Source URL: https://www.theregister.com/2024/10/16/dsag_sap_innovation_survey/
Source: The Register
Title: Inexorable march of progress at SAP threatens to leave users behind
Feedly Summary: AI hardly a hot topic with some customers calling for more innovation on-prem
Nearly a quarter of SAP users in its European heartlands say they cannot keep up with technological, social or economic advances.…
AI Summary and Description: Yes
Summary: The text discusses the challenges SAP users face in adapting to rapid technological changes, particularly due to the integration of AI into SAP’s S/4HANA ERP platform. A survey reveals a significant proportion of users feel unprepared for these advancements, highlighting a demand for transparency and better integration practices, especially regarding AI functionalities and data usage.
Detailed Description:
The content focuses on a survey conducted by the German-speaking SAP user group (DSAG) among CIOs and technology managers, revealing critical insights into the current landscape faced by SAP users in Europe. Key points from the text include:
– **User Readiness and Challenges:**
– Only 11% of respondents feel equipped to keep pace with technological, social, or economic advancements, which include areas like digital transformation and AI.
– 59% of users manage to keep up to some extent, while 24% acknowledge a struggle to adapt.
– **Integration of AI in SAP Products:**
– SAP has been actively incorporating AI features into its S/4HANA ERP platform, but these features currently are only available in the private cloud edition.
– Users, represented by the DSAG, are advocating for the inclusion of AI capabilities in the on-premises version of the software.
– **Demand for Business Viability and Transparency:**
– DSAG emphasizes the need for clear business cases to justify AI investments, calling for relevant use case details and transparent pricing models that align with the maturity level of AI functionalities.
– A significant 92% of survey respondents indicated that transparency regarding AI usage and data sources is critical.
– **Grievances Over SAP’s Cloud-First Strategy:**
– Concerns were raised about SAP’s strategy of offering innovations like AI only in cloud deployments, which DSAG believes could erode trust among users.
– SAP CEO Christian Klein assured that despite the cloud-first stance, the company would support numerous ERP versions across various countries, continuing investments in local deployments.
– **Calls for Best Practices and Regulatory Standards:**
– The DSAG requested SAP to provide reference architectures and best practice guidelines to better integrate AI within SAP applications, along with standard regulations governing AI models and data usage.
This text is significant for AI, cloud, and infrastructure security professionals, as it underscores the challenges organizations face in adopting emerging technologies effectively while maintaining compliance and transparency. The survey results highlight a broader issue of readiness in the enterprise environment regarding AI integration and raise important questions about data governance and security practices in cloud deployments.