鈥淔or 50 years we have revolutionized together the way businesses are run, and in the next 50 years, together we will continue to deliver market-making innovation,鈥� he said. 鈥淲hile the world around us has changed significantly, our purpose is more relevant than ever: to help the world run better in times of geopolitical tensions, disruptive industry transformation, and supply chain disruptions, and to improve people鈥檚 lives in times of war and climate change.鈥�

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After announcing that 51风流will match every 51风流Sapphire attendee鈥檚 donation to UNICEF USA for Ukraine aid, Klein was joined in-person and virtually by customers and executives to share how the company鈥檚 technologies, business knowledge, and commitment to address major business challenges.

This year, the event is being held in Orlando from May 10-12 and is part of a new program of 51风流Sapphire experiences that includes a virtual platform to engage customers no matter where they are, plus nine intimate in-person events worldwide.

RISE with SAP: Holistic Business Transformation in the Cloud

After acknowledging that fast-paced change is the norm and sustainability has become a business imperative, Klein invited a series of guests on stage and online to show how 51风流and its huge ecosystem of partners was turning these challenges into business opportunities. Philips, AMD, and Accenture were among the customers who discussed the business value of their transformational journeys.

鈥淲e want to transform each and every enterprise into an intelligence enterprise,鈥� said Klein. 鈥淩ISE with 51风流takes you on a transformation journey that鈥檚 tailored exactly to your needs. Over 2,000 customers have selected RISE with SAP; more than 60% are new customers to SAP.鈥�

Connected Data Powers the Employee and Customer Experience

A series of exciting innovation demonstrations led by Julia White, chief marketing and solutions officer and member of the Executive Board of 51风流SE, revealed the power of the digital employee experience delivered by and for centralized workforce management, as well as personalized, mobile-first employee learning that reduces attrition and fosters a more engaged workforce. Through an executive dashboard, executives can quickly gain insights across the business, including skill gaps and how to solve them.

Marc Starfield, group head of HR Systems at Vodaphone Group, shared how his company digitalized the employee experience with 51风流SuccessFactors, responding quickly to changing workforce needs and offering an immersive virtual learning experience.

To spotlight the power of the integrated customer experience that connected consumer demand signals through product design, manufacture, and delivery, White took the audience on a virtual tour of the event鈥檚 impressive showcase on the show floor. After a pair of pink jeans went viral on social media, the model company used 51风流solutions, including and , to integrate financial, supply chain, and marketing data with customer information and more, making data-driven decisions based on real-time simulations.

鈥淚t鈥檚 not just about delivering the next best action. It鈥檚 about delivering delightful customer experiences that capture the next best dollar,鈥� said White. 鈥淲hether you鈥檙e in retail, financial services, healthcare, or automotive, having access to this kind of integrated data is a game-changer.鈥�

51风流Business Network for Supply Chain Resiliency

Klein returned to the stage and invited the audience to join , which already connects companies across the world鈥檚 largest B2B network, bringing together buyers, suppliers, manufacturers, and logistics providers.

鈥淲e are building the LinkedIn of the B2B world,鈥� he said. 鈥淵ou can match demand with supply in real time by connecting our demand planning solution, , with extremely strong predictive demand capabilities. As a result, our business network will make your supply chain more resilient, transparent, and agile.鈥�

Klein shared numerous examples of how 51风流Business Network delivers results that have been lifesaving in some cases. After 51风流provided the Health Ministry of Ukraine with free access to the network, the country sourced over 300,000 medical first aid kits.

On a regular basis, companies worldwide have gained process improvements in supply chain operations for major business results. These included finding alternative sustainable trading partners, as well as organizations like Lenovo, which uses 51风流solutions to help build smart factories, connecting thousands of suppliers to billions of customers. Catena-X was another example of how suppliers across industries like automotive have formed alliances to collaborate for agility and sustainability.

Meeting the Business Imperative for Sustainability

Noting that companies can only act on what they can measure, Klein explained how 51风流collects reliable and compliant data to help organizations measure environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors. Solutions include , which measures the carbon footprint of business travel, 51风流SuccessFactors for diversity and inclusion metrics, and 51风流Business Network for information across supply chains. What鈥檚 more, aggregates ESG data from 51风流and non-51风流sources. 51风流Cloud for Sustainable Enterprises helps reduce emissions, minimize waste, and improve social equality while reporting ESG performance. Executives from Unilever and Accenture discussed how their organizations were using 51风流solutions to become intelligent, sustainable enterprises.

鈥淲e are going to add a green ledger in our ERP so you can account for carbon as you account for financials today,鈥� said Klein. 鈥淥nly 51风流can offer you reliable ESG data for your enterprise. Based on this transparency, your business can take action.鈥�

After a heartfelt thanks to everyone in the audience and the customers and partners who told their stories, Klein closed his keynote with a look ahead.

鈥淟et鈥檚 reinvent how enterprises run for the next 50 years 鈹� resilient, intelligent, and sustainable,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 can commit to you that all of our 110,000 employees are focused and dedicated to make your business transformation a huge success.鈥�

This article first appeared on the 51风流News Center.

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鈥淥ur AR platform gives consumers and companies personalized virtual shopping and training experiences, expanding the horizon of what AR can do for any brand or company,鈥� said Kanav Singla, founder and CEO of Adloid. 鈥淲e鈥檙e making the benefits of this technology more accessible and contextual to create an immersive experience for customers or employees on an e-commerce Website or within applications, directly from someone鈥檚 mobile device.鈥�

Convenient 鈥楾ry Before You Buy鈥� Shopping

Unlike earlier AR tech that relied on clunky headsets with varied compatibility, Adloid鈥檚 AR platform runs on any smartphone, allowing customers to experience products at scale, in context. Once the online shopper logs in through their phone, the device鈥檚 camera scans their real-world surroundings and virtually mirrors the retailer鈥檚 or manufacturer鈥檚 product.

