looking for the next great opportunity

SAPINSIDER SPECIAL REPORT | INNOVATIONS

S-1Reproduced from the Jan n Feb n Mar 2012 issue of SAPinsider with permission from its publisher, WIS Publishing | sapinsider.wispubs.com

this data efficiently. SAP’s solu-

tions can also help customers

manage every step in the infor-

mation life cycle to maximize

the return they get from their

IT investment.

One example of such a

solution is SAP HANA, an in-

memory computing appliance

that can help companies tap

into their growing amounts of

data to quickly glean insights

and take business action based

on them. SAP HANA makes

the transition to real-time

analysis possible for enter-

prises that may never have

dreamed they could leverage

so much data so quickly.

But of course, if big data is poor quality, delivering it

quickly only allows you to make bad decisions faster.

To ensure this is not the case, companies must closely

manage the entire data life cycle, including how data

is captured, stored, optimized, analyzed, and visualized.

SAP also has solutions to help customers do just that.

The Partners’ Role However, SAP solutions alone can’t meet all of the

needs of every customer in these areas. We can only do

that with help from our partner community. Earlier, I

In a famous scene from the classic 1967 movie The

Graduate, a bewildered new graduate, confused about

his future, is pulled aside by a big-shot industrialist who

gives him a piece of advice: “I just want to say one word

to you. Are you listening? Plastics.”

SAPinsider readers, I just want to say two words to

you: big data. There’s a great future in big data, not

just for enterprise software and service providers, but

for customers as well. As far as I’m concerned, big

data is the new plastics. Like plastics, big data opens up

new opportunities for innovation and heralds a wave

of new customer demands.

In the last issue of SAPinsider, I outlined the five

game changers that are propelling SAP to the one

billion-user mark.1 Big data is the lynchpin here, and

it’s joined at the hip with mobility (see sidebar on the

next page). Together, these two game changers enable

the other three: the consumerization of IT, the reign of

highly specific content, and instant, anytime access.

However, in my travels and conversations with cus-

tomers, partners, and potential partners, it’s become

clear that, while there’s a lot of excitement surrounding

big data, there is also still a lot of bewilderment. Part

of the reason for this is that we’re really just getting

started with the big data trend. SAP is ramping up with

in-memory computing and mobile analytics solutions,

but we’re still mostly talking about the “art of the pos-

sible” at this point. We’re still fleshing out this vision. So

let’s flesh it out a bit more.

SAP’s RoleTo help our customers meet the challenges of manag-

ing big data and delivering it in real time, SAP has been

building a range of products that can process and analyze

1 See “5 Game Changers Propelling SAP to the Billion-User Mark” by Kurt Bilafer, part of the Business Analytics special report in the October-December 2011 issue of SAPinsider (sapinsider.wispubs.com).

INSIDE THIS SPECIAL REPORT

S-3 HP Meet the Needs of the “Mobile Anywhere” Generation to Gain a Competitive Edge

S-5 Dolphin Building a Bridge to SAP HANA

S-6 Cisco Keep Your BI Tools Running Smoothly with Intelligent Automation

S-7 Capgemini Sift Through Your Social Media Data to Find Truly Valuable Information

Download this special report at sapinsider.wispubs.com

There’s a great future in big data, not

just for enterprise software and service

providers, but for customers as well.

Kurt J. BilaferGlobal Vice PresidentBusiness Analytics &

TechnologyEcosystem & Channel

GroupSAP

Looking for the Next Great Opportunity?I Have 2 Words for You: Big Data

http://sapinsider.wispubs.com



INNOVATIONS | SAPINSIDER SPECIAL REPORT

S-2 Reproduced from the Jan n Feb n Mar 2012 issue of SAPinsider with permission from its publisher, WIS Publishing | sapinsider.wispubs.com

referenced SAP’s five game changers. But, there’s actu-

ally another one as well: partnerships.

There are so many possibilities and applications

around big data and mobility that no one company

could ever cover them all. That’s where our partners

really shine. SAP partners provide the industry and

domain expertise required to help customers manage

and use big data and turn it into actionable insights

that can have bottom-line impact. They have a deep

understanding of their customers’ businesses, and have

demonstrated a significant commitment to their areas

of expertise. And they have continually demonstrated

their commitment to help SAP customers succeed.

Our partners help round out SAP’s offerings, filling

in the industry-specific requirements to bring you tar-

geted results. SAP software is powerful, it’s best-in-class,

and it’s innovative. But many of our customers require

very specific solutions to address their unique business

and industry needs. We depend on our partners to pro-

vide more business-specific solutions that complement

and integrate with SAP’s solutions to bring seamless

customer benefits. Together, we can deliver exponen-

tially more value than either of us can on our own.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention SAP EcoHub, our

online marketplace. We’re really just getting started with

SAP EcoHub, but we’re committed to turning this into a

channel where partners can leverage their innovations

on the SAP platform across the whole SAP ecosystem.

