SAP Solution: CHefredakteur

The future in artificial intelligence shines brightly for SAP's existing customers because of their sustained commitment. By contrast, SAP board members Christian Klein, Thomas Saueressig and Jürgen Müller remain unimpressive and colorless.

SAP's cryptic programming language Abap is not a protective wall against cyber attacks. The Abap code is well documented and other entry points exist. SAP systems are at risk just like other IT systems.

SAP is having a hard time with AI, as a recent interview with CEO Christian Klein in Handelsblatt shows. AI-assisted capture of incoming invoices is a standard process. ERP innovation should deliver more.

There is a new version of the legendary Data Hub at SAP. Because the former project failed miserably, it was quietly disposed of and is now to be replaced by Datasphere together with partners beyond the SAP community.

A change of era at SAP as well: Luka Mucic, a veteran, is leaving the ERP world market leader and, similar to ex-CEO Jim Hagemann Snabe and his CFO predecessor Werner Brand, he will not be returning to SAP. Gerd Oswald remains an exception.

The cover of Harvard Business Manager read: Can you be a CEO? A particularly relevant question in the SAP community. Since CEO Professor Henning Kagermann, many people have taken the CEO chair, sometimes in pairs.

A relevant IT system should not have a single point of failure. What was obviously a standard in a past on-prem age does not seem to apply now in the networked cloud age, see DB and Lufthansa.

Of course, AI will never learn to drive sensibly. How could it? There are no practical instructions and real roads on the web. But everything about business management and organization can be found on the web.

A few years ago, ex-SAP CEO Bill McDermott promised greater involvement in healthcare, and there is a Digital Health department at the Hasso Plattner Institute (HPI). What does Christian Klein make of IS-H?

It is no longer possible to imagine B2B software without open source. SAP's existing customers are looking at solutions from this area, and not just because of the Linux/Hana combination. But is SAP itself making sufficient use of the open source potential?

An SAP graphic titled "S/4 Hana 2022 and beyond" shows, at the Technology level, the Rise with SAP product for 2021, Embedded Steampunk for 2022, FPS Toggle Framework for 2023, and Central Business Configuration for 2025.

SAP is considering code splitting for S/4 Hana because many existing R/3 and Business Suite 7 customers distrust the promises of cloud computing, and SAP apparently gives hybrid ERP little chance.