SAP S/4 Hana 2023 to 2040
If SAP has its way, Hana and S/4 will have a long life ahead of them. But that is not yet the case, as many SAP customers are still holding off on making the switch. Future innovations, however, would argue for a rapid release change, even if this is associated with higher costs.
RISE with SAP
It used to be common knowledge that RISE was the roadmap to SAP’s cloud service, which included business process reengineering by Signavio. However, a graphic SAP recently released shows that RISE with SAP was only intended to be a technical foundation for the applications Advanced Shipping and Receiving, Sales Order Automation, and Collaborative MRP in 2021. Of course, RISE with SAP has an important role to play within the context of S/4 conversion, but apparently SAP trusts good, old Abap—SAP’s own programming language—to do more.
Embedded Steampunk
For a long time, the future of Abap was a hot topic within the SAP community, as the programming language is a relic from the SAP R/3 era and thus an on-prem product. Many experts currently rely on Java and open-source tools for programming, as hardly anyone believed Abap would be used on the cloud-based Business Technology Platform, BTP. Steampunk, however, is precisely the framework that will allow Abap to live on in the cloud computing era. According to the aforementioned SAP graphic, by 2022 many applications, such as Advanced Intercompany Sales and Supply-Based Confirmation, would be based on Embedded Steampunk.
FPS Toggle Framework
For many years, SAP’s customers have been plagued by the fact that many of Business Suite 7’s additional functions can be switched on, but not switched off, resulting in higher maintenance costs and an extended trial-and-error process. Part of the reason for this one-way street is technical: additional functions often create further Abap tables that cannot simply be deleted again. The other part is of course a simple sales trick. Users who want to be able to switch certain functions on and off will have to purchase a Feature Pack Stack (FPS) Toggle Framework, which affords them this ability. This Feature Flags Service will be available this year for the following applications: Capable-to-Promise (aATP), Asset-Centric Service, and Safety Data Sheet Authoring, among others.
Central Business Configuration
Central Business Configuration, a comprehensive successor to RISE with SAP, will be available in 2025. All the control functions for basic administration will be combined within the program and used specifically for the following applications: Enhanced Sustainability, Complex Assets, and Enhanced Sales Order Scheduling. Based on these four innovations—RISE with SAP, Steampunk, Toggle Framework, and Central Business Configuration— we can assume that SAP is steadily developing and preparing the S/4 Hana technology stack for future innovation.
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