ASUG has collaborated with SAP experts, customers, and analysts to compile the essential key considerations for implementing the SAP Business Technology Platform (BTP). Explore the top takeaways to keep in mind as you prepare to embark on your technical transformation journey. From understanding the benefits of SAP BTP to navigating potential challenges, each takeaway is designed to help you make informed decisions and maximize the value of your investment.
SAP Business Technology Platform (BTP) is SAP’s platform and toolset for supporting innovation in the cloud.
- It provides tools for managing application development - particularly extensions to SAP S/4HANA - as well as tools for application and process integration, analytics, data management, and artificial intelligence (AI) model development and deployment.
It’s important to bear in mind that SAP BTP is being continually enhanced and upgraded.
- SAP BTP is the home of all new technology and services not deployed directly in the core of cloud products including SAP S/4HANA, SAP SuccessFactors, and others. This means that it is imperative for you to stay up-to-date and abreast of this fast-moving target.
The SAP BTP umbrella includes 6 key products:
- SAP Build for application development.
- SAP Integration Suite for integrating SAP and non-SAP applications and other assets.
- SAP Analytics Cloud for supporting analytics, planning, and financial reporting.
- SAP Build Process Orchestration for building and maintaining business processes.
- SAP Datasphere for building, managing, and maintaining data to be used in support of existing applications, extensions, and in support of integrated, end-to-end processes.
- SAP AI Core for building, maintaining, and deploying AI models and applications.
SAP BTP is an essential part of SAP’s AI development and delivery strategy.
- SAP Build Code was released in late 2023 to support AI-based code generation. Build Code uses SAP’s Joule AI copilot to support AI model and application development. SAP BTP also provides a growing library of AI business services that are tailored to specific lines of business and industries.
SAP BTP supports multiple application development strategies.
- For example, SAP Build can support low-code application development, while SAP Application Studio can support professional developers. This allows different business users and professional developers to create the differentiating applications needed to address organizational requirements.
SAP BTP is an essential component of SAP’s Clean Core strategy.
- By using SAP BTP as the platform for building extensions to SAP S/4HANA and other SAP Cloud applications, you can create applications and services that deliver organization-specific functionality while adhering to SAP’s Clean Core requirements. This can provide competitive advantage or satisfy unique industry, geographic, regulatory, or other requirements while maintaining a clean core that is based on industry standard processes. This allows you to deploy innovation alongside SAP’s fit-to-standard processes without relying on costly and hard to maintain one-off customizations.
SAP BTP is designed to be a platform for SAP partners to develop and deliver net-new functionality on top of SAP Cloud applications while adhering to SAP’s Clean Core strategy.
- This is particularly important for supporting micro-vertical and fast-moving regulatory requirements that depend on a partner’s ability to develop and bring key functionality to market while allowing you to remain compliant with Clean Core strategy.
SAP BTP plays an important role in SAP’s Business Transformation Suite.
- Business Transformation combines Cloud Application Lifecycle Management (ALM), SAP Signavio, LeanIX and other tools to help manage the underlying technology, infrastructure, and processes that support business transformation. SAP BTP supplies the necessary APIs that connect Cloud ALM and other implementation and lifecycle services to SAP BTP’s SAP Analytics Cloud, Datasphere, Integration Suite, and other resources. These cloud-based services ensure that SAP S/4HANA, other SAP Cloud applications, and even non-SAP applications, are optimally implemented and managed with regard to business and technical functionality and requirements.
As a part of the SAP Business Transformation Suite, SAP BTP plays a key role in integrating important transformation tools like SAP Signavio and LeanIX.
- While these tools can be effectively used today, the full integration of these services, along with SAP Cloud ALM, is a work in progress slated for completion in 2024 or 2025.
SAP BTP supports the integration and orchestration of heterogeneous landscapes that are a mix of SAP and non-SAP applications and services.
- This allows organizations with complex software landscapes and end-to-end processes to optimize the use of SAP S/4HANA and other SAP cloud applications alongside these non-SAP assets.
SAP BTP provides the integration, orchestration, and data management requirements needed to support hybrid SAP deployments.
- These deployments can span both SAP S/4HANA Public Cloud and Private Cloud systems as well as SAP ECC and other legacy SAP systems.
SAP BTP licensing can be complicated, so it’s important to understand how much of the SAP BTP stack is available under a given license.
- Different tiers of the RISE with SAP offering provide access to different parts of the SAP BTP stack. Understanding your company’s specific SAP BTP requirements is important when deciding on the best version of RISE with SAP for your needs. SAP BTP is also licensable without RISE with SAP, though SAP is trying to move customers away from non-RISE contracts, so it will be important to check with your account executive to explore all your currently available options.
Connect with your peers at ASUG to learn more about SAP BTP.
- There is a wealth of experience and information at your disposal within the ASUG community. Be sure to leverage the experience of customers that have implemented tools within SAP BTP to understand the potential impact on your organization.
Remember that this is just the beginning of your journey towards integrating SAP BTP into your enterprise landscape. We’ve highlighted key considerations to guide you along the way, but there’s still much more to explore and learn. We invite you to delve deeper into other ASUG resources, including guides, customer stories, and content collections to deepen your understanding. ASUG is here for you to help you get the most out of your SAP investment.