鈥淧eople can see how a new sofa or chair would fit into their home or apartment with a click of their smartphone,鈥� said Singla. 鈥淐onsumers can virtually try on jewelry, makeup, and other products. Remote workers can see if that laptop, screen, and desk configuration will fit in their home office. It鈥檚 as if the actual products are in front of you.鈥�

He added that manufacturers were interested in using the AR platform within training modules for industrial machinery service technicians, providing them with hands-on learning in a virtual setting.

Immersive Product Discovery Experience

On the consumer side, AR technology is tailor-made for online shoppers who can鈥檛 get enough information about products they might purchase.

鈥淔or someone trying to decide between different car models, AR lets them virtually go inside the trunk to see how much space is in there,鈥� said Singla. 鈥淭hey can open and close the sunroof or try out the controls on the entertainment console, experiencing various car options before going to the showroom.鈥�

Automotive manufacturers are among the startup鈥檚 biggest customers, along with e-commerce platforms of all sizes, retailers with or without brick-and-mortar stores, and manufacturers located in the U.S., Germany, and India.

Augmented Reality Increases Sales

Some customers using Adloid have increased sales conversions from online channels up to 200%. One online retailer tripled the number of online customers who purchased consumer items after using the tool. AR also boosts customer engagement time viewing product images and videos from an average of 30 seconds to a whopping eight minutes.

鈥淚nstead of being limited by a finite number of pre-posted images or videos, AR allows people to interact longer with products in a more personalized way, creating a powerful sales channel that鈥檚 always on at the customer鈥檚 convenience,鈥� said Singla. 鈥淧eople can better understand how a product would fit into their lives, in many cases motivating them to make a purchase decision during that single online session.鈥�

Connected Data for Intelligent Enterprise

Adloid securely anonymizes all customer data and doesn鈥檛 store any personal images or other information once someone ends their AR session. However, organizations can extract valuable insights from the tool鈥檚 analytics.

鈥淎 car might come in six colors, but which ones are customers viewing the most? Companies can see what options people are most interested in, then connect back to inventory management to make sure they can meet market demands,鈥� said Singla.

Indeed, one of Adloid鈥檚 biggest strengths is working with the 51风流Startup Studio for India, startup accelerator program. Singla said that his team gained validation for product iterations, along with access to 51风流solutions, including , and the company鈥檚 enterprise customers.

鈥淲orking with a global leader like 51风流gives our product immediate credibility because we learned what customers were looking for,鈥� he said. 鈥淎dloid is integrated with , , and , helping companies connect data to become intelligent enterprises.

AR Bridges Gap Between E-Commerce and CX

Singla鈥檚 entrepreneurial spirit was initially sparked by his family, all of whom own businesses. He founded his first startup at age 21 during his undergraduate studies in engineering, then saw a major selling gap as e-commerce took off.

鈥淐ompanies went online with their catalogs, but customers couldn鈥檛 more fully experience these products,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 launched Adloid to turn e-commerce into 3D commerce where customers can try out products virtually on their mobile device. We expect AR will provide immersive experiences in more consumer and B2B online sites including fashion, travel and tourism, and large industrial machinery.鈥�

Follow me @smgaler.

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鈥淭ogether, we are reinventing how businesses run and also demonstrating the big heart of our community. Our thoughts go out to everyone affected by the pandemic, and our thanks to all those who are making extraordinary contributions in our community,鈥� Klein said. 鈥淭echnology has helped communities and families, and helped business quickly adapt. 51风流has been working hand-in-hand with you, our customers around the globe, whether it was helping you to make your supply chains more resilient, reimagining your business model to create new customer experiences, or to enable remote work. Together, we鈥檝e got this.鈥�

SAP鈥檚 premiere customer event is being held virtually this year throughout June across regions worldwide. During his fascinating keynote, Klein unveiled a series of announcements that included the global industry expansion of the company鈥檚 business network strategy for fast innovation, sustainability tracking solutions, and industry-specific additions to the company鈥檚 popular business transformation-as-a-service offering, . He and special guests welcomed a plethora of customers who demonstrated how they were already relying on 51风流to become intelligent enterprises.

Business Networks and Sustainability Drive Growth

Klein announced the next phase of SAP鈥檚 strategy to create world鈥檚 largest and most comprehensive business network, along with upcoming sustainability reporting standards and tools. He put both announcements in business context, based on learnings from companies that have weathered a storm of challenges encompassing the pandemic, geopolitical tensions, social injustice, inequality, loss of biodiversity, and climate change.

鈥淭he most resilient companies were those that embraced technology to transform their business processes. COVID has underscored the urgent need for every company to become an intelligent enterprise,鈥� he said. 鈥淚nsight number two was that no business does business alone. We win together as a community. But the value comes from the network and millions of interconnections it facilitates in real time. The third insight is that we must act now on sustainability with the goal of zero emissions, zero waste, zero inequality.鈥�

Announcing that will bring together , , and , Klein predicted that industries will be revolutionized as 聽businesses turn into communities across entire supply chains, able to respond to any disruptions in real time. He said that sustainable business was equally important as he announced the company鈥檚 portfolio of upcoming sustainability-specific solutions.