It’s also a go-to location for customers interested in

exploring these partner solutions.

If you haven’t checked out SAP EcoHub yet, take a

look at http://ecohub.sap.com and see the quality and

kinds of innovation our partners are already bringing

to market.

Learn More In the following pages of this special report, you’ll hear

from SAP’s partners about some of the complementary

solutions and services that you can leverage to maxi-

mize your investment in SAP software, achieve better

business results, and capitalize on the unique opportu-

nities that big data has to offer.

If you’d like to learn more about SAP solutions that

can help you take advantage of big data opportunities, I

invite you to check out my blog at www.sdn.sap.com/

irj/scn/weblogs?blog=/pub/u/251840414 or follow me

on Twitter @bilafer. n

Mobility Changes the Game for Big Data ManagementMobility is a game changer because it creates a domino effect across the entire business. As more and more mobile solutions get deployed, processes will have to be redesigned to bring them into alignment with the real-time information available in a mobile world.

For example, remember when software was sold in shrink-wrapped boxes, and you had to go to the store to buy it? Now you download it from the Internet. That’s a single change, but it’s a change that sent ripples across the entire business landscape. It changed revenue recognition and order fulfillment. It changed payment technology and cash flow. It uncovered issues about piracy that need to be addressed.

Mobility is having a similar ripple effect. Think about some of the capabilities mobile solutions are already enabling. A utility company field worker can go out to a transformer, hold an iPad up to it, and instantly access information about its operation, maintenance, and parts. A rail company can place sensors on the tracks that relay data about safety conditions back to a centralized location. A retailer can get point-of-sale information about consumer purchases and link it up with tweets about customer satisfaction with that same purchase.

These trends require that companies decide what to do with all this information. They need to come up with a strategy to transform real-time information into real-time action that helps their businesses run better, safer, and more profitably.

SAP software is powerful, it’s best-in-class,

and it’s innovative. And our partners help

round out SAP’s offerings, filling in the

industry-specific requirements to bring you

targeted results.


http://www.twitter.com/bilafer




As the workforce becomes accustomed to the

instant information availability that comes with

the mobile devices they are using in their everyday lives,

they are beginning to expect — and even demand —

the same access in the business world. As a result of this

shift, enterprises are finding that they must now meet

the demands of this “mobile anywhere” generation.

The Benefits of Enabling a Mobile WorkforceThere are a variety of business goals that are driving

companies to make their workforces more mobile-

enabled. These include benefits such as:

■ New revenue streams — Both context-aware

devices and new connections to consumers can open

the door to new revenue streams that were never

possible before.

■ Increased productivity — Sharing information

across the entire enterprise and decentralizing the

decision-making process can result in fewer repeated

tasks, making a business more productive and more

profitable.

■ Reduced costs — Mobile technology can enable

employees to perform tasks in less time; this

increased efficiency reduces operating costs.

■ Better customer service and relationships —

Mobile technology enables employees to react more

quickly to customer concerns and communicate

through new forums. This can expand the brand

and build better relationships with the people most

important to the enterprise.

The business benefits of enterprise mobility solu-

tions are inspiring companies around the globe to make

mobility a core part of their business practices and sup-

port strategies. Mobility provides a huge opportunity

for businesses looking to gain a competitive edge. But

what’s the best way to get started?

HP Helps Transform Your Mobile Computing EnvironmentAs a global provider of end-to-end SAP services across

the mobile ecosystem, HP offers a unique enterprise

perspective, global reach, and flexible and scalable

engagement models that allow today’s businesses to

take full advantage of the benefits that a more mobile

enterprise brings.

HP’s approach to enabling enterprise mobility for

SAP customers is ideal for organizations — across all

industries — that wish to deliver applications, con-

tent, and services in a scalable, secure, and reliable

way through multiple networks and devices. HP

works with clients to explore how mobile users access

enterprise data and transactions, and then come

up with a mobility strategy that fits the client’s

unique needs.

HP’s process includes three key steps:

■ Looking at foundational, enterprise-wide policies

around security, privacy, and end-user computing

■ Assessing the collaboration infrastructure that needs

to be established to support mobility

■ Evaluating the end-to-end architectural decisions,

applications, and infrastructure models that are

required to enable enterprise mobility

This approach (see Figure 1 on the next page) lever-

ages HP’s global applications services capabilities to

provide an architecture, systems engineering, devel-

opment, and support services. Combined, they help

an organization simplify its applications, extend them

where necessary, and build innovative mobile business-

to-business (B2B), business-to-consumer (B2C), and

business-to-employee (B2E) applications. The approach

also leverages HP’s well-defined and mature integration

architecture, which is enhanced by HP’s development

and security frameworks, providing componentized

building blocks that enable users to develop and deploy

SAP mobile applications.

