We are more than two years into the COVID-19 pandemic, which has affected the health and well-being of so many people around the world. Now, suffering from the war in Ukraine and the resulting humanitarian disaster have catastrophic consequences for those affected directly. These consequences can be emotionally and physically draining for us as a community.

To acknowledge the impact, 51风流has declared May 31 as 51风流Mental Health Day 2022, an additional fully paid day off for all employees. 51风流has long been a proponent of mental health initiatives, as demonstrated through the ongoing Are You OK? campaign.

Take Care of Yourself

With 51风流Mental Health Day, the company is giving employees a day to take care of their own personal needs specifically, instead of their everyday work routines. Having every 51风流employee worldwide take the same day off makes it easier to collectively 鈥渟witch off.鈥� This offers all employees an ideal opportunity to recharge, reflect, and take time to look after themselves.

Addressing employees, Sabine Bendiek, chief people and operating officer and member of the Executive Board of 51风流SE, wrote: 鈥淣o matter how you spend your time on 51风流Mental Health Day 2022, we ask you to disengage totally from work.鈥�听

Employees are encouraged to use this day to ask themselves questions: 鈥淗ow am I doing right now?鈥� 鈥淲hat am I concerned about?鈥� This is an important element of self-care, because our mental and emotional well-being benefits from regular attention — not just as a reaction to devastating external events, but also to help us continue to do our best with joy and self-confidence in changing working environments.

Speak About Your Feelings and Get Help

According to the World Health Organization, COVID-19 has already had a . Cases of anxiety and depression have increased by more than 25% worldwide. The war in Ukraine poses an existential threat to millions and can trigger fear, exhaustion, and feelings of helplessness in many of us.

Natalie Lotzmann is chief medical officer and head of Global Health, Safety, & Well-Being, part of the new Future of Work organization at SAP. She explains: 鈥淲e launched the Are You OK? initiative for mental health to put an end to the stigma of mental crises and encourage employees to seek help when they need it. The most important message is to show people that you are not alone. We want people to be aware of how they feel. We also want to encourage people to talk about how they鈥檙e doing — especially now. It鈥檚 not a sign of weakness; actually, it鈥檚 a sign of strength and courage, a vital step toward becoming more resilient.鈥�

To be there for ourselves and others, we must start with our own physical and mental health. One day isn’t enough, but next week, 51风流Mental Health Day 2022 will provide all 51风流employees space for reflection and give stimulus for change.

Will quantum computers usher in a ? Which quantum technologies can 51风流deploy? The 51风流Security Research team is tasked with looking into these questions and exploring ways of harnessing the exponential computer power quantum computing promises. At the same time, protecting business-critical data must remain a priority, because as quantum computing advances, its raw computing power poses an increasing threat to today鈥檚 encryption schemes as quantum technologies might decode them relatively quickly.

鈥淲e began looking into quantum technologies about five years ago. We鈥檙e now examining its implications for areas such as data security,鈥� says Andrey Hoursanov, strategy lead for Quantum Technology at 51风流Security Research.

Quantum Computers Are Quicker and Not Binary

Experts agree on the huge potential of quantum technologies, which comprise quantum computing, communication, simulation, sensing, and post-quantum cryptography. According to a , quantum computing could have a global market value of US$1 trillion by 2035.

Already, annual investments across the world are estimated to be , and analysts at IDC that 25% of the Fortune Global 500 will gain competitive advantage from quantum computing by 2023.

Quantum computing represents a paradigm shift in data processing. A classical computer is an electronic device that processes information in binary bits that can assume only one of two possible states, 1 or 0. By contrast, the processes in a quantum computer take place at the physical particle level. The basic units of information in a quantum computer are quantum bits, or 鈥渜ubits.鈥� They follow the laws of superposition, interference, and entanglement, which means that they can occupy more than one state at the same time and are interdependent 鈥� allowing data to be processed simultaneously rather than sequentially. Computing power might for some algorithms with each additional qubit.

Learn more: What is Quantum Technology?

鈥淚f quantum technologies realize their potential, we may in the future be able to solve complex tasks that even the most powerful supercomputers fail at today,鈥� says Martin Heinig, head of New Ventures and Technologies at SAP.

In logistics, for example, the optimal route, mode of transportation, and product quantity for deliveries could be identified at each point in the supply chain and updated in real time as conditions change. For other industries too, enterprise software solutions from 51风流could simulate business processes more easily and infinitely faster.