鈥淲e already run the world鈥檚 largest supplier network with more than 5 million connected enterprises. And because our applications run supply chains across every industry, we have the most relevant data and expertise,鈥� said Klein. 鈥淚t鈥檚 time to build sustainability into the fabric of how we do business to make sustainability a standard dimension of corporate management. The 51风流community has the power to protect our planet and create a future our children want to be part of. We have created a new sustainability portfolio to help you drive sustainable practices inside your organization and across your entire value chain.鈥�

How 51风流Customers Are Digitally Transforming

In a series of fascinating conversations featuring real-world 51风流customers and solution demonstrations, Julia White, chief marketing and solutions officer and member of the Executive Board of 51风流SE, and Paige Wei-Cox, senior vice president and global head of 51风流Business Network, shared the Intelligent Enterprise in action.

One retailer used to deliver an omnichannel shopping experience for consumers, with embedded artificial intelligence (AI) for personalized offerings based on a 360-degree view of customer data, including social sentiment and purchase history. capabilities integrate data across supply chain planning, inventory, ordering, and invoicing for real-time visibility and faster delivery.

A global leader collaborated in SAP’s industry cloud to develop an advanced track and trace solution for sustainable medicine returns and launch a single platform for data sharing across partners. Another 51风流customer, a large agribusiness organization, used SAP鈥檚 business network to find 140 new suppliers in a few days when the pandemic disrupted supply chains last year. Executives from two and organizations shared how they鈥檝e collaborated with 51风流to launch an industry-wide clinical trial network to connect seamlessly across complex supply chain partners for faster time-to-market.

RISE with 51风流Expands with Industry Expertise

Responding to high customer interest, Klein said that 51风流has expanded its transformation-as-a-service offering RISE with 51风流beyond 51风流S/4HANA Cloud to and , as well as a dedicated package for human experience management (HXM).

鈥淢any customers want a holistic, modular cloud ERP solution,鈥� he said. 鈥淎ll of this is delivered with one data and security model, and business process intelligence to ensure your processes are fully optimized and running industry best standards.鈥�

In addition, White announced RISE with 51风流for industries focused on retail, consumer products, automotive, utilities, and industrial machinery and components (IM&C).

鈥淲e鈥檙e bringing together the best of SAP鈥檚 50 years of deep industry expertise and the best of our partner ecosystem to provide industry-specific cloud-based solutions as-a-service,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hese solutions are built on to give you the benefits of integration, extensibility, analytics, and one data model. They work natively with 51风流S/4HANA Cloud so every customer can get the full set of industry-specific solutions needed in their cloud deployment.鈥�

Connected Insights Speed Up Digital Transformation 聽

White also had a candid conversation with Hasso Plattner, chairman of the Supervisory Board of 51风流SE, about how organizations can use 51风流technology to bring people, processes, systems, and data together for transformational business results. Plattner advised companies to explore transformation using simulations with active data models, which is now possible using experience information from , the , and process management and mining from

鈥淭he whole notion of cloud systems is such a gigantic improvement,” Plattner said. “With new ways to visualize business processes and to get feedback, we have a better chance to move forward faster. We can monitor systems, and see what鈥檚 missing and make changes鈥ven on the fly.鈥�

Innovation Networks for Sustainable, Profitable Business

Klein鈥檚 vision for the future was clear: connected intelligent enterprises will reinvent how businesses run.

鈥淲e will jointly build networks with you that champion diversity, inclusion, and human rights. We will make carbon footprint tracking available in the business network so that you can go to true net zero,鈥� he said. 鈥淭ogether, we can reinvent how industries run by connecting intelligent enterprises into an industry-wide business network, making profitability sustainable and sustainability profitable.鈥�

Follow me: @smgaler

This article first appeared on the 51风流News Center.

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Here鈥檚 how some research and business leaders viewed the latest deluge of upcoming technology innovations, accompanied by a resurgence of people-centric exigencies for brand trust, ethical responsibility, and .

Digital Can Boost Customer Trust in Brands

Since the pandemic compressed expected years of digital evolution into seemingly overnight transformation, the consensus is that cloud-based technology is the only way to future-proof business.

analysts predicted that by the end of this year, 65% of organizations will shift to digital-first through automated operations and contactless experiences. But that doesn鈥檛 reduce an organization鈥檚 ability and imperative to build trusted, personalized relationships with customers. Indeed, the idea is to use digital technologies to improve customer experiences.

For example, researchers viewed digital as a double-edged sword when it came to brand trust. They predicted that 鈥渃onsumers will give brands permission to become more creative, entertaining, and immersive than they鈥檝e ever found palatable before. Chief marketing officers will need to create consciously and sincerely; if manipulative tactics destroy trust among this emotionally vulnerable population, consumers won鈥檛 give your brand a second chance.鈥� Calling disjointed experiences the 鈥渁ntithesis of customer obsession,鈥� Forrester analysts predicted market spend on loyalty and retention marketing will increase by 30% in 2021 as CMOs assert control over the full customer life cycle.

Managing Employee Experience for Trusted Relationships

The impact of digitalization in the workforce was also profound. predicted that by next year, 45% of repetitive work tasks in large companies will be automated and/or augmented via “digital coworkers,” powered by such innovations as artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics. researchers agreed, forecasting that one out of every four remote workers will be supported by new forms of automation, either directly or indirectly, by the end of 2021.

In the same breath, every analyst talked about managing the employee experience — with good reason. predicted that by 2024, organizations providing a total experience will outperform competitors by 25% in satisfaction metrics for both customer and employee experience.

It鈥檚 no wonder that predicted 60% of enterprises will invest heavily in digitalizing the employee experience this year, transforming the relationship between employers and employees. Further out, Gartner predicted by 2023, large organizations will increase employee retention by more than 20% by repurposing office space as on-site childcare and education facilities.

Some analysts expect high-performing organizations will make digital the default, adding in the physical to deliver the best holistic experience for team productivity. Gartner predicted that 40% of organizations will blend virtual and physical experiences, leading to increased workforce productivity and customer reach during the next couple of years. Hybrid working environments may well become the post-pandemic norm.

