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E3 Category: Editor-in-Chief Blog

Here you can find all newsletter editorials of our chief editor Peter M. Färbinger.

Gerd Oswald is one of the most powerful and successful former SAP board members. He was the driving force behind the successful deployment of SAP R/3 and Business Suite 7, thanks to tools such as SolMan and initiatives such as the Customer Competence Center (CCC).
SAP is extremely interested in customer evolution and has set up a dedicated department to this end. It has excellent IT tools for finalizing the S/4 conversion. However, RISE with SAP is an imprecise and variable goal without core strengths.
Legacy systems are not uncommon in the fast-paced world of IT. Many computer users are currently experiencing the pain of being forced to switch from the familiar Microsoft Windows 10 to the barely improved—albeit more secure—version 11. For SAP customers, it means saying goodbye to ERP/ECC 6.0 and AnyDB.
The “Innovator's Dilemma”, as defined by Harvard professor Clayton M. Christensen, is evident in the SAP community every day. While SAP and its partners are cautious, their competitors are rushing ahead with innovations.
Artificial intelligence requires a radical new approach in many areas of IT. How should SAP guide its well-established and highly successful ERP system through the AI revolution? It's an AI dilemma.
SAP is rightfully proud of its ERP automation with the AI agent, Joule. However, in its excitement about this successful product, SAP overlooked holding a briefing with customers to discuss where and how far the AI agent can go.
Savoir-vivre—the art of enjoying life! The French seem to have achieved this even with information technology. Viva Technology, an annual IT and AI festival in Paris, attracts 180,000 visitors. AI is revolutionizing information technology. SAP is working on evolutionary optimization.
Although AI agents like SAP Joule show great potential, their ability to adhere to all compliance rules has yet to be proven. Might SAP and other AI providers suffer the same fate as the sorcerer's apprentice in Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's eponymous ballad?
The idea is obvious yet has not been widely discussed. An operating system for managing AI agents. Instead, SAP is constantly creating new Joule AI universes for specific tasks. Does SAP not see the “big picture” of AI?
The familiar CCoE (Customer Center of Expertise) could become the CCCoE (Customer Cloud Center of Expertise) because RISE and GROW are not all-inclusive offerings. Without the contribution of SAP customers, little will change. SAP itself is undergoing a transformation!
It is one of the most discussed topics in the SAP community: license costs for the SAP Cloud ERP Suite. SAP and the hyperscalers claim that cloud computing also brings savings for users. Statements by SAP CEO Christian Klein suggest otherwise.
At the virtual SAP Annual General Meeting in mid-May, CEO Christian Klein explained the entire ERP offering and the BTP and BDC platforms. It was a consistent picture, but S/4 was missing and the flagship product was not mentioned. What now?

Working on the SAP basis is crucial for successful S/4 conversion. 

This gives the Competence Center strategic importance for existing SAP customers. Regardless of the S/4 Hana operating model, topics such as Automation, Monitoring, Security, Application Lifecycle Management and Data Management the basis for S/4 operations.

For the second time, E3 magazine is organizing a summit for the SAP community in Salzburg to provide comprehensive information on all aspects of S/4 Hana groundwork.

Venue

FourSide Hotel Salzburg,
Trademark Collection by Wyndham
Am Messezentrum 2, 5020 Salzburg, Austria
+43-66-24355460

Event date

Wednesday, June 10, and
Thursday, June 11, 2026

Early Bird Ticket

Regular ticket

Subscribers to the E3 Magazine Ticket

reduced with promocode CCAbo26

Students*

reduced with promocode CCStud26.
Please send proof of studies by e-mail to office@b4bmedia.net.
*The first 10 tickets are free of charge for students. Try your luck! 🍀
EUR 390 excl. VAT
available until November 30, 2025
EUR 590 excl. VAT
EUR 390 excl. VAT
EUR 290 excl. VAT

Venue

Hotel Hilton Heidelberg
Kurfürstenanlage 1
D-69115 Heidelberg

Event date

Wednesday, April 22 and
Thursday, April 23, 2026

Tickets

Early Bird Ticket
Regular ticket
EUR 390 excl. VAT
available until 30.11.2025
EUR 590 excl. VAT
Subscribers to the E3 magazine
reduced with promocode STAbo26
EUR 390 excl. VAT
Students*
reduced with promocode STStud26.
Please send proof of studies by e-mail to office@b4bmedia.net.
EUR 290 excl. VAT
*The first 10 tickets are free of charge for students. Try your luck! 🍀
The event is organized by the E3 magazine of the publishing house B4Bmedia.net AG. The presentations will be accompanied by an exhibition of selected SAP partners. The ticket price includes attendance at all presentations of the Steampunk and BTP Summit 2026, a visit to the exhibition area, participation in the evening event and catering during the official program. The lecture program and the list of exhibitors and sponsors (SAP partners) will be published on this website in due course.