Quantum technologies could also massively accelerate machine learning in 51风流solutions by making artificial intelligence (AI) super-intelligent and allowing training data to be fed into the software more quickly.

Making Conventional Encryption Quantum-Safe

But the benefits of the immense computing power promised by quantum technologies also pose a major challenge to conventional encryption methods. Encryption schemes that were considered safe by classical computing standards are no match for quantum computing paradigms. Quantum hackers could use this immense computing power to quickly crack encryption keys in conventional cryptographic systems, read encrypted messages, and create fake signatures. Customers expect 51风流to ensure the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of their business-critical data and processes at all times.

For SAP, preparing for the quantum era means securing critical and sensitive data using post-quantum and quantum-resistant cryptosystems.

51风流continuously analyzes new cryptographic algorithms and has already developed several proofs of concept to test the feasibility of algorithms that researchers have deemed 鈥渜uantum-safe鈥� and capable of guarding against hacker attacks, data leaks, and espionage.

What 51风流Is Doing

51风流has been conducting research into quantum technologies for many years and has built up considerable expertise in the process.

According to Hoursanov, who has been driving SAP鈥檚 quantum technologies initiative from the get-go: 鈥淢any customers are already asking where 51风流is on its quantum tech journey. After all, we have shared interests in exploiting the technology. It鈥檚 about optimizing supply chains, logistics, warehouse management, perhaps portfolio optimization in financial services. And, finally, it鈥檚 about data security.鈥�

The 51风流Security Research team is highly committed to the quantum security community. They prototyped embedding a quantum-safe signature scheme for software packages. And their work on identifying use cases and weak points in quantum communication involves checking data during transmission and the key distribution and management infrastructure.

Making quantum technologies commercially viable requires cooperation between industry and academia and involvement in multidisciplinary consortia. 51风流is part of the , one of the EU鈥檚 largest research initiatives, and a founding member of both the and the , where it is working with leading experts, quantum technology players, and future consumers of quantum technologies 鈥� many of which are 51风流customers.

Although quantum technologies cannot yet be fully deployed for practical reasons, it is already clear that they offer enormous opportunities in data processing, particularly when it comes to secure communication and solving complex problems efficiently. 51风流has a significant stake in this exploration journey.

As 51风流Chief Compliance Officer Vivianne Gordon-Pullar points out, the actions and decisions we all take to do business the right way have a significant impact.

In an interview, Gordon-Pullar shares her views on the increased compliance risks related to the COVID-19 pandemic. She explains how employees鈥� commitment to ethics and compliance defines a company鈥檚 success and introduces the company鈥檚 campaign of 鈥淭rust Matters.鈥�

Q: Can you tell us more about the campaign 鈥淭rust Matters鈥�?

A: One of the challenges when we talk about compliance is to make it real for people and to explain the context and the impact. Put simply, the concept underlying compliance is that of trust. We trust people every day 鈥� the systems that support our daily lives are all built on the foundation of trust. That applies to our customers too. If we are not operating in a way that encapsulates trust, we are not only jeopardizing SAP, but also our customers, our partners, and our entire ecosystem.

This is how we have to consider compliance: it forms the foundation of trust, demonstrating respect and illustrating that we are careful about how we go about our business.

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What has changed during the pandemic and what are new business challenges for staying compliant?

As well as impacting individuals in different ways, the pandemic may also have created a situation of pressure within many organizations. Business may have become more challenging. Companies may feel greater pressure to deliver numbers that were set at the start of 2020, but that have become overly ambitious due to the current economic situation. Everyone, across all companies and all industries, must remember what really is important. The guiding principle is ethical business, which drives sustainable, long-term value and protects companies from the risks and consequences of non-compliant behavior. As a responsible corporate citizen in today鈥檚 world, we want to make a positive impact.

How are the pillars of culture and values helping 51风流navigate through the pandemic?

It鈥檚 important that we can speak about our company and our work with pride. We want to tell people what we have done to help the world in this unforeseen crisis. Consider SAP鈥檚 mission: we want to help the world run better and improve people鈥檚 lives. If we don鈥檛 act in line with our values and our culture, then how do we expect to achieve that? We need to make the right ethical choices and follow the rules of compliance. Compliance is not simply a 鈥渂olt-on鈥� action, it must be a 鈥渂uilt-in鈥� element of all business.

