SAP is the largest ERP provider
According to Consultancy.nl, the leading platform for and about the advisory and consultancy industry, more than two-thirds of large and medium-sized companies in the Netherlands use an ERP solution. SAP is the largest ERP supplier in our country (20%), followed by Microsoft (12%) and Exact (9%). Most SAP users are currently working with SAP ECC. SAP will stop supporting these versions in 2027 and users will have to switch to SAP S/4HANA.
Not just an upgrade
Switching to the HANA platform offers many benefits thanks to intelligent automation supported by artificial intelligence and robotic process automation. At the same time, it implies a lot more. SAP S/4HANA runs on SAP’s in-memory database, HANA, which means that this is not just another upgrade but a significant transition in terms of your architectural landscape. The move to HANA also means that in many cases, you will have to say goodbye to your current infrastructure.
Every cloud has a silver lining
Of course, that may be something you dread doing. But you can also view it as an opportunity and seize the moment to think about your infrastructure and administration. Where will you be running the SAP environment in future: in the cloud or on site? And if you decide to move to the cloud, will it be a public cloud, SAP’s cloud, an SaaS environment, a private cloud, or will you decide to opt for an SAP solution in Microsoft Azure?
Combine the transition to work even better together
There may well be several reasons for making the switch to the cloud. Working from home is the new normal, but not all companies are ideally equipped for this. If you work with Zoom or an application for making video calls and are looking for an opportunity to make it easier for your employees to collaborate on files, wherever they are, at any time and on any device, this could also be a good time to move to Microsoft Office 365, including Microsoft Teams.
No one size fits all
The problem is there is no infrastructure that is best for everyone. Each environment is unique, and it is important to look at the best solution for each environment. This is often partly on site and partly in the public cloud. In a hybrid environment like this, you have to decide for each application where it can best operate and how this will evolve in future. This also allows you to move to a cloud environment step by step.
Combining both worlds
For us, as an implementation partner for both SAP and Microsoft, the ultimate challenge is to combine these two worlds in the best possible way – something that is different for every company. An SAP solution in Microsoft Azure is a very good solution that has already proven its worth in practice. But is SAP in the public cloud still a bridge too far? If so, it is also possible to place SAP in Ctac’s private cloud while Microsoft Office 365, for example, is already in the Azure cloud.
Moving forward… at your own pace
We recently supported TomTom in their transition to SAP on Microsoft Azure. Together, we migrated SAP on HANA (ECC and BW) to SAP on Azure, with the scalability and simplification of SAP on Azure offering TomTom greater operational flexibility and speed.
Curious?
We realise that TomTom is a technology-driven company, fully ready to accept Azure and its huge number of future-proof tools. Not every organisation is at that stage yet. If you are curious about what might be the best solution for your business, one that fits you like a glove while also allowing you flexibility for the future, get in touch and we will be happy to get to know you and your organisation.