Murli ManickamDirector, Worldwide

Enterprise Applications Portfolio

HP

Raghu BhardvajWorldwide SAP

Offering ManagerHP

Meet the Needs of the “Mobile Anywhere” Generation to Gain a Competitive Edge





HP has been delivering SAP solutions for over two

decades and developing mobile solutions for many years.

HP has SAP consultants and mobile application devel-

opers around the globe with experience in all major

operating systems, including iOS, Android, Windows,

RIM, and others. HP provides architecture and design

services, mobile application development, and the man-

agement of mobile applications and devices.

HP’s mobile application services include:

■ Mobility strategy and planning services

■ Mobile enterprise solution architecture consulting

■ Mobile application development and integration

services

■ Mobile end-to-end testing services

■ Mobile hosting and application management services

■ Managed workplace services

HP and SAP: A Thriving PartnershipDuring their 20-year partnership, HP and SAP have

worked together on joint activities that address the

complete IT portfolio, including product, software, and

service areas. For example, it was recently announced

that HP Enterprise Services will be providing cloud-based

delivery of SAP rapid-deployment solutions, starting

with SAP Customer Relationship Management.

The combination of these solutions will empower

customers to increase the availability and speed of busi-

ness information, leading to faster and more insight-

ful decision making. This is just one example of HP’s

enterprise mobility services offerings that complement

SAP’s strong mobility product suite.

For more information on how HP can help you meet

the demands of the “mobile anywhere” generation and

gain a competitive edge, visit www.hp.com/services/

EAS-SAP. n

Mobile devices Mobile deploymentplatforms

Business applicationsand data sources

Enterprise processes Purchase order process Field sales automation Field force automation Paperless forms Proof of delivery Field service bundle Work order management Parts and inventory tracking Expense management Asset/property management Merchandizing/fast-moving consumer goods sales

1. Web/hybrid container connects to SAP NetWeaver

2. Sybase Unwired Platform/Afaria/SAP NetWeaver Mobile

3. HP Service Delivery Platform/Managed Mobility Platform Solution

4. Vendor-speci�c native apps/adaptors/platform

Databases

J2EE Connector Architecture

Web services

Software applications

Files

FIGURE 1 HP’s

Enabling Mobile

Enterprise Strategy

using Sybase Unwired

Platform

HP in ActionIn a recent engagement, HP worked with SAP to address the enterprise mobility requirements for a global commercial SAP client. The client asked HP to build a solution based on the latest version of Sybase Unwired Platform. The solution would provide connectivity to the SAP back-end applications, there-by giving mobile workers access to up-to-date business data whenever and wherever they need it.

The client requirements included creating a sales order in the Android/iPhone/iPad devices and sending that or-der to the SAP application. Once the orders are created, the sales person can now view all of his orders by customer

name or date from their his device. The sales person also has access to pricing information and other business processes that will improve the order management process and overall customer experience.

The improved business processes that HP helped this com-pany define reduced the order entry and pricing process from five to three days, providing faster real-time availability of this information for the mobile sales organization. These process improvements replaced a multi-step process that required sales people to generate orders via telephone requests and access SAP applications via traditional, tethered PC methods.





Today’s business intelligence (BI) systems — like SAP

NetWeaver Business Warehouse (SAP NetWeaver

BW) — are experiencing record levels of data growth.

As more data accumulates in these systems, they can

become difficult to maintain, resulting in slow queries,

reduced productivity, and increased TCO.

To deal with the deluge, SAP’s data archiving process

provides the framework to move large amounts of static

data to a low-cost, high-performance nearline storage

environment. New technologies, like the SAP HANA

platform, provide a column-oriented, in-memory data

appliance for fast, ad hoc data analytics. An efficient

nearline storage system can complement this in-memory

SAP HANA architecture.

Whether companies continue to run their BW envi-

ronments on existing platforms with a relational da-

tabase management system and a BW accelerator, or

plan to migrate to SAP HANA, it is critical to segregate

frequently used, “high-value” information from data that

provides lower business value. Data archiving continues

to be an essential part of this data management process

and a nearline storage solution ensures the right balance

between performance and storage costs. Dolphin and

PBS Software have a solution that not only enhances

SAP NetWeaver BW deployments now, but will do the

same as companies move to SAP HANA in the future.

A Proven Solution for Data Volume ManagementDolphin — an SAP software partner and certified PBS

software partner — resells of PBS CBW Nearline Storage

(NLS) IQ, a data archiving solution designed specifically

for SAP NetWeaver BW. This solution moves data from

the active database to nearline storage, substantially

compressing the data and making it accessible without

having to reload it back into SAP NetWeaver BW.

Archiving can boost performance and reduce costs

for the active system without sacrificing transparent

access to the data. Fast data access is provided by PBS

CBW NLS IQ, which uses Sybase IQ as its storage engine

(see Figure 1). Sybase IQ is a highly scalable, column-

based database from Sybase, an SAP company.

The column-based nearline environment provides

the foundation for a reliable and inexpensive informa-

tion management strategy for BW systems. It can also

serve as an analytics and indexing engine for archiving

in transaction-oriented systems, such as SAP ERP or SAP

Customer Relationship Management. Dolphin’s nearline

solution delivers the necessary throughput to effectively

archive high transaction volumes in these systems.

A Bridge to SAP HANACompanies transitioning to SAP HANA from their cur-

rent SAP NetWeaver BW platforms will also benefit from

the CBW NLS IQ nearline system. By archiving static,

high-volume data today, companies can simplify the tran-

sition to SAP HANA and keep infrastructure costs down.

Whether you are an early adopter of SAP HANA or

plan to migrate in the future, Dolphin has the right

expertise and solution options to help reduce your costs

and increase performance when managing big data. We

are ready to help you build your bridge to SAP HANA.

To learn more, visit http://dolphin-corp.com. n

Building a Bridge to SAP HANADolphin’s Data Archiving Solutions Can Help You Reach the Other Side

Werner HopfCEO

Dolphin

SAP HANA

Dolphinimplementation

services

High-valuescenarios

SAP BusinessObjects BI

Traditionaldatabase: Sybase ASE,

Oracle, IBM DB2, Microsoft SQL Server

Traditionaldatabase: Sybase ASE,

Oracle, IBM DB2, Microsoft SQL Server

Traditionaldatabase: Sybase ASE, Oracle, IBM DB2, Microsoft

SQL Server

RayQ on IQ(Datamining)

Sybase IQ,enterprise

edition

SAP ERP

SAP NetWeaverBW

PBS NAI-IQ

PBS CBW NLS IQ

© SAP AG 2009. All rights reserved.

FIGURE 1

Running SAP HANA

with analytics and

a nearline storage

infrastructure





Tools that speed up the performance of a company’s

business intelligence (BI) systems, once thought

of as “nice-to-have” appliances, are now a crucial part

of many organizations’ BI operations. These tools

enable the agility companies need to be successful

in a fast-moving global economy, quickly providing

managers with the relevant supporting data to make

business-critical decisions. Accordingly, managers can

respond to last-minute inventory changes, analyze

millions of sale transactions, or respond to unexpected

supply chain changes in a matter of seconds.

To support one such tool — SAP NetWeaver

Business Warehouse (BW) Accelerator — and help

companies ensure that it runs smoothly, Cisco

offers a family of appliances equipped with intelligent

automation capabilities (that is, ready-to-deploy con-

tent specifically designed to help companies execute

SAP best practices). This content can be quickly and

visually modified without scripts to fit an organiza-

tion’s unique support processes.

Cisco’s Appliances Provide Intelligent Solutions for Your BI SystemsCisco’s family of appliances for SAP NetWeaver BW

Accelerator run Cisco Intelligent Automation, a unique

process automation tool that integrates event and alert

management data with best practices for operational

support processes, including diagnostics, corrective

actions, and incident prevention. The result? A smoothly

running SAP NetWeaver BW Accelerator deployment,

a business team that can easily access the information

it needs, and more time for the IT team to focus on

other value-add tasks.

Cisco’s appliances include best practices designed

to help users identify and index BW queries and

implement and perform corrective actions for failed

extract, transform, and load (ETL) jobs. Cisco Intelligent

Automation also provides automated workflows

for pulse checks, data integrity checks, index reorga-

nization, information package error analysis, services

statistics monitoring, and many other out-of-the box

process flows with built-in audit history for gover-

nance. Such functionality enables organizations to

quickly install, realize, and deliver the value of solu-

tions like SAP NetWeaver BW Accelerator and SAP

BusinessObjects Explorer.

In addition, Cisco Intelligent Automation has an

optional content component for automating IT opera-

tional best practices for your entire suite of SAP appli-

cations across heterogeneous landscapes and, in many

cases, your infrastructure landscape. This helps main-

tain your information architecture, ensuring optimal

data delivery to SAP NetWeaver BW Accelerator.