Here again, ethics loomed large. analysts saw regulatory and legal activity related to employee privacy infringements doubling this year. They put the onus on employers to adopt a 鈥減rivacy by design鈥� approach when handling employee personal data. This included identifying and assessing privacy and ethical risks and requirements, and transparent employee communication.

Digital Power Brings Ethical Responsibility

Many businesses have done some in the wake of the pandemic, political discord, and long-simmering equity demands. Two years ago, , an association of U.S.-based CEOs, updated its purpose statement of a corporation to “take into account all stakeholders, including employees, customers, and the community,鈥� rather than only profit.

Maybe that鈥檚 partly why analysts predicted the emergence of responsible AI, meaning the operationalization of AI accountability across organizations and society. They saw responsible AI as an umbrella term covering many aspects of AI implementations including value, risk, trust, transparency, ethics, fairness, interpretability, accountability, safety, and compliance.

Most analysts predicted that sentiment analyses and metrics documenting a company鈥檚 contributions to society鈥檚 measurements will matter even more in 2021 and over time. analysts predicted 30% of major organizations will use a 鈥渧oice of society鈥� metric to act on societal issues, and assess the impacts to their business performance by 2024. It turns out that what鈥檚 damaging to society is damaging to business. These analysts think organizations have a fiscal and moral responsibility to measure, reduce, or eliminate tone-deaf or insensitive racial and ethical concerns.

called this phenomenon 鈥渆mpathy at scale鈥� where companies increasingly used sentiment analysis, fueled by AI, to measure how customers perceive their vendors. They predicted by 2024, 32% of consumer brands will use AI-enabled contextual sentiment analysis to measure customer perceptions of empathy. This is where experience management technology such as comes in, connecting data for actionable insights company-wide in an .

What鈥檚 more, trust directly relates to AI-based data explainability. IDC predicted that by 2022, over 60% of in finance, healthcare, government, and other regulated sectors will include provisions to explain their analysis and decisions.

Sustainability is Table Stakes for Responsible Business

IDC analysts reported that the most favored companies are not only transparent and secure, but also give back to their communities, concluding that, 鈥渢rust is not just about security anymore; it is also about responsibility.鈥� Most analysts predicted increasing investments in sustainability initiatives, fueled by public sector mandates, shifting societal demands, and the realization that it鈥檚 good for business.

One analyst said that 鈥渟ustainability-focused companies have better financial results relative to their peers, even during the COVID-19 pandemic.鈥� By next year, predicted the majority of companies will realize greater value by combining digital and sustainability, giving rise to digitally driven and sustainably enabled projects as the de-facto standard. said that by 2025, 90% of G2000 companies will mandate reusable materials in IT hardware supply chains, carbon neutrality targets for providers’ facilities, and lower energy use as prerequisites for doing business.

Optimists look ahead to 2021 and beyond as a major reset for the next phase of the digital age. Let鈥檚 all plan to make the most of this digitally fueled opportunity for the business at hand, and the greater good worldwide.

Susan Galer is a multi-media communicator at SAP. Follow her on Twitter @smgaler.

This article first appeared on the 51风流Global News Center.

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Speaking directly to all developers across the 51风流ecosystem, Mueller explained how was the foundation of the company鈥檚 intelligent enterprise vision and technology strategy, providing them with future-proof resilience.

鈥淭his is why we get up every morning. The goal of 51风流Business Technology Platform is to empower you in your development role so that you can accelerate your company鈥檚 move to the cloud,鈥� he said. 鈥淭his year has been an exceptional journey, impacting each and every one of us, and we have to go through it together as a shared journey.鈥�

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One Platform for Extensibility, Integration, and Data-to-Value

Inclusive in all ways, Mueller鈥檚 words were both heartfelt and fact-based, as he enumerated how 51风流had achieved important milestones throughout the year. Filled with solution demonstrations and a customer testimonial, Mueller鈥檚 keynote answered questions from developers in the 51风流ecosystem, ranging from the impact of COVID-19 on the company鈥檚 strategy to how 51风流Business Technology Platform delivered extensibility, integration, and data-to-value.

鈥淲e identified the three top scenarios to support you best so that you are able to build extensions on your 51风流environment, create value from various data sources, and build integrations across 51风流and non-51风流systems. And all of that in a simple and agile way,鈥� said Mueller.

Easily Build, Integrate, and Extend Applications

Whether someone was a cloud native developer, data scientist, enterprise architect, application developer, integration developer, or UX designer, Mueller and his special guests shared how 51风流Business Technology Platform empowered developers with extensibility and integration.

Supporting SAP鈥檚 commitment to extensibility for rapid customization and innovation, Mueller announced multitenancy, as an example of how 51风流made it easy for partners to extend 51风流and non-51风流solutions using 51风流Business Technology Platform. He said this would reduce total cost of ownership (TCO) for ABAP deployments. He also explained how cloud native developers can more easily build extensions for more 51风流solutions, including 51风流S/4HANA, 51风流SuccessFactors, and 51风流ECC.

鈥淎BAP is still at the heart of the Intelligent Enterprise, fully backed by [SAP] Business Technology Platform. We protect your career and your investments of all the ABAP know-how in the world, and we bring ABAP to the cloud,鈥� Mueller said. 鈥淲ith [SAP] NetWeaver add on for event enablement, we allow [cloud-native developers] to build extensions for your 51风流ECC system, the same way as for 51风流S/4HANA, using .鈥�

At the same time, he called out the integration value of enhancements, along with new 51风流Cloud Platform Master Data Integration service and 51风流One Domain Model for first objects.

