- Andy Steer, Director Business Analytics, itelligence UK -
“We are excited by the HANA technology, but what do we do next?” This completely valid and totally understandable question is one that I hear time and again from customers and prospects who are being bombarded with articles, webinars, tweets and videos about SAP’s latest and greatest technology innovation. This question got me thinking and resulted in a presentation I gave at the recent SAP Forum event held in St Albans in the UK.
I tried to tackle the question head on. I didn’t not want to talk about the challenges of classic data warehousing, the theory of column databases, the fact that hardware had evolved to such a point that huge in memory databases were now practical or that HANA was a revolutionary technology. No, what I wanted to talk about was what on earth you can do with such an innovative technology, I wanted to talk about the applications that are available to help you deliver value to your business, or your customers, or your suppliers. I wanted to talk about HANA and her daughters…
You could be forgiven for wondering what on earth I am talking about, so let me be clear. Since the ramp up and GA of the core HANA technology, SAP have been working on a number of solutions, applications and accelerators which can deliver incredible benefits to businesses, it is these “children of HANA” that I feel represent huge opportunities for forward thinking organisations all around the world. SAP are even encouraging the Partner eco-system to develop their own solutions, I have great hopes that this cottage industry can really push HANA into the mainstream above and beyond customers with existing investments in SAP technology. Read more…
The Customer Engagement Initiative for the ABAP Development Tools for SAP NetWeaver (aka ABAP in Eclipse) has finished. Within the CEI about 20 experienced ABAP and non-ABAP developers at selected customers and partners evaluated the pilot version of ABAP Development Tools for SAP NetWeaver with regard to different aspects including developer efficiency, usability, feature scope, documentation and more.
The feedback can be found in the following blog on SAP SDN:
itelligence took part in the Customer Engagement Initiative providing feedback by 7 developers. Their impressions and feedback correspond to those presented in the SDN blog. We look forward to the official shipment!
Written by: Matthias Kumm, Daniel Schön and Ludwig Heinz, itelligence AG
For a long time, it’s been said that HTML5 will prevail as a viable language for enterprise application development. However, many questions remain.
First, what’s the overall problem?
HTML5 is a great uniform standard for developing applications for mobile devices and PCs at the same time. However, when compared to the native implementations, significant hurdles start to show their true colors. Examples include missing standardization, the lack of support through the installed browser-basis, and some functional disadvantages. Many companies also don’t have the required know-how and experience in the development of the productive operations of HTML5 applications. Moreover HTML has to establish itself as the basis of business applications.
The use of “classic” web presence is increasing at a steady pace. Once there are sufficient implementation of mobile applications, HTML5 will definitely be considered an alternative in this area for many companies. Major producers of business software, including SAP, could give a significant impact by bringing their own applications to the market based in HTML5.
How much higher are development costs? What about when a native app needs to be developed instead of HTML5, where one development can be used by any smartphone user?
There is no general correct answer for these questions as it depends on many factors, including the requirements of the target group, the scope of functions and the support combinations of mobile operating systems with operating system version, etc. Our business customers often use the SAP environment just as a mobile platform for their own employees, and they also can define standards for externals in order to reduce the complexity of supporting platforms.
In the development of systems that depend on a specific platform, a large amount of the results of outsets and design can be reused. These results make up a very large part of the total costs. With that in mind, it can be said that the cost advantage of HTML5 development is more relevant when many different mobile operating systems are going to be achieved and the desired applications, with HTML5 features, are easy to implement. Read more…
JAB Anstoetz is one of the largest fabrics manufacturers worldwide, exporting its collections to more than 80 countries across the globe. Since opening in 1946, the company’s continued success has created new challenges. Until recently, JAB’s ever-increasing size made it difficult for trading partners to access real-time inventory information.
JAB wanted to solve this problem by giving these trading partners access to the company’s ERP system via mobile devices. In order to achieve this goal, JAB—located in Bielefeld, Germany—turned to one of its neighbors, itelligence AG, and the it.x-mobile solution.
A software framework for the development of mobile SAP applications, it.x-mobile offers the range of SAP-related functions that JAB needed. It only took the itelