8/17/2019 En route vers un futur hybride avec SAP
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White PaPer On the way tO a hybrid future with SaP White
PaPer On the way tO a hybrid future with SaP
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DiGitaLiZation BreaKS the
rULeS
DiGreSSion: the CLoUD SetS
neW StanDarDS
Digitalization promotes and requires new business models even
from
established companies. By 2018 one third of the top 20 market
leaders
in almost every industry will be challenged by the new „3rd
platform
competitors [1]“, at least that is what IDC analysts predict.
This means that
established market situations will be put to the test,
questioned and revo-
lutionized. Only those who go along the digital path can
permanently
secure their business growth and survive in the market.
Digitalization is
the new benchmark for deciding the success or failure of
companies.
Digitalization could be just a slogan. How does it become a
reality?
Today real examples and technological opportunities give an
impres-
sion of what may be the standards of the future: Google and
Apple with
their virtual stores have introduced de-materialized business
models;
Uber, DriveNow and AirBnB implement digitalized processes using
a
community approach; networking and distributed intelligence
result in
Smart Factories; robots and drones automate production and
delivery
processes; Big Data analytics provide better customer knowledge
andapproach to clients; real-time thinking and actions increase
a
company‘s responsiveness; flexible, inter-company
co-operations
speed up innovations [2]. All these examples have one thing in
com-
mon: digitalization accelerates and makes companies more
flexible.
The time to market is accelerated.
SUrViVaL taCtiC or UniqUe SeLLinG Point?
Markets are also put to the test when new competitors with new
digital
business models (innovations) enter the market. Established
players are
challenged by new competitors who are more efficient, cheaper,
faster,
have better market insights and a better understanding of
customer
needs. Business models need to be implemented with a minimal
invest-
ment risk so that i nnovation budgets quicker allow the
realization of vari-
ous ideas. At the same time, business ideas have to be swiftly
reset in
case the related targets are not met. In addition, a variety of
technologies
offer the potential for disruptive changes beyond industry
boundaries. In
an era of rapid change business agility is paramount for a
company.
Also for marketing purposes, it becomes more and more important
to
generate USPs and differentiators in this digital environment;
the Cus-
tomer Experience, engaging and retaining clients through better
custo-
mer knowledge and a user friendly approach is one of the major
suc-
cess factors. This means that companies are more driven by
data
analysis („data driven business“) in all aspects of their
business.
In the course of this, the pace of change increases
continuously.
Already today the first generation of digitalization is
outmoded: the pre-
sence of a company on the internet, the use of web services or
IT-sup-
ported processes are no longer distinguishing features but
necessi -
ties.
These challenges further lead to procedural and IT challenges
that ulti-
mately can only be met with changes within a company at a
technical
and cultural level. In order to successfully implement
digitalization, com-
panies not only need the necessary technology but also suitable
people,partners and ideas.
Companies wishing to benefit from the digitalization era must
develop
these four skills:
The ability to integrate end to end, manage and employ
hybrid IT
landscapes and processes (Hybridize)
The ability to continuously transform (Transform) - this
applies to the
technology as well as the business models and corporate
culture
The ability to anticipate developments (Predict)
The ability to create new disruptive business models
(Disrupt)
This has particular implications for SAP as a software for
business
management. SAP must make an essential contribution to enable a
com-
pany to develop these four capabilities. Below, a practical
approach to
these challenges has been outlined.
These questions are important because during digitalization it
occurs,
only in rare cases, that old IT solutions need to be replaced.
Normally it‘s
a question of establishing which system is most appropriate for
each
task. Traditional, monolithic systems may continue to fulfill
their tasks,
e.g. perform a scheduled billing cycle. Cloud-based services
come into
play when accelerating the performance is part of the
assignment. The
sourcing mix then leads to what Gar tner[3] calls the
„bimodal IT“.
“tWo-SPeeD” it
Traditional IT is one component of „bimodality“. It
supports processes
whose dynamics are largely predictable. The resource adjustments
can
be made within a few days. The respective applications can be
operated
in dynamic infrastructures which are more flexible.
Some specific questions about existing technology arise from
these challenges: Howlong will the existing landscapes remain
functional? How can new platforms be
integrated and IT resources be transformed? What are the new
requirements for IT
platforms? How can ERP solutions be adapted so that they
properly solve old tasks and
new ones equally?
Figure 1.
FoUr SKiLLS For the DiGitaLiZation era
These needs can be appropriately served by private clouds.
This
approach represents an organic evolution of IT.
Agile IT however supports new business models and innovations in
the
highly dynamic, cloud-native environment. New ideas are tested,
initiated
or adjusted within hours or even minutes.
The motto for this approach is time to market. Public cloud
models are
often used in such cases. These two approaches create a
„two-speedIT“. The new agile IT for high speed is combined with the
traditional esta-
blished operational IT base for core applications. The
applications conti-
nue to exist either unchanged or moderately boosted at the
infrastruc-
ture level. The bimodal IT sets a framework for the topics
Transform and
Hybridize.
[3] Gartner Says Worldwide Cloud Infrastructure-as-a-Service
Spending to Grow 32.8Percent in 2015, Gartner, 2015
[1] IDC Predictions 2015: Accelerating innovation and growth on
the 3rd platformDigitization drives continuous business growth,
IDC, 2015
[2] The time of the lone wolf is over, Mario Brück at
www.wiwo.de