鈥淲ith the 51风流One Domain Model and the 51风流Cloud Platform Master Data Integration service, integration happens holistically and out-of-the-box,鈥� said Mueller.

This was followed by a quick overview of the updated user experience.

Turn Data into Business Value

Mueller also noted that 2020 marked the 10-year anniversary of

鈥淭here鈥檚 so much to celebrate. 51风流HANA plays a vital role in the 51风流portfolio. It is the foundation for our key solutions like 51风流S/4HANA, and the foundation for ,鈥� said Mueller.

Mueller announced new integrations in , allowing developers to connect data between 51风流HANA on premise and 51风流S/4HANA systems, as well as third-party sources.

鈥淲e want to make it very simple for you to make sense of your data,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he latest edition of 51风流HANA Cloud combines all the greatness of [SAP] HANA on premise with all the great cloud capabilities, including federated data access. Connecting your [SAP] HANA Cloud system to your on-premise 51风流S/4HANA system is extremely easy. Also connecting to other third-party systems is very easy.鈥�

Data-to-Value Can Modernize Medical Supply Chains

Raymund Heinen, chief process officer and member of the Board at HARTMANN Group, a medical supply company, was among the experts that joined Mueller on the virtual stage. Heinen explained how his organization collaborated with 51风流to develop a proof of concept addressing one of the most urgent pandemic demands: prioritizing medical supplies, such as hand disinfectant, where they are needed most in an unpredictable environment.

Built on , the pilot solution used machine learning to analyze data from internal and external sources 鈥� such as daily health updates from external organizations and intensive care beds by region 鈥� into one dashboard on 51风流Business Technology Platform.

鈥淚f you can anticipate at an early stage the most likely scenarios, we could approach the impacted customers proactively. We could verify and increase the local inventories and adapt on short notice our supply chain even before most customers start ordering,鈥� said Heinen. 鈥淎 dashboard can be of really great help and make it easier for teams to prioritize based on actual internal and external data.鈥�

A Call to Developers

COVID-19 and other important issues loomed large across Mueller鈥檚 talk. He spotlighted SAP鈥檚 commitment to workforce diversity beyond gender, as well as addressing climate change with a number of initiatives, including embedding sustainability metrics in the company鈥檚 analytical and transactional applications. He also held up SAP鈥檚 co-innovation of the German Corona-Warn-App with Deutsche Telekom for the German government as an example of the collective power of the developer community. His message to developers was clear.

鈥淐OVID-19 really brings a new level of digitalization. As developers, you are the true enablers for every business. We want to help you be successful personally, and we want to help you help your company,鈥� said Mueller. 鈥淭his is the whole purpose of 51风流Business Technology Platform. This is your time to shine by developing new applications, extending applications, creating new integrations quickly, helping your teams make confident decisions, and making it easier for your colleagues to work in your company.鈥�

To learn more about SAP鈥檚 portfolio supporting its intelligent enterprise vision, Mueller encouraged viewers to explore the company鈥檚 , take advantage of the free , as well as , and get involved in the .

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From sending cookies to coronavirus first responders and truckers on the road to printing 3D face masks and earning cybersecurity badges, the latest generation of Girl Scouts is all-in for the next phase of the organization鈥檚 digital journey.

In an , Sylvia Acevedo, CEO of Girl Scouts of the USA, described how Girl Scouts have come together and become even stronger in applying technology and leadership development to fulfill the .

Here are highlights from Acevedo鈥檚 digital broadcast with Paula Hansen, chief revenue officer for 51风流Customer Experience.

Adapting Quickly to Innovate Cookie Sales

After hearing about Acevedo鈥檚 extensive STEM background 鈥� which included work as a rocket scientist at NASA and positions as a technology executive and entrepreneur 鈥� it is easy to understand how she has channeled her passion for space, science, and math into valuable skill-building for girls. For example, in response to the pandemic, Girl Scouts brought its entire cookie sales operation online in just nine days.

鈥淭he iconic cookie program teaches amazing business skills, but you have to adapt to the way people work and live,鈥� Acevedo said. 鈥淪o that girls would be safe, we stopped all in-person cookie sales and pivoted to put in an entire online system together with partners using 51风流software so that we could enable girls to sell their cookies all over the country. We called it 鈥楪irl Scouts Cookie Care.鈥欌��

Cybersecurity is Top Digital Priority

Girl Scouts has gone more digital, offering a host of program activities that revolve around STEM, entrepreneurship, the outdoors, and leadership. The initiative is called Girl Scouts at Home, but the objective is to open up a world of civic-minded leadership to girls who are eager to keep learning. With the spread of COVID-19 and subsequent focus on all things virtual, cybersecurity recently became a priority.

鈥淲e had almost 8,000 cybersecurity badges earned in March, so that tells us our programs are relevant and girls see real use of it,鈥� Acevedo said. 鈥淥ne girl wrote to me saying that based on what she learned in our cybersecurity program, she immediately called her grandmother [who] had been frauded. She made sure that her grandmother put all the protections on her Wi-Fi system, computer, and phone so she wouldn鈥檛 be frauded again.鈥�

Digital with a Human Touch

Going virtual has also helped bolster community spirit. Online troop meetings have increased because girls want to stay in touch with friends more, whether they鈥檙e creating tens of thousands of face masks — one troop is using 3D printing to churn these out颅 — or going outside for shared constellation learning experiences.

鈥淕irls are figuring out how they can still use their skills to make the world a better place,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hey can still earn their space science badges, and it鈥檚 also a great way to connect with other girls.鈥�

Encouraging Girls to Pursue STEM Careers

Chief among Acevedo鈥檚 goals was helping girls understand they were not just tech users, but also could be tech creators, designers, and inventors. Girl Scouts flipped STEM programming that has been historically designed to meet boy鈥檚 interests to meet the interests of girls today. Last year, Girl Scouts earned over 1 million STEM badges and 128,000 cybersecurity badges. Acevedo was particularly proud of how Girl Scouts as young as middle schoolers were developing Faraday shields to foil would-be car thieves.

