With the banners packed away and the lanyards all wrapped up, I’ve had a chance to think back on the success of our recent SAP Transformation Excellence Summits.
These six events, held around the world – in Sydney, Singapore, Tokyo, the Gold Coast, Chicago, and Frankfurt – showcased for thousands of attendees how customers and partners are making use of SAP Signavio and SAP LeanIX solutions to transform their businesses, including a range of perspectives on AI and how to deploy it effectively.
This combination of industry knowledge, customer insights, and new technology was on proud display during the Summits. To take just a couple of examples, SMA Solar explained how process AI capabilities can support transformation efforts that prioritize the customer experience, while Daimler Truck AG shared how successfully leveraging AI-powered process intelligence can enhance core operations on the assembly line.
We also looked at the societal and geopolitical implications of AI with Prof. Marek Kowalkiewicz from the University of Technology Queensland and Elizabeth L’Orange, co-founder and CCO at Oxolo. Both presenters demonstrated how small AI interventions can create massive social, organizational and political ripples – as well as how AI can be leveraged as a force multiplier for human potential.
Remember, if you’d like to see these sessions again – or you missed them the first time around – you can access all recorded presentations online at SAP Transformation Excellence Summit 2024.
Throughout all these presentations, and in almost every conversation I had across each event, the feeling is the same: generative AI has set off a wave of innovation that will dramatically change how businesses run, how decisions are made, and how processes are optimized.
I agree, and from my perspective, this shift is just as significant as the major changes we have seen throughout SAP’s history. If you have worked in the process management or enterprise architecture industries for any length of time, you’ll know SAP has been setting technology and business trends in these areas since the 70s – and of course many of our customers have actively helped shape our solutions during that time, from the days of SAP R/2 (and flared trousers), through to SAP S/4HANA and beyond.
Now, once again, new technology is ushering in an entirely new era of transformation; and once again, SAP is working together with our customers to determine how best to make use of the new capabilities and possibilities it offers.
Bringing the AI vision to life
We see an incredible advantage in adopting these AI advances in our own product portfolio, development, and internal processes; furthermore, our customers are relying on us to bring the advantages of Generative AI to their organizations.
That’s why the presentations at the recent events were so inspiring – because our portfolio turns our vision into reality. SAP Signavio Transformation Manager helps organizations collaboratively plan, manage and execute transformation initiatives, and SAP Signavio Value Accelerators speed up the time to value of those initiatives.
This is of course all underpinned by process AI capabilities for SAP Signavio solutions, and integrated with the powerful SAP LeanIX enterprise architecture solutions, which in turn make use of AI-powered inventory-building, automated SAP landscape discovery, and AI co-piloting for natural language navigation.
Our industry-leading business applications work together to span front-end and back-end systems in a way that only SAP can, providing the foundation of process and application visibility. This extends through to a robust ecosystem of solutions, including digital twins for continuous improvement and ongoing transformation efforts, as well as making use of big data and a still-growing AI toolkit.
The power of innovation and diversity
Even with all this in place, it can still sometimes take some effort to keep up with the pace of innovation among our customers, and here, once again, the Summits delivered. We heard many examples of successful transformations, including how:
NTT Holdings used SAP Signavio and SAP LeanIX solutions to plan and execute a digital transformation from homegrown, siloed systems to a unified architecture across 115 group companies and 170,000 employees GE HealthCare managed the enormous technology transition from the GE Corporate network, by using SAP LeanIX solutions to identify the migration scope for each of more than 3,000 applications Diehl Aviation used accelerated process discovery with SAP Signavio Process Transformation Suite – also known as the plug and gain approach – to make rapid decisions and implement process changes swiftly in the face of rapid technological advancements and political challenges.
I was also proud to participate in a Women@Tech panel discussion during the Frankfurt Summit, with the theme of “plan, build, run your business transformation. I highlighted my belief that diversity is essential for all organizations, including SAP. Different backgrounds, cultures, experiences in the team give you better insights, avoiding the blind spots that can arise in a homogenous group of people.
A diverse team not only encourages innovation and improves problem solving, but also helps you understand your customer needs better, since your customer base is also diverse. On an organizational level, a commitment to inclusive hiring practices also gives you a bigger talent pool to draw from and improves employee retention.
To consider the impact of diversity on transformation initiatives, as well as a range of other topics, I’d also like to highlight the new research that SAP Signavio developed in partnership with Oxford Economics: an in-depth survey of over 800 executives from around the world, focusing on the question of what business transformations really cost.
To find out more about this research, as well as secure a copy of the report when we publish next year, visit The Estimation Game: What do business transformations really cost? and register today.
A word of thanks
I would be remiss if I did not extend my gratitude to the sponsors and staff who made these events possible. The generous support of our sponsors ensured that the events were not only successful but also accessible to a diverse group of professionals. Your commitment to fostering innovation and excellence within the SAP community is truly commendable.
To the dedicated staff who worked tirelessly behind the scenes, your efforts did not go unnoticed. The smooth execution of the events, the quality of the sessions, and the overall attendee experience were a testament to your hard work and dedication. Thank you for creating an environment where learning, collaboration, and inspiration could thrive.
In all, the SAP Transformation Excellence Summits of 2024 were a resounding success, and I am already looking forward to future events.
