Navigating the Future: The strategy for S/4HANA Public Edition Adoption

In our continuous efforts to support SAP Transformations, we actively engage with clients throughout their journey, providing comprehensive assistance from assessing business cases to executing changes. As the business landscape evolves, so does the need for ongoing transformation.

Adapting to Change: The business imperative for ongoing transformation is shared across industries. With software vendors and cloud companies shifting towards the Cloud, the Case for Cloud becomes pivotal within RISE with SAP, focusing on flexibility, agility, innovation, and sustainability.

Embracing the Cloud involves adopting a mindset that incorporates IaaS, PaaS, and SaaS opportunities. We play a crucial role in helping clients navigate these offerings, from the initial IaaS stage to the innovative solutions of PaaS and the mature landscape of SaaS.

Looking ahead, the future of SAP ERP deployment is expected to be predominantly SaaS-based. This aligns with the commercial model of RISE with SAP, emphasizing the imperative to embrace it for optimal benefits. Our proposed trajectory involves adopting the comprehensive S/4HANA Public Edition over 5 to 10 years, acknowledging the current focus on.

Large Enterprises are considering the S/4HANA Public Edition for subsidiaries and similar entities. The Clean Core strategy involves assessing the standard functionalities of the Public Edition and using SAP BTP for additional requirements, maintaining a pure SaaS solution without compromising the core software's integrity.

Managing subsidiaries with SaaS and headquarters with RISE with SAP, S/4HANA Private Cloud edition, necessitates a Two-Tier Hybrid SAP ERP deployment. As the Public Edition matures, a transformation from Private to Public ERP systems becomes inevitable in the next future.

The upcoming transformation requires a proactive approach, including the adoption of a Cloud mindset and addressing existing technical debt. A Clean Core strategy, implemented today, simplifies current systems and positions businesses to seamlessly transition to the S/4HANA Public Edition when the time is right.

As we anticipate the future of SAP ERP systems, embracing a Clean Core strategy with an Hybrid ERP approach proves to be a forward-thinking and proactive approach. By addressing technical debt today, businesses can not only unlock immediate benefits but also streamline future transformations, ensuring a smooth and cost-effective transition to the S/4HANA Public Edition when the time comes.

In this blog posted on SAP Community, you can find more on how to implement the right approach: https://blogs.sap.com/2023/10/10/why-clean-core-in-preparing-the-next-s-4hana-public-edition-wave/