鈥淲e redesigned the badges around what a girl is familiar with and interested in,鈥� Acevedo explained. 鈥淥nce they鈥檙e familiar with it, they鈥檙e interested. Once they鈥檙e interested, they鈥檙e confident. And once they鈥檙e confident, they鈥檙e competent. People ask, 鈥楬ow do you teach brownies, who are seven- and eight-year-old girls, protocols, networks, and malware?鈥� We meet them where they are.鈥�

Building the Future Workforce

Acevedo said Girl Scouts is leading the largest national effort in the U.S. to teach girls 21st century skills. Gender equity is a major objective, reflected in the organization鈥檚 Fair Play, Equal Pay initiative that helps build a better future for girls in collaboration with companies like SAP.

鈥�51风流was our very first partner in this,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a signal to the 1.6 million girls in our organization that 51风流is the kind of place they want to go work at. And, the kind of STEM experiences we鈥檙e developing are a great match for 51风流because they have the workforce skills that are very much needed. I鈥檓 grateful for the leadership of 51风流and what that says to their employees and the rising generation.鈥�

One thing that has not changed is the taste of those delicious Girl Scout cookies. Thanks to the organization鈥檚 latest digital transformation, customers can stock up before the end of cookie season with just a few clicks. Enjoy!

This article first appeared on the 51风流News Center.

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鈥淩ather, it’s that we’re recognizing suddenly that a lot of things that have been happening slowly and under the surface for years now have changed the global order, and now we have to pay attention to it,鈥� Bremmer said. 鈥淣ot only is this the largest crisis of our lifetimes, but it鈥檚 the largest crisis against the backdrop of no global leadership.鈥�

Bremmer鈥檚 remarks came during a provocative conversation about the interconnection of health, business, society, and technology with Adaire Fox-Martin, member of the Executive Board of 51风流SE and head of Customer Success.

Their talk was among the many perceptive broadcasts from , part of the digital program.

Geopolitics Unaligned with Institutions and Alliances

When Fox-Martin asked what lessons could be learned, Bremmer pointed to the mismatch between dramatically changed geopolitics in the last 10 to 20 years versus institutions and alliances that have stayed relatively the same.

鈥淚t really implies that those institutions or alliances are no longer as fit for purpose,鈥� he said. 鈥淎nd even if we’re committed to them, we’ll be less committed to them, and even if we’re strongly committed to them, they won’t be as useful as they used to be. I think it will be about a three-year period before we come to the new normal for the global economy, and that鈥檚 a long time.鈥�

Diversify Supply Chains for Resilience

Noting that almost every CEO is attempting to figure out how to make their business more efficient, Bremmer expects companies to diversify supply chains for resiliency and flexibility. This is a huge pivot away from traditional supply chain management.

鈥淭he hope is that you can do that and create more resilience in supply chains by moving it closer to consumers without necessarily having to make it so expensively over-redundant,鈥� Bremmer said. 鈥淵ou do need a just-in-case as opposed to just-in-time supply chain. Some of that is going to be redundant, but a lot of it can be just by shrinking the supply chain and getting it close to where the consumption actually is.鈥�

Digital Is a Must

Admitting the crisis was not good for anyone, Bremmer saw a desperate need for the digital economy to help in getting through this. He urged companies to move quickly toward the 21st century because 鈥渋f they weren’t digital and they weren’t post-industrial before, they’re going to have to be, or they’re going to be looking at bankruptcy or they’re going to be looking at getting acquired.鈥� He also called for the development of a world data organization to manage the ethics of artificial intelligence (AI).

As Bremmer enumerated a dizzying array of geopolitical challenges by country with razor-sharp realism, he was also optimistic about the potential of a world data organization. To show what was possible, he pointed to recent unprecedented partnerships between competitive tech vendors that were exploring contact tracing for COVID-19 cases.

鈥淲hat we really want is to have an institution that allows for opening a whole bunch of chapters around different ways that data and technology affect our lives and allows us to integrate and coordinate those things and invite everyone in the world to do so within a set of rules,鈥� Bremmer explained. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a really good time to create an institution around this.鈥�

Globalization as a Force for Good

Regarding what needs to change most, Bremmer harked back to the 2008 recession, where nothing really changed afterward. He saw the pandemic as a much larger crisis and speculated that it might just be big enough to address the ongoing problems of globalization that has historically benefitted the few at the top, while fractured institutions and alliances no longer address geopolitical realities.

鈥淭his a much bigger crisis, so maybe it’s big enough for us to start addressing some of these problems, but we don’t want it to be too big,鈥� Bremmer said. 鈥淚f it’s too big, the institutions will start to break, so we really need this crisis to be in that narrow window 鈥� that not-too-hot, not-too-cold, just right to force us to adapt our institutions, our alliances, our values, our supply chains to a very new global order, a very new global reality.鈥�

Perhaps most surprisingly, Ian Bremmer did not predicate country success in emerging from the coronavirus on wealth. He said the biggest winners would be well governed countries that were less exposed to globalization and had young populations and leaders more focused on science.

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This article first appeared on the 51风流News Center.

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Several market leaders recently gathered online to share their procurement transformation experiences for an exclusive roundtable during the event. Hosted by Jo Peterson, vice president of Cloud and Security Services at Clarify360, a candid conversation covered not just the wins, but also major challenges.

