Reframing our focus towards a greener planet, one person at a time

Celebrating Earth Day serves as a conscious reminder of how fragile our planet is and how important it is to protect it. The COVID-19 pandemic has shown that local actions can have global consequences: In the same way that a health crisis in one part of the world can quickly touch every corner of the globe, so too can unsustainable business practices accelerate an environmental catastrophe that affects us all.

But Earth Day is so much more than just a date on the calendar: It marks a commitment to protecting our world for the generations to come. While SAP has announced it will go carbon neutral by the end of 2023, we at SAP S/4HANA are making our own contribution towards sustainability by helping our customers manage their ‘green line’.

It is SAP’s vision to embed sustainability as a new dimension of success and deliver innovations in a portfolio of sustainability products embedded along end-to-end business processes in the Intelligent Enterprise, starting with SAP S/4HANA, and help our customers become sustainable enterprises. To coincide with Earth Day, SAP is hosting the SAP Sustainability Summit on April 28-29 for our customers to learn more about how we can help them shape a sustainable future.

Sustainability is an integral part of our strategy at SAP S/4HANA. Every small step counts in the fight again global climate change. From a young schoolgirl in Sweden starting a movement to a colleague who cycles to work everyday, any individual contribution towards environment protection is precious. We can all turn into heroes of our natural environment by treating it diligently and acting protectively. In other words, besides thinking globally, we should act locally in order to be able to understand the importance of it and make real change. Read on to see the efforts that members of our SAP S/4HANA Leadership team are making to restore our planet and live sustainably...

Yours truly, Jan Gilg

What does SAP S/4HANA do to 'restore our earth' in your opinion?

SAP S/4HANA runs business operations. With that it gives unique insights and transparency into carbon footprint and other resources like plastics. It can proactively help make the more sustainable decision. Given the scale we have and the size of business volume that flows through SAP S/4HANA, the impact cannot be underestimated. 

What changes have you made to your lifestyle that reflect your changing relationship with the planet?

I enjoy taking bike rides and I don’t use the car to get around Heidelberg. Plus I’ve been much more conscious about cooking instead of getting takeout. We also try to waste as little food as possible in our house.

Judith Pistor

What sustainability feature of SAP S/4HANA are you most excited about?

 I’m excited by the ability to extend the traditional costing model to capture and reflect CO2 inputs in products and operations. This will allow companies to transform their operations and to reduce their carbon footprint.

What changes have you made to your lifestyle that reflect your changing relationship with the planet?

I have been living as a vegetarian as much as possible over the past two years: My son lives a vegan lifestyle and he inspired me to make the change for the sake of animals and the environment.

Joern Keller

How do you ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’?

I return all my glass and plastic bottles plus cans to the local CVS store. Whenever I get there, they tell me that CVS doesn’t take empty bottles and cans – and then I tell them that they do ?? . After a few minutes, the manager shows up and confirms that they do take them back. Now I just have to hope that CVS does the right thing with them… 

What changes have you made to your lifestyle that reflect your changing relationship with the planet? 

The increasing availability of vegan food has encouraged me to start eating vegan at least once a week. My local store has a nice collection of vegan chilli, burger patties, vegan meatballs, pizza, and more.

Vijay Seethapathy

How do you ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’?

Before the pandemic I moved into a new house that is built in an eco-friendly way: It uses natural lighting and wind to try to reduce energy requirements. In my family we try to do our bit in reducing waste and saving resources: We compost, collect rainwater, and have solar panels to win energy that way. I think every little thing we can do is a step in the right direction. In general being in touch with nature also evokes a responsibility towards our planet. Here are a few clicks from me.

How do you think new technology can help in the fight against climate change? 

Technology allows us to become efficient, increase sharing, and predict maintenance – and together all this contributes to minimizing the amount of resources we use and reduce our carbon footprint. Technology has always helped us solve our problems – while it’s easy to blame technology for today’s consumerism, it’s also true that technology can help us improve things for all of us.

Alex Lingg

How do you ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’?

Before I buy anything new, I check whether I really need it and if yes; I buy high quality so that I can use it for a long time. If there’s something that I don’t need anymore I like to pass it on to someone instead of throwing it away. I usually ask my family and friends first, if it could be of any use to them. As alternative, I offer it online to pass it on at a fair price. 

How do you think new technology can help in the fight against climate change? 

New technology is the key to winning the fight against climate change. Nowadays, we can track and reduce the carbon footprint of products, we can optimize supply chains based on ecological aspects, and we can connect people to share and re-use products using online platforms. 

Sven Denecken

How do you 'recycle, reduce, reuse'?

I have internalized the slogan ‘Think before you print’ and apply this every day. I also proudly support our solutions that impact our clients, and with that, the Earth – every day!

What changes have you made to your lifestyle that reflect your changing relationship with the planet?

I have planned to install solar panels at home to reduce our carbon footprint and to make a contribution to supporting renewable energy sources.

Franz Hero

What sustainability feature of SAP S/4HANA are you most excited about?

IBP matches demand with supply. By forecasting the right demand, you can actually reduce waste by maximizing revenue. This forecasting can then help companies become both sustainable and more profitable.

What does SAP S/4HANA do to 'restore our earth' in your opinion?

SAP S/4HANA Transportation Management optimizes the load/mileage ratio and in this way it contributes to reducing CO2 emissions.

Gunther Rothermel

How do you think new technology can help in the fight against climate change? 

This is exactly what we are focusing on with the SAP Product Footprint Management that is part of the Climate 21 initiative.

What changes have you made to your lifestyle that reflect your changing relationship with the planet?

I have adjusted my buying behavior, for example, I won’t buy fruit that has had to travel a long way by ship or plane. I also try to avoid buying goods that have unnecessary plastic packaging.

Oliver Bahner 

How do you think new technology can help in the fight against climate change? 

The more data we gain and set into perspective and relation towards carbon footprint, pollution, and use of natural resources, the better business processes and supporting technologies can be adjusted to establish intelligent and climate-neutral economies. 

What changes have you made to your lifestyle that reflect your changing relationship with the planet? 

The pandemic situation and experience I gained from being unable to travel, limited consumption of goods, and having plenty of time to rethink "how to spend your lifetime" improved my buying behavior: I now buy more from local vendors, eat less meat and fish (but higher quality), get out into nature at home and enjoy it (instead of travelling to far locations), and I also take the bike for a ride instead of spending hours in traffic jams commuting to/from the office.