a smooth transition to the cloud and next-generation ERP without jeopardising the investments they’ve made.”

DSAG has called on SAP to supply a dependable assertion overlaying the precise enhancements that shall be made obtainable to on-premise S/4Hana prospects. The user group has requested SAP to supply readability rapidly and unambiguously.