Automation Drives InnovationTo keep their BI tools running quickly and smoothly,

companies should strongly consider automating their

operational processes. And doing so with the intelli-

gent automation capabilities of a Cisco appliance will

enable you to not only proactively prevent interruption

of services that management depends on for agile de-

cision making, but also drive innovation, reduce costs,

mitigate risks, and save your employees valuable time.

For more information on this tool, visit http://cisco.

com/go/sapbwa. You can also contact the Cisco team at

[email protected]. n

Keep Your BI Tools Running Smoothly with Intelligent Automation

John A. StoneProgram Manager

Cisco

3 Key Benefits of Cisco’s Appliances Cisco’s family of appliances for SAP NetWeaver BW Accelerator enable users to:

■ Promote agility by providing BI data that’s current, correct, and avail-able to decision makers when and where they need it

■ Accelerate time-to-insight through automated implementations of SAP NetWeaver BW Accelerator that are both fast and correct

■ Free IT from the labor-intensive and time-consuming tasks that are associated with the administration of their SAP NetWeaver BW Accelerator appliance





In the business world, social media poses both an

opportunity and a challenge. It can help companies

identify geography-based trends and better understand

how products are being marketed, reviewed, consumed,

and shared (see sidebar). However, while social media

can provide rapid insight into trends and customer pro-

files, the sheer amount of unstructured data created by

mobile and social applications is a challenge to manage

and integrate into back-end systems. Looking for the

information you need in the deluge of social media data

can often feel like looking for a needle in a haystack.

Transform Your Social Media MarketingTo solve this challenge, Capgemini offers the Social

Solutions Platform, which helps retailers reap the ben-

efits of social media without the pain, cost, and stress of

building a new IT infrastructure. A key enabling technol-

ogy for the Social Solutions Platform is SAP HANA. In

the SAP HANA data model, structured data from back-

office systems like SAP ERP is merged with unstructured

data from social media feeds to create a comprehensive

view of the retailer’s most influential customers.

Our approach is based on a deep understanding of

social media, business intelligence, multi-channel cus-

tomer management, and the latest technologies — like

cloud computing, in-memory computing, and semantic

data modeling. Finally, we draw on our knowledge of

the strategic and operational challenges faced by retail-

ers working in a fiercely competitive industry. The Social

Solutions Platform delivers applications that support:

1. Social CRM. Identify the most influential people in

social media across various channels based on a com-

plex algorithm that takes into account, for instance,

a Twitter account’s number of followers and the fre-

quency and timing of tweets about your company or

products. With this, you can generate and distribute

relevant offers to the most influential consumers.

2. Customer complaint and support management.

Capture comments from customers across multiple

social media sources. This application uses semantic

technology to identify the customer and the nature

of a complaint or request. The comment’s content

is then evaluated and sent to the appropriate

employee, who can then respond to the customer.

3. Demand pattern detection. Search social media

channels for comments to identify emerging demand

for certain products. This application categorizes con-

versations by product type, attributes, and key sites. In

turn, your company can actively identify demand sig-

nals and react to incorporate them in the forecasting,

replenishment, planning, and execution systems.

Learn MoreIf you think having a social media strategy needs more

than a social media account, Capgemini has a solution

to accelerate your initiatives. To learn more, visit www.

us.capgemini.com/services-and-solutions/technology/

business-intelligence/overview and follow us at http://

twitter.com/Capgemini. n

Justin NorwoodSAP Business Analytics

Practice Leader Capgemini

Matthew Standish Social Media

Practice Leader Capgemini

Sift Through Your Social Media Data to Find Truly Valuable InformationCapgemini Helps Enhance Your Business Intelligence with Social Media Data

Social Media’s Influence on Consumer Buying Behavior in the World of Retail Through social media, consumers have gained real-time, mobile access to retailers’ prices, product features, and service offerings. They can read and compare independent reviews and consumer opinions or com-plaints. They can also connect with each other and with various commu-nities of interest to rapidly share information and alert friends to news and opinions, both good and bad.

In fact, a recent survey conducted by Mobile Commerce Daily maga-zine revealed that 56% of consumers with smartphones who purchased merchandise based on mobile messaging say that reading marketing emails on their mobile device led to at least one purchase.* The survey also revealed that purchases were influenced by text messages (41%), Facebook via smartphone (35%), Twitter via smartphone (20%), and location-based services like Foursquare (15%).

* Internet Retailer, “Multiple Mobile Avenues Drive Consumers to Purchases” by Bill Siwicki (July 14, 2011).



looking for the next great opportunity

Technology

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