SAP: Times Are Changing

One of the major changes for SAP widely discussed at SAPPHIRE is the pending appointment of Leo Apotheker as SAP's sole CEO. During his keynote address, Apotheker touched on the theme of change frequently, underscoring the need for SAP to be a more agile, responsive and customer-centric company. Signs of change are present in SAP's newly launched Business Objects Explorer, a solution that allows business users to easily search extensive databases for vital information using natural language. Another recent and significant example of change is SAP's willingness to work closely with customers to prove the value of its across-the-board 22%-of-license cost for maintenance. SAP and SUGEN have established Value Key Performance Indicators for SAP Enterprise Support to ensure that the value delivered by Enterprise Support aligns with the needs and expectations of SAP customers. Specifically, an independent party will monitor 100 Enterprise Support test customers, and SAP will implement its 22% price tag for support only if this study reveals a 30% improvement in critical areas such as total cost of ownership. Change indeed. No other large enterprise applications vendor (i.e., Oracle charges 22% for maintenance) is willing to validate its support offering in such an objective manner.

Change is also present on the SAP SME front. During SAPPHIRE, Optimal Solutions announced FlexChoice Advantage, a new, highly flexible subscription-based pricing and delivery model that makes it easy and affordable for midsize companies to implement and quickly realize the benefits of running their business on SAP solutions. Optimal's FlexChoice Advantage provides SMEs the option of fixed monthly payments over 3, 5 or 7-year contracts that cover SAP licensing, maintenance, implementation, hardware, hosting, and support. To date, Optimal Solutions is the only vendor offing a subscription-based model for pricing and delivery of SAP All-in-One qualified partner solutions.

Read InformationWeek article: SAP Braces for Change

Read press release from Optimal Solutions Integration, Inc.: Optimal Solutions Announces Subscription-Based Model for Buying, Implementing and Supporting SAP Solutions

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