Teams Dedicated to Collaboration

Like many global organizations that have grown by acquisitions, Stanley Black & Decker needed to simplify its complex technology landscape. The driver behind moving forward with 51风流S/4HANA Cloud was the decision to go with the 51风流Central Finance solution.

鈥淐reating a new instance of allowed us to provide global and consistent financial information,鈥� said Nicole Flikier, digital tools and analytics global lead at Stanley Black & Decker. 鈥淚t allowed end-users to have a better experience and single source of truth, while supporting our long-term program to have one instance of SAP.鈥�

Flikier was the first to admit that the transformation did not happen magically. Regular communication about the financial benefits united people on multiple project teams around what became a successful go live.

鈥淲ith numerous ERP systems and all that data, making sure it was harmonized was a challenge. It takes an army to do that cleansing,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e needed to communicate to the team the value of a universal global ledger鈥� Everybody knew the benefits tied to that, especially being a very financially driven company.鈥�

Flikier characterized her company鈥檚 transformation as a tremendous undertaking with aggressive timelines for every project to go live simultaneously. She credited the team鈥檚 success to having a shared project methodology and meeting localized country requirements.

Faster Turnarounds Boost User Satisfaction

According to Jinesh Parakulangara, senior manager at HPE Global IT, replacing his company鈥檚 organically grown patchwork of legacy procurement systems with a single enterprise resource planning (ERP) platform 鈥� 51风流Ariba running on 51风流S/4HANA Cloud 鈥� has saved time and increased productivity for both procurement and payables.

鈥淲e now have a more controlled, centralized procurement function鈥ith a road map to consolidate that onto a single platform,鈥� he said. 鈥淥ur business users are very happy. They just have to go into one system for global procurement operations and invoice verification, tax issues, and anything related to procure to pay.鈥�

Amazing Integration Simplifies and Streamlines

HPE went live with the new cloud-based platform in 57 countries at once, backed by extensive training for employees and suppliers as well as built-in communication and collaboration. Besides touchless invoicing, the biggest win was the simplification around master data management delivered by 51风流S/4HANA.

鈥淲ith a cloud solution, we鈥檙e getting more features introduced to us, which we didn鈥檛 have in the past when we were on premise,鈥� Parakulangara explained. 鈥淔rom a procurement standpoint, it鈥檚 really about simplification of our ordering processes. And on the finance side, with 51风流S/4HANA, we鈥檝e tightened the entire process. We truly have a single platform that takes care of our payable needs in a compliant manner. The way these systems integrate with each other is truly amazing.鈥�

Data Harmonization Well Worth It

Similar to Flikier鈥檚 experience at Stanley Black & Decker, consolidating data was a worthy challenge given the results at HPE.

鈥淪crubbing the data was a challenge, but it revealed process gaps and it鈥檚 why everything is now streamlined,鈥� Parakulangara said. 鈥淥ne of the reasons why we were able to get processes touchless is because we have brought鈥verything together from procurement to invoicing to payments all into the same platform.鈥�

He added that using 51风流best practices for core processes sped up the entire project.

Intelligence Supports Financial Discipline

Understanding the full picture of spend management is not just essential for operational continuity today; it is a business imperative to keep people productive. There is no doubt that a cloud-based system that brings together real-time information company-wide is instrumental in providing the financial discipline every intelligent enterprise needs.

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This article first appeared on the 51风流News Center.

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Indeed, what has emerged as COVID-19 impacts companies and economies is the make-or-break value of digital transformation.

鈥淪APPHIRE NOW Reimagined will be more accessible to all customers, partners, and stakeholders in the 51风流ecosystem, and we look forward to providing everyone with an amazing end-to-end experience like never before,鈥� said Alicia Tillman, global chief marketing officer at SAP. 鈥淲ith this year鈥檚 purely digital event, we want people to bring their curiosity and commitment to innovate together so we can unleash opportunities in this unprecedented business environment.鈥�

Incredible Insights, Immediately Valuable Information

Through a digital program of executive keynotes, customer stories, demos, round tables, and much more, the virtual SAPPHIRE NOW experience is equal parts inspiration, insight, and how-to learning. Experts will address up-to-the-minute business challenges and share practical guidance, drawing examples from market leaders already adapting to business during these challenging times.

Here鈥檚 how this virtual experience will unfold over the next months.

: Launched in April 2020

In a thought leadership series, join 51风流hosts and business executives, thought leaders, best-selling authors, well known athletes, and innovators for candid conversations about the future of business and a world that is changing before our eyes. Each short episode will put viewers in the virtual room with luminaries who will share their insights on issues ranging from the future of workplace collaboration to how leaders and managers need to think differently about engaging with their teams to tips for staying our personal best during challenging times.

The diverse line-up will feature an exciting range of speakers聽 including , , Al Guido, Adam Grant, and more.

: June 15

Go on a virtual innovation journey with 51风流CEO Christian Klein and other members of the 51风流Executive Board, who will showcase how market leaders are not only innovating but charting a path to the future. The line-up of special guests will spotlight customers and partners talking about how they have tapped 51风流solutions to address their unique challenges and take advantage of new opportunities to generate real business results.

: Starting June 15

During this impressive rolling line-up of live and on-demand digital programming, 51风流experts will share company innovations and product road maps while customers industry-wide will spotlight business results using these solutions. Topics will revolve around managing experiences for end-to-end visibility and action across the enterprise, including , , , and . Participants will also hear updates on the , the company鈥檚 portfolio of integrated solutions and technology that speeds up innovation by turning data into business value.

While companies worldwide continue to reinvent how they do business, the virtual digital program for SAPPHIRE NOW Reimagined will help participants overcome immediate hurdles and start building a better future now.

