Enhancing the Power of Customer Data through the SAP BDC Partner Ecosystem
âThere were 5 exabytes of information created between the dawn of civilization through 2003, but that much information is now created every two days.â – Eric Schmidt, former Executive Chairman at Google
The needs of enterprise have changed. CXOs are now all business strategists and not merely âdepartment headsâ. Of course, âkeeping the lights onâ is still very important but advances in technology, including AI, now offer up endless possibilities for efficiency gains, productivity gains and insight that can truly unleash value.
But, where is this value buried? How does one mine it? And, how does one refine the raw product into something truly valuable?
Data is the gold
The answer to the first question is easy â data is the gold! It always has been, But, now, it is being created at an exponentially larger scale than even just two decades ago, as pointed out by Eric Schmidt. The problems and challenges lie not in the data but in how to get at it, how to make sense of it.
All companies, large and small, generate so much business data compared to the recent past that basic processes have become more and more complex. When it comes to analysing this voluminous data, it can be daunting. Firstly, the sheer volume of data itself; then, there is the time consuming and thankless task of trying to âjoin upâ data from different sources â finance data looks different to HR data which looks different to logistics data and sales data and so on.
Customer have built up tremendous reservoirs of data during their corporate lifetimes. These reservoirs only continue to grow. With the increase in data comes a requisite increase in the challenges of tapping into this great resource.
The gold miners kit list
Even in a systems landscape of a single vendor, such as SAP, these datasets from different LoB systems can present challenges when it comes to joining them together. So, what tools do we need to mine this treasure trove of data buried deep in our various systems?
Over the years, customers have invested heavily in Business Warehouses, Data Lakes and a myriad of analytics solutions. Now, with the advent and rapid advances in AI, businesses are being driven towards a promising future where, miraculously perhaps, advances in AI magically solve all of our data issues, presenting us answers with unprecedented speed and clarity.
Really? According to McKinseyâs The state of AI in 2025: Agents, innovation, and transformation, weâre not quite there yet.
Enter SAPâs Business Data Cloud (BDC). The single biggest innovation by SAP since the advent of S/4HANA. SAP BDC brings together in one place, all of the components necessary to turn the data vision into reality. Moreover, customers who have invested in our BW systems will not see their investments wasted. Investments in BW will be able to be carried forward and connected into BDC to continue delivering the value they were designed for.
A fully managed software-as-a-service (SaaS) solution Unifies and governs all SAP data and seamlessly connects with third-party data Brings together SAP Datasphere, SAP Analytics Cloud, and SAP Business WarehousePartnership with Databricks adds Databricks directly into SAP Business Data Cloud
Seeing the wood for the trees
âData is like garbage. Youâd better know what you are going to do with it before you collect it.â – Mark Twain
Remember the old adage, âGarbage in, garbage out!â How so very apt in these times of AI hype â how useful can AI be if the data it relies on is garbage? How can you possibly see the wood for the trees?
SAP BDC brings together the various components needed to make sense of all of that tremendous data, regardless of volume or source, to transform the data in a way that ensures that data âgarbageâ is turned into data gold. Then, and only then, can AI make meaningful use of that data to deliver reliable, trustworthy and truly valuable business insight. In short, SAP BDC is a quantum leap for business data mining. It brings together the key components of data management and analysis to provide a singular toolset to power truly effective business AI.
âPlease [SAP], I want some moreâ
The immortal words of Oliver Twist as penned by Charles Dickens, paraphrased, but just as applicable to data as to food, for hungry corporations. Would you like some more? Then, more you shall have!
SAP has a vast ecosystem of partners covering all aspects of software and services. SAP BDC gives our partners unprecedented opportunities to build innovation that drives even more impactful value for our mutual customers. The power of data unlocked by SAP BDC, combined with the incremental value enhanced by our partner offerings, will give our customers unparalleled competitive advantage.
Our strategic partners are already engaged in value-enhancing developments utilizing the power of SAP BDC, and the pipeline of partners looking to contribute via SAP BDC is growing. These use cases will enhance the customer value proposition across key business processes such as finance, customer experience, assets management and risk management. All of these partners and others with equally exciting use cases in the pipeline, will help to amplify as well as accelerate the adoption of SAP BDC.
