Five critical decision drivers about RISE with SAP

At the beginning of 2021, SAP released a new product designed to help clients achieve an intelligent enterprise. The product was named “RISE with SAP”—maybe a word game derived from the expression “the sap is rising,” announcing a new springtime?

Christian Klein, SAP’s president, called this offering “transformation as a service.”

Transformation as a service extends SAP’s software offering with SaaS, PaaS, and Advisory Services. You obtain software licenses, application management, infrastructure, operating systems, systems management, implementation, and process advisory—a complete All-in-One offering.

Now, in 2025, it has become clear that SAP's strategy for the future is RISE with SAP.

This strategy will allow SAP to reinforce its recurring business, achieve better financial planning through multi-year contracts, and increase SAP’s revenue with the customer’s SAP infrastructure.

But do you know if this is what you are looking for? Are you convinced of assigning responsibility for your IT operations to your ERP software manufacturer? Until today, these areas have been the expertise of known hyperscalers, IT Consultants, and System Integrators.

Questions often posed by SAP customers regarding RISE with SAP include:

-??????? Are SAP’s abilities and internal processes mature enough to fulfill my infrastructure and application services expectations?

-??????? Can they guarantee my company’s IT operations supporting critical processes?

-??????? Can SAP compete with my current services and service levels?

-??????? Will the future TCO of SAP provide enough value to my company to justify the additional spending?

Since RISE with SAP came out, most of our clients have wondered: What is “RISE with SAP”? How is it different from S/4HANA Cloud? For which clients is this? What does it contain? Is the pricing also attractive?

Finally, we are obtaining answers. So, leaving aside any marketing buzzwords:

RISE with SAP combines the existing SAP S/4HANA cloud with the HANA database, operating system, hyperscaler infrastructure, and eventual additional components that depend on the RISE package you choose. Thus, its main component is SAP S/4HANA cloud—private or public option—including SAP licenses and support, infrastructure, and infrastructure services in one contract.

What is now different from the S/4HANA cloud that SAP has been offering in the last few years?

Components included in RISE with SAP, private edition

1 – Main package: RISE with SAP

“RISE with SAP, private edition” combines the ERP software (SAP S/4HANA Cloud), the Database (SAP HANA), the operating system, and the system infrastructure installed on one of the leading hyperscalers.

2 – The included software: SAP S/4HANA Cloud, private edition

The software in RISE with SAP is SAP S/4HANA Cloud, private edition. Depending on the package you choose, additional components are included. Minimum purchase of 60 full-user equivalents. The core of the software offers functionality in these areas:

3 – The product packaging of RISE with SAP

In 2025, SAP is offering RISE with SAP licenses in three different packages: the Base edition, the Premium edition, and the Premium Plus edition. As usual, you should first evaluate which components you need in what quantities and then assess whether the packaged solutions are a better financial alternative than buying the single solutions separately.

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CONCLUSIONS AND CRITICAL DECISION DRIVERS

Will RISE with SAP make you turn your head towards SAP’s cloud strategy? It depends on your situation. The decision on whether to purchase RISE with SAP should not only depend on the TCO – even if money is one of the leading five factors to consider.

When evaluating whether RISE with SAP is the right choice for your business, it’s essential to consider these five key factors:

1.???? Your Functional Requirements: Ensure RISE supports your specific business needs and processes effectively.

2.???? Integration Efforts: Assess the complexity and effort required to migrate integrations with non-SAP applications to the RISE environment.

3.???? Business-Criticality: Determine whether SAP can reliably support the mission-critical operations of your SAP applications.

4.???? IT Operational Needs: Evaluate your specific service level requirements for performance, high availability, disaster recovery, backup, incident response, and resolution times in detail.

5.???? TCO and ROI: Analyze the Total Cost of Ownership of your SAP installation, the financial justification, and the long-term value of transitioning to RISE.

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By addressing these factors, you can make a well-informed decision tailored to your unique business strategy.

So, the questions you need to answer will still be: Upgrade now or later? SAP ECC, SAP S/4HANA, or RISE with SAP? Perpetual or subscription? Cloud or on-premises? SAP-managed infrastructure, hyperscaler-managed infrastructure, or your own infrastructure? Today’s SAP TCO vs. your future TCO? ROI?

Ready to shape your SAP strategy for the future? At VOQUZ Labs, we provide expert guidance to help you make informed decisions. Let’s connect! Schedule a meeting with me, and together we’ll craft a tailored plan that works for your unique needs.

Francisco F. Hansen COO VOQUZ Labs

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