All Cloud and AI? BI Brunch Focused on Trends

Right in the middle of the topic started Manfred Scheiner, Head of Sales Cloud ERP and our 'go-to guy' for everything related. His slightly provocative title for the introduction: SAP Cloud ERP & BI – Friends or Rivals? To avoid confusion with all the terminology in the SAP world, he had a brilliant overview of the current names of the corresponding solutions. Even for professionals like me, it was a helpful reminder. And to clarify: By the title, he meant the SAP ERP system in the public cloud. He also provided the answer to his own question: SAP Cloud ERP and BI are friends!

SAP Cloud ERP and the SAP Analytics Cloud (SAC)

Next, Paul Langeder from the SRB EAP team demonstrated how SAP Cloud ERP & Enterprise SAC work together. Here, SAP has provided several options. While analytics in the Fiori world, the entry launchpad of every SAP system, is already known, there is a specially built SAC in SAP Cloud ERP.

You may remember: This is the tool that creates beautiful dashboards as a central component in reporting. This very tool is included here and can be applied directly to the data in the SAP system.

However, if you already have your own SAC (= Enterprise SAC), that’s not a problem either. It can also be seamlessly integrated, including all functions such as planning and its retraction into Cloud ERP. Accordingly, it was important for Paul to emphasise:

"Embedded Analytics is not an add-on, it is standard and must be planned from the start in the project!"

SAP BW – and then?

A look into the future of BW was provided by the presentation from Ingo Peter, Architecture Advisor at SAP Austria. His focus was on SAP Business Data Cloud, strategy & outlook, based on practical starting points that many companies face with SAP BW:

• A SAP S/4HANA migration is considered more important than a BW migration. Implementing both is seen as an impossible task, resulting in a preference for S/4.
• Companies have already made significant investments in the existing BW landscape over many years.
• 'Data hunting' in BW is a reality. The assumption: more data, more value. Over the years, everything in BW has been secured, often multiple times. The motivation for housekeeping, however, has been limited, as licensing was not based on data volume.

As if that weren't challenging enough, the business requirements are simultaneously changing: AI is entering or is desired – and as quickly as possible. To address this, Ingo recommends the following steps:

• Housekeeping in BW: Unused objects/applications and technical table contents should be deleted or their volume reduced (for the BW colleagues: Get to the change log, PSA, ...).
• Use the 'BW Product Generator' of the SAP Business Data Cloud to transfer the history of older reports into an SAP Object Store. This is an inexpensive storage option that is now integrated with the SAP Business Data Cloud (BDC) in the Datasphere. If needed, the data is still available for reporting, just not in the expensive storage segment.
• The slimmed-down BW will be moved to the private cloud, along with all existing reports, and then integrated into the BDC. This can lead to significant cost savings.
• New reporting objects or applications will be developed in the new BDC environment. The 'old world' can be gradually replaced and the BW reduced.

What appears complicated at first glance has numerous advantages. Ultimately, these steps lead to a future-proof reporting landscape and also enable the use of extensive new tools for AI and ML or the Intelligent Applications (listed below under the old name Insight Apps).

Source: SAP

New Strategies with SAC, BDC & Co.

After processing the many inputs at the brunch, we continued strengthened and enriched with some new acquaintances into the world of Wienerberger AG. Bernhard Schön, Team Leader of Business Analytics Solutions, impressed the guests of the BI Brunch with a well-founded overview of the New Analytic Strategy with SAC, BDC & Co. at the world's largest brick producer.

The challenges are not to be underestimated: Bernhard initially describes the situation in 2022, mentioning a 'tool zoo', few internal colleagues in the central reporting team, and a BW system that has grown over 25 years. A decentralised organisation worldwide and a fragmented frontend landscape do not make it easier either. But: Very early on, Wienerberger relied on a Databricks system for production with sensor data.

Thus, the plans for how Wienerberger wanted to prepare for the future were even more ambitious (already largely implemented today). First, a clear reporting strategy was formulated: SAC will be the new central reporting tool, which has already replaced the old BI portal (Java stack). Furthermore, Wienerberger is relying on BW/4. The migration took place this summer. Why? A migration directly to Datasphere was not realistic, and with BW/4, the system landscape can remain as is until 2040 (end of maintenance).

In September, Wienerberger began a PoC with SAP Business Data Cloud. Bernhard emphasises how important he considers this new SAP system. Specifically, the integration of the existing Databricks system should no longer be an issue in the future.

There are still some challenges to overcome on this path. The core questions revolve around how to replace the extensive .net developed planning and whether the replacement of Qlik with SAC will succeed?

A central component for successfully completing this project, Bernhard sees in the reporting culture and key user community. He candidly concludes:

"Not everything is perfect, but we have an idea of what we want to achieve. The journey is the goal here!"

AI in SAP – what is possible, what is coming

Finally, it was my 'big appearance'. My presentation revolves around AI in SAP, what is possible today, what is coming tomorrow.

When it comes to AI at SAP, it can be divided into four areas:

• Joule and the Joule Agents, the SAP AI Copilot
• Embedded AI Capabilities: AI features are or will be directly built into SAP solutions, seamlessly integrated and immediately ready for use.
• Customized AI, based on the AI Foundation for developing custom AI applications
• Analytics AI in the SAP BDC: This concerns data in the Datasphere or SAC, with this data also serving as an AI basis for further applications in Databricks or others.

The SAP Discovery Center is very helpful in exploring AI possibilities. Here, there is detailed information and videos on whether a specific feature is included in an SAP package. "On top", SAP also offers a cost estimator.

And what will the future bring us? Personally, I am looking forward to the Story AI Assistant in SAC. The Joule/Microsoft 365 Copilot integration will be somewhat larger, which is expected to be bidirectional. There will be more features, smarter interactions, and better, faster integrations between SAP systems, so the promise goes. And to return to analytics: The Business Data Cloud will be our data hub! Perhaps not next year. How far SAP will be by then, we will all hear at the next BI Brunch in 2026.