If you’d like to kickstart your own transformation, and find out more about how SAP can help, join us at the Gartner IT Symposium/XpoTM in Barcelona, coming up in early November. Register now at SAP | Gartner IT Symposium
With the banners packed away and the lanyards all wrapped up, I’ve had a chance to think back on the success of our recent SAP Transformation Excellence Summits.These six events, held around the world – in Sydney, Singapore, Tokyo, the Gold Coast, Chicago, and Frankfurt – showcased for thousands of attendees how customers and partners are making use of SAP Signavio and SAP LeanIX solutions to transform their businesses, including a range of perspectives on AI and how to deploy it effectively. This combination of industry knowledge, customer insights, and new technology was on proud display during the Summits. To take just a couple of examples, SMA Solar explained how process AI capabilities can support transformation efforts that prioritize the customer experience, while Daimler Truck AG shared how successfully leveraging AI-powered process intelligence can enhance core operations on the assembly line. We also looked at the societal and geopolitical implications of AI with Prof. Marek Kowalkiewicz from the University of Technology Queensland and Elizabeth L’Orange, co-founder and CCO at Oxolo. Both presenters demonstrated how small AI interventions can create massive social, organizational and political ripples – as well as how AI can be leveraged as a force multiplier for human potential. Remember, if you’d like to see these sessions again – or you missed them the first time around – you can access all recorded presentations online at SAP Transformation Excellence Summit 2024. Throughout all these presentations, and in almost every conversation I had across each event, the feeling is the same: generative AI has set off a wave of innovation that will dramatically change how businesses run, how decisions are made, and how processes are optimized. I agree, and from my perspective, this shift is just as significant as the major changes we have seen throughout SAP’s history. If you have worked in the process management or enterprise architecture industries for any length of time, you’ll know SAP has been setting technology and business trends in these areas since the 70s – and of course many of our customers have actively helped shape our solutions during that time, from the days of SAP R/2 (and flared trousers), through to SAP S/4HANA and beyond. Now, once again, new technology is ushering in an entirely new era of transformation; and once again, SAP is working together with our customers to determine how best to make use of the new capabilities and possibilities it offers. Bringing the AI vision to life We see an incredible advantage in adopting these AI advances in our own product portfolio, development, and internal processes; furthermore, our customers are relying on us to bring the advantages of Generative AI to their organizations. That’s why the presentations at the recent events were so inspiring – because our portfolio turns our vision into reality. SAP Signavio Transformation Manager helps organizations collaboratively plan, manage and execute transformation initiatives, and SAP Signavio Value Accelerators speed up the time to value of those initiatives. This is of course all underpinned by process AI capabilities for SAP Signavio solutions, and integrated with the powerful SAP LeanIX enterprise architecture solutions, which in turn make use of AI-powered inventory-building, automated SAP landscape discovery, and AI co-piloting for natural language navigation. Our industry-leading business applications work together to span front-end and back-end systems in a way that only SAP can, providing the foundation of process and application visibility. This extends through to a robust ecosystem of solutions, including digital twins for continuous improvement and ongoing transformation efforts, as well as making use of big data and a still-growing AI toolkit. The power of innovation and diversity Even with all this in place, it can still sometimes take some effort to keep up with the pace of innovation among our customers, and here, once again, the Summits delivered. We heard many examples of successful transformations, including how: NTT Holdings used SAP Signavio and SAP LeanIX solutions to plan and execute a digital transformation from homegrown, siloed systems to a unified architecture across 115 group companies and 170,000 employees GE HealthCare managed the enormous technology transition from the GE Corporate network, by using SAP LeanIX solutions to identify the migration scope for each of more than 3,000 applications Diehl Aviation used accelerated process discovery with SAP Signavio Process Transformation Suite – also known as the plug and gain approach – to make rapid decisions and implement process changes swiftly in the face of rapid technological advancements and political challenges. I was also proud to participate in a Women@Tech panel discussion during the Frankfurt Summit, with the theme of “plan, build, run your business transformation. I highlighted my belief that diversity is essential for all organizations, including SAP. Different backgrounds, cultures, experiences in the team give you better insights, avoiding the blind spots that can arise in a homogenous group of people. A diverse team not only encourages innovation and improves problem solving, but also helps you understand your customer needs better, since your customer base is also diverse. On an organizational level, a commitment to inclusive hiring practices also gives you a bigger talent pool to draw from and improves employee retention. To consider the impact of diversity on transformation initiatives, as well as a range of other topics, I’d also like to highlight the new research that SAP Signavio developed in partnership with Oxford Economics: an in-depth survey of over 800 executives from around the world, focusing on the question of what business transformations really cost. To find out more about this research, as well as secure a copy of the report when we publish next year, visit The Estimation Game: What do business transformations really cost? and register today. A word of thanks I would be remiss if I did not extend my gratitude to the sponsors and staff who made these events possible. The generous support of our sponsors ensured that the events were not only successful but also accessible to a diverse group of professionals. Your commitment to fostering innovation and excellence within the SAP community is truly commendable. To the dedicated staff who worked tirelessly behind the scenes, your efforts did not go unnoticed. The smooth execution of the events, the quality of the sessions, and the overall attendee experience were a testament to your hard work and dedication. Thank you for creating an environment where learning, collaboration, and inspiration could thrive. In all, the SAP Transformation Excellence Summits of 2024 were a resounding success, and I am already looking forward to future events. If you’d like to kickstart your own transformation, and find out more about how SAP can help, join us at the Gartner IT Symposium/XpoTM in Barcelona, coming up in early November. Register now at SAP | Gartner IT Symposium Read More Technology Blogs by SAP articles
#SAP
#SAPTechnologyblog