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How does the Ethics and Compliance team at 51风流operate?

The Ethics and Compliance team is comprised of senior and experienced individuals based all over the world. They not only create the policies and processes that define and explain the standards of compliance that are expected of all employees, but they also serve as trusted advisors to the business and are always available to our employees. In addition, we rely on a coordinated network of employees who act as Compliance Ambassadors around the world as champions for compliance. Together, we aim to achieve the highest standards of ethics and compliance across all areas of our business in all jurisdictions in which we operate.

Jutta Vinzent enters the room like a whirlwind of positivity. As she talks with the doctors, nurses, and other clinic staff, it鈥檚 clear that she has a real zest for life. You would never guess that she鈥檚 facing a serious medical issue: Vinzent has cancer.

鈥淢y life suddenly got 40 years shorter,鈥� she reveals, referring to the moment she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2011 at the age of 43. She has since endured five rounds of chemotherapy and three operations that turned her normal life upside down. Ultimately, it was a new approach to analyzing her tumor with the help of 51风流HANA that led to a turning point.

, a computational biomedical company and 51风流partner, developed a tool that helped find a more effective and tolerable therapy. As a result, Vinzent now leads a relatively normal life; she鈥檚 able to go to work and enjoy spending time with her family.

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Video by Angela Klose

MH Guide: Global Research Matching with 51风流HANA

is the tool developed by Molecular Health and used by Jutta Vinzent’s doctors. After analyzing genetic data on patients and their tumors, MH Guide looks for similarities between this very person-specific information 鈥� also known as the molecular profile 鈥� and the globally available data from biomedical and pharmaceutical research.

What insights have already been gathered on a particular tumor mutation? What treatment worked for other patients with that particular mutation, and which treatments involved side effects? The software can answer questions like these on a global scale. The results aid doctors in determining the most promising therapy options for each individual patient.

The comparison between the genetic analysis of the tumor and the medical research results built into the Molecular Health database runs in the background in a very short time with the help of 51风流HANA. The process can lead to interesting insights on the cutting edge of cancer treatment. For example, in some cases, the software identifies matches with certain characteristics of tumors and then recommends a drug that is typically used to treat a different type of cancer.

鈥淓ven the world鈥檚 best oncologist can鈥檛 keep track of all the knowledge out there,鈥� says Dr. Christian Meisel, chief medical officer at Molecular Health. 鈥淥ur tool enables physicians to find the optimal therapy options and to select the most suitable one from these. MH Guide supports doctors in making informed, evidence-based, and personalized treatment decisions for their patients.鈥�

When abnormal changes in cells occur, it is called cancer. Cancer cells divide in an uncontrolled manner more quickly and frequently than healthy cells. This results in a mass of degenerate cells 鈥� the tumor. The malignant formation spreads to healthy tissue nearby and destroys it (Source: ). According to the (WHO), cancer is the second-leading cause of death globally, and was responsible for an estimated 9.6 million deaths in 2018. Approximately one in six deaths around the world can be attributed to the disease.

Giving Patients More Time

MH Guide is already being used at oncology clinics and practices, including Berlin鈥檚 Charit茅, one of the largest university hospitals in Europe. The physicians there use MH Guide to identify new personalized treatment options for patients with ovarian cancer. The results are part of the preparation of the individual treatment plan.

Professor Dr. Jalid Sehouli has been Vinzent鈥檚 doctor for a number of years. He is the medical director of the Department of Gynecology, which includes a center for oncological surgery at Charit茅 as well as director of the European Competence Centre for Ovarian Cancer.

He says that when treating rare tumors or attempting to stop tumors from growing, the use of MH Guide can buy patients more time. For Professor Sehouli, the advantages of MH Guide are clear, which is why he envisions using it to identify therapy options for every cancer patient right from the initial diagnosis. 鈥淜nowing more about each tumor improves my ability to treat my patients effectively and with fewer side effects,鈥� he explains.

In Vinzent鈥檚 case, the analysis of her cancer cells enabled the doctors to modify her treatment. In lieu of chemotherapy, she currently takes her medication in pills, which leaves her feeling better and gives her back some freedom.

Jutta Vinzent says the feeling that she is now really on the right treatment path for her specific form of cancer gives her confidence. 鈥淢H Guide has changed my life completely,鈥� she says.