At the heart of ASUG is a core belief: people learn best from each other. Our mission has always been to bring SAP users together to share what’s working, discuss honestly what isn’t, and help each other move forward in their technology investments with clarity and confidence. Whether our members are seeking information about recent innovations, troubleshooting day-to-day challenges, or shaping their SAP solution roadmaps, community is where those conversations start — and where breakthroughs happen.
By adhering to this principle, the ASUG Community Conversations program has evolved across this past year into one of the most exciting new channels through which ASUG is sparking productive dialogue and connections between members and SAP experts.
This transition from task forces, town halls, and influence councils to a single, dynamic experience—both in-person and online—has already been met with enthusiasm in the ASUG community and SAP experts, since its launch via nine in-person sessions at this year’s SAP Sapphire & ASUG Annual Conference.
Over the past few months, ASUG Community Conversations have advanced dialogues in 20+ dedicated ASUG communities, including SAP Business Technology Platform, AI, Cloud ERP & SAP S/4HANA, Enterprise Architecture, Business Transformation Management, and ASUG’s professional development program, ASUG Collective.
From One-Way Communication to Open Dialogue
Before ASUG Community Conversations, ASUG’s community-based events were often presentation-focused, with limited audience interactivity. In 2025, we changed that.
ASUG Community Conversations are intentionally designed as peer-to-peer and peer-to-expert exchanges where members can talk openly, ask questions, and problem-solve together. These sessions are structured as flexible, collaborative discussions supported by live polls, curated prompts, and real-time chat engagement, allowing for attendee feedback to directly inform future session topics.
A Unified Experience Across Communities
In these conversations, ASUG members have direct access to SAP product teams, gaining transparency about adoption challenges and usage gaps, clear visibility into which tools are being used (and which are not), and honest conversations about areas of confusion.
We've found that members value these honest conversations about real-world applications for their technology solutions — and the opportunity to feel seen, heard, and represented in ASUG programming. At the same time, this approach provides SAP experts with something invaluable: direct, unfiltered access to the customer experience.
Member feedback has characterized Community Conversations as inclusive, practical, and one of the most effective ways to learn from both SAP and peers. One member noted that they walked away from a recent session with actionable takeaways and stated that it was a valuable use of their time.
Topical Focus: Addressing Member Priorities
The content of ASUG Community Conversations in 2025 has reflected the most critical challenges facing our members (as measured by our annual Pulse of the SAP Customer Research), including aligning business and IT, navigating architecture decisions, integrating AI while preserving SAP clean core, modernizing customer operations, and investing in leadership and career growth.
The deep-dive focus sessions yield concrete learning and re-evaluation of current practices. In a session on the Cloud Application Programming Model (CAP), feedback demonstrated a shift from theoretical knowledge to practical application. An SAP BTP community participant noted in providing feedback that the session contained “not only theoretical info, but also concrete use cases and code examples.”
Similarly, in a session on AI-powered customer operations and clean core, members reported gaining greater clarity on complex SAP principles and innovations. One member told us, “This helped me understand the clean-core concepts clearly.”
The Feedback Tells the Story
SAP and customer feedback has been overwhelmingly positive; consistently, we hear ASUG Community Conversations described as an impactful way to learn and engage through ASUG.
Fabian Lehmann, SAP Product Experience, Data & Platform Product Success and Principial Enterprise Architect, SAP SE Germany, noted, “This interactive format was an insightful way to hear directly from customers about what matters to them and where we, as SAP, need to improve enablement to help them to adopt new innovations faster.”
Members have shared that they particularly value access to experts without barriers, conversations grounded in practical application, and the chance to hear peer experiences alongside SAP perspectives.
Looking Ahead: 2026 and Beyond
2025 was just the beginning.
Shifting from one-way informational broadcasts to dynamic, interactive conversations built around our members’ priorities has transformed ASUG’s virtual event experience for the better. Planning is already underway for 2026, with enhancements shaped directly by community feedback, dialogue with members, and collaboration with SAP, ensuring even more relevant opportunities for members to connect, engage, and learn.
Have you attended a Community Conversation? Share your experience with us at communities@asug.com. Connect with your community, sign up, and explore upcoming sessions on the ASUG events page. Don’t miss the chance to be part of the conversations shaping the future of ASUG — and SAP technology.