Here's the shocking truth about enterprise software: Most companies are sitting on goldmines of disconnected data, completely unaware of the transformative power hiding in plain sight.
When organizations first encounter SAP, they typically interact with individual applications like SAP Cloud ERP, SAP Ariba, SAP Customer Experience, or SAP SuccessFactors. While each of these software solutions provides substantial value within its specialized area, helping teams achieve excellence in their particular domains, something remarkable happens when these applications begin communicating across the entire organization.
Imagine this scenario: your finance team makes strategic decisions based on real-time procurement intelligence, while your HR department's workforce analytics directly influence supply chain planning strategies. This interconnected approach represents the fundamental philosophy behind SAP Business Suite—a comprehensive ecosystem of applications, data repositories, and artificial intelligence working in perfect harmony to address every aspect of business operations.
But here's where it gets controversial... Many enterprises are still operating in silos, missing out on millions of dollars in potential efficiency gains.
At the core of this integrated ecosystem lies SAP Business Technology Platform (SAP BTP), the technological backbone that orchestrates these connections. Think of SAP BTP as the central nervous system of your digital enterprise—a platform specifically designed to integrate disparate systems, automate complex workflows, extend existing capabilities, and construct AI-enhanced business applications and processes throughout your organization.
And this is the part most people miss... SAP BTP doesn't just connect systems; it fundamentally transforms how artificial intelligence operates within enterprise environments.
Standalone AI solutions often produce outputs that appear impressive on the surface but lack the contextual understanding necessary for real-world business applications. SAP BTP addresses this critical limitation by creating seamless connections between systems, ensuring data consistency, and automating processes across the entire enterprise landscape. This comprehensive approach means AI doesn't function in isolation—instead, it develops a deep understanding of the intricate relationships between finance, supply chain management, human resources, procurement, and other business functions.
This integration represents the crucial difference between theoretical AI capabilities and practical business transformation. When artificial intelligence systems are trained on accurate, well-structured data and directly connected to actual business processes, they can deliver actionable recommendations that professionals trust and utilize for making informed decisions. The outcome is what we call an innovation flywheel—a self-reinforcing cycle where teams and AI systems continuously become more intelligent, efficient, and impactful across the organization.
Revolutionary Applications Built on SAP BTP Foundation
During this week's SAP Connect conference, we explored the various ways SAP BTP enables customers and partners to harness this innovation flywheel. We also showcased how SAP utilizes SAP BTP as its primary application development platform through the introduction of three groundbreaking enterprise applications powered by SAP BTP (SAP Build).
SAP unveiled the next generation of SAP Ariba solutions designed for comprehensive source-to-pay operations. These enhanced capabilities empower procurement professionals to maximize cost savings, ensure regulatory compliance, and strengthen supply chain resilience through the automation and optimization of critical processes including purchasing, sourcing, supplier management, contract administration, and invoicing procedures. The new SAP Ariba solutions are constructed on SAP BTP, significantly simplifying integration with SAP Business Suite, SAP ERP applications, and third-party ERP systems through open API architecture.
Additionally, SAP introduced SAP Supply Chain Orchestration, a sophisticated solution built entirely on SAP BTP. This platform can harness data from SAP Business Network and the SAP Business Data Cloud solution, dramatically expanding insights across every tier of the supply chain ecosystem. SAP Supply Chain Orchestration empowers customers with a unified, synchronized supply chain system designed to enhance risk detection capabilities, deliver actionable business insights, and enable coordinated responses across complex supply networks. The intelligent impact analysis feature helps organizations manage upstream supply chain risks and disruptions, while both external and internal supply chain signals are contextualized into prioritized action items. The solution also provides multi-tier supply chain visibility that extends far beyond traditional operational boundaries.
Furthermore, SAP Business Network now operates on SAP BTP, providing customers with a robust technical foundation that enables accelerated performance, simplified integration processes, large-scale collaboration capabilities, and continuous innovation opportunities. This enhancement amplifies customers' existing investments in SAP Business Network, adding substantial value without causing operational disruption.