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In a series of compelling video conversations, recognized industry experts, customers, and 51风流executives shared especially timely and no-nonsense insights into the business value of procurement agility, reliability, and transparency. The agenda featured thought-provoking geopolitical trend talks, lessons learned from customers, solution strategy updates, and product demonstrations. This is the first in a series summarizing the .

New Procurement Experience: Agile, Reliable, Transparent

First up was Chris Haydon, president of 51风流Procurement Solutions, who assured listeners that 鈥渢ogether, we will get through all these challenging times.鈥� Acknowledging COVID-19, he said that its increasing impact mirrored our growing realization of how connected and dependent we are on each other.

鈥淭he pace of the world is demanding changes, and 51风流is uniquely positioned to help you manage those changes with intelligent spend management,鈥� Haydon said. 鈥淚ntelligent spend management is the reinvention of the procurement experience. It鈥檚 a thoughtful and deliberate realization that we need to move beyond only focusing on creating simple screens and user interfaces, and instead empower procurement to succeed amid today鈥檚 known disruptions and the unknown disruptions of tomorrow.鈥�

As an example of SAP鈥檚 procurement commitment, he mentioned the company鈥檚 decision to open access to , allowing buyers worldwide to post their immediate sourcing needs to which any of the 4 million suppliers on can respond with no fees through June 30, 2020.

鈥�51风流is deeply committed to help you manage the complexities and mitigate the risks that disruption and accelerated change is inevitably bringing,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e hard at work with customers to help them understand how to use Ariba Network to identify supplies at risk, review supply chain data, and rapidly develop contingency plans.鈥�

Unlock Insights with Community of Intelligence

Haydon said that it was time for procurement to become the epicenter of ideas and collaboration, owning the intersection of innovation and commerce between organizations. He called this 鈥渁 profound and forward-looking change鈥� in how people look at procurement, using the technology for tasks that can and should be automated so that businesses can apply human expertise where it is needed for greatest impact.

鈥淭he only way to make this possible is to get the process out of the way and get more insights into the hands of you, your training partners, and every part of your business. That鈥檚 the ultimate goal of intelligent spend management鈥� reimagining processes to let intelligence do more work, so we can do more work better,鈥� Haydon said. 鈥淲e want to embed sustainability and risk context into every single supply chain event and reshape how we connect with trading partners by driving collaboration deeper into our supply chains and truly unlocking the power of community intelligence.鈥�

Committed to Customer-First Experience

Having walked in the customer鈥檚 shoes, Haydon said that he understood their challenges, and with its co-CEOS at the helm, 51风流was more focused than ever at 鈥渆nsuring the customer experience is the true measurement of our success.鈥�

鈥淎riba Network is the most powerful and effective network of its kind,鈥� he said. 鈥淪ensing the opportunity to combine, streamline, and make your businesses run even more effectively and efficiently, we鈥檝e pulled together 51风流Ariba, 51风流Fieldglass, and 51风流S/4HANA operational procurement under a single organization with one clear vision鈥� for intelligent spend management.鈥�

Haydon closed with the promise to continue collaborating with customers as early adopters and partners.

鈥淵our voices, insights, and ideas are key in helping us reshape procurement. If we can combine the depth of knowledge in our collective minds and the depth of feeling in our hearts, and our understanding of this new world of rapid disruption and accelerated changes, there鈥檚 nowhere we can鈥檛 go together. We believe in a future where procurement sits at the heart of the business, and together we can make this future possible.鈥�

HPE: Path to Transformation

For a great example of intelligent spend management in action, I pivoted to Lucille Trickett, senior director of Global Solutions for the Office of Legal Affairs and Administration at Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE). In her video, she shared how HPE is using a suite of intelligent solutions from 51风流to holistically view and manage multiple categories of spend from indirect, travel and expense, contingent labor, and service providers.

As a long-time 51风流Ariba customer and partner, Trickett said that HPE鈥檚 transformation to the cloud was originally slated for two phases, starting with source-to-contract and followed by procure-to-pay processes. The company then decided to bring in . The second phase coincided with an overall next-generation IT transformation at HPE that would also consolidate enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems on . One of the objectives was to dramatically simplify and consolidate the customer, vendor, and partner master data structure.

鈥淲e now have a holistic view of our relationship with an entity, regardless of whether they鈥檙e a customer, partner, supplier, or all of the above. We took the time and effort to clean up our vendor master database and the new one was optimized by 39 percent,鈥� said Trickett. 鈥淕iven the size and scale of the [procure-to-pay] project, it was absolutely imperative that the business unit and global functions within the HPE company be ready for these changes.鈥�

Trickett called the transformation journey an incredible experience for everyone involved: 鈥淣ot only did we deliver everything we had committed to deliver in a changing environment, but we also found opportunities to drive additional innovation as we delved deep to solve issues along the way. We also strengthened our partnerships and collaboration, not just internally within HPE, but more importantly with our 51风流family. I鈥檓 looking forward to working with the 51风流team to design and innovate in the procurement arena for the future.鈥�

Holistic Procurement View

During his introduction to Trickett鈥檚 talk, Haydon emphasized the importance of having a holistic view of procurement, because 鈥渋t can help identify opportunities for economies of scale, enable better spend decisions, and drive better business outcomes.鈥�

His thoughts were particularly relevant given fast-changing events in the world today: 鈥淲hen we at 51风流tout our innovations and our never-ending commitment to make the procurement process as efficient and effective as possible, we do so to help protect the continuity of your business, employee livelihoods, and economies. It鈥檚 a bold charge forward, but the times call for boldness.鈥�

To echo Haydon鈥檚 closing: Take care, stay healthy, and enjoy the 51风流Ariba Live virtual experience.

This article first appeared on the 51风流News Center.

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