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â Enhancing the Power of Customer Data through the SAP BDC Partner EcosystemâThere were 5 exabytes of information created between the dawn of civilization through 2003, but that much information is now created every two days.â – Eric Schmidt, former Executive Chairman at GoogleThe needs of enterprise have changed. CXOs are now all business strategists and not merely âdepartment headsâ. Of course, âkeeping the lights onâ is still very important but advances in technology, including AI, now offer up endless possibilities for efficiency gains, productivity gains and insight that can truly unleash value.But, where is this value buried? How does one mine it? And, how does one refine the raw product into something truly valuable?Data is the goldThe answer to the first question is easy â data is the gold! It always has been, But, now, it is being created at an exponentially larger scale than even just two decades ago, as pointed out by Eric Schmidt. The problems and challenges lie not in the data but in how to get at it, how to make sense of it.All companies, large and small, generate so much business data compared to the recent past that basic processes have become more and more complex. When it comes to analysing this voluminous data, it can be daunting. Firstly, the sheer volume of data itself; then, there is the time consuming and thankless task of trying to âjoin upâ data from different sources â finance data looks different to HR data which looks different to logistics data and sales data and so on.Customer have built up tremendous reservoirs of data during their corporate lifetimes. These reservoirs only continue to grow. With the increase in data comes a requisite increase in the challenges of tapping into this great resource.The gold miners kit listEven in a systems landscape of a single vendor, such as SAP, these datasets from different LoB systems can present challenges when it comes to joining them together. So, what tools do we need to mine this treasure trove of data buried deep in our various systems?Over the years, customers have invested heavily in Business Warehouses, Data Lakes and a myriad of analytics solutions. Now, with the advent and rapid advances in AI, businesses are being driven towards a promising future where, miraculously perhaps, advances in AI magically solve all of our data issues, presenting us answers with unprecedented speed and clarity.Really? According to McKinseyâs The state of AI in 2025: Agents, innovation, and transformation, weâre not quite there yet.Enter SAPâs Business Data Cloud (BDC). The single biggest innovation by SAP since the advent of S/4HANA. SAP BDC brings together in one place, all of the components necessary to turn the data vision into reality. Moreover, customers who have invested in our BW systems will not see their investments wasted. Investments in BW will be able to be carried forward and connected into BDC to continue delivering the value they were designed for.A fully managed software-as-a-service (SaaS) solution Unifies and governs all SAP data and seamlessly connects with third-party data Brings together SAP Datasphere, SAP Analytics Cloud, and SAP Business WarehousePartnership with Databricks adds Databricks directly into SAP Business Data CloudSeeing the wood for the treesâData is like garbage. Youâd better know what you are going to do with it before you collect it.â – Mark TwainRemember the old adage, âGarbage in, garbage out!â How so very apt in these times of AI hype â how useful can AI be if the data it relies on is garbage? How can you possibly see the wood for the trees?SAP BDC brings together the various components needed to make sense of all of that tremendous data, regardless of volume or source, to transform the data in a way that ensures that data âgarbageâ is turned into data gold. Then, and only then, can AI make meaningful use of that data to deliver reliable, trustworthy and truly valuable business insight. In short, SAP BDC is a quantum leap for business data mining. It brings together the key components of data management and analysis to provide a singular toolset to power truly effective business AI.âPlease [SAP], I want some moreâThe immortal words of Oliver Twist as penned by Charles Dickens, paraphrased, but just as applicable to data as to food, for hungry corporations. Would you like some more? Then, more you shall have!SAP has a vast ecosystem of partners covering all aspects of software and services. SAP BDC gives our partners unprecedented opportunities to build innovation that drives even more impactful value for our mutual customers. The power of data unlocked by SAP BDC, combined with the incremental value enhanced by our partner offerings, will give our customers unparalleled competitive advantage.Our strategic partners are already engaged in value-enhancing developments utilizing the power of SAP BDC, and the pipeline of partners looking to contribute via SAP BDC is growing. These use cases will enhance the customer value proposition across key business processes such as finance, customer experience, assets management and risk management. All of these partners and others with equally exciting use cases in the pipeline, will help to amplify as well as accelerate the adoption of SAP BDC.   Read More Technology Blog Posts by SAP articlesÂ
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