Removing Obstacles Through Simplified Licensing and Packaging
SAP remains committed to making innovation adoption, experimentation, and scaling easier than ever for customers. We continuously streamline access to SAP BTP and SAP Business Suite, ensuring that every organization, regardless of size or technical sophistication, can leverage the latest advances in artificial intelligence, automation, and data connectivity.
Earlier this year, we simplified the SAP Build pricing model and incorporated its capabilities into all SAP Business Suite packages, providing customers with a seamless pathway to accelerate their development initiatives without requiring additional license purchases. Subsequently, we introduced complimentary SAP Build licenses for partners, enabling solutions to be tested, demonstrated, developed, and marketed through the SAP Store. Most recently, we unified the SAP Build licensing model, which now encompasses Joule for Developers and Joule Studio, making it accessible to all existing SAP BTP Enterprise Agreement customers.
From streamlined commercial offerings and flexible consumption models to guided innovation pathways through RISE with SAP and GROW with SAP, our objective remains clear: eliminate barriers to innovation so every customer can transform exceptional ideas into measurable business outcomes more rapidly.
Real-World Impact: Customers Achieving Remarkable Results with SAP BTP
To illustrate the transformative potential, here are several compelling examples of SAP BTP delivering tangible value for customers:
Accenture achieved an annual savings of 57,000 hours by developing an intelligent virtual assistant for financial leaders through the combination of human expertise, SAP solutions, and AI technologies. This AI assistant, constructed on SAP BTP, streamlines financial narrative creation and provides real-time alerts on critical financial metrics, enhancing decision-making capabilities instantly. The result represents 57,000 hours of previously manual work now automated.
The City of Hamburg successfully processed 100,000 applications by launching a financial aid application platform in just two weeks using SAP BTP, SAP AI Services, and complementary solutions. This generative AI-enabled platform efficiently managed nearly 100,000 subsidy applications during an energy crisis, demonstrating agile innovation capabilities with SAP's AI and platform technologies.
Uniper achieved a 95% improvement in search results by building a "Perfect Purchase Requisition" application and extending SAP Ariba using SAP Build Work Zone and SAP BTP's generative AI capabilities with SAP HANA Cloud vector engine. This AI-powered application automatically validates and corrects purchase requisitions, accelerating procurement cycles and improving data quality before orders are processed. The application has dramatically reduced the time and effort buyers invest in finding correct products, with 95 percent of searches succeeding on the first attempt.
AMD analyzes 10,000 orders annually through their "GenAI Supply Chain Troubleshooter" built on SAP BTP to simplify complex supply chain interactions. This AI assistant reduced issue resolution time and costs by 90 percent, saving 3,120 hours of staff effort annually, demonstrating how generative AI can dramatically streamline supply chain management operations.
SA Power Networks saves over AU$1 million annually by revolutionizing operations with generative AI and SAP BTP. Custom applications have delivered rapid insights to field crews, while Joule's natural language interaction with SAP SuccessFactors has saved 75 hours on average. By leveraging 50 years of asset history, they ensure safe operations, achieving a 99 percent success rate in identifying poles unlikely to corrode.
Ready to Begin? Explore SAP BTP Resources
We extend our gratitude to everyone who participated in SAP Connect, both virtually and in-person in Las Vegas! For those unable to attend live sessions, we recommend reviewing the Innovation Guide, exploring the comprehensive list of on-demand sessions, and watching the executive keynote delivered by Muhammad Alam.
To begin your journey today, visit sap.com/btp to initiate a free trial and explore various use cases.
But here's the million-dollar question that's dividing enterprise leaders: Are you ready to challenge the status quo of disconnected business operations, or will you continue accepting the inefficiencies that are costing your organization millions in unrealized potential?
What's your take on this integrated approach to enterprise technology? Do you believe the benefits justify the transformation effort, or are there hidden risks that concern you? Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below—we'd love to hear whether you're seeing similar results or facing different challenges in your organization.
Bharat Sandhu serves as chief marketing officer for SAP Business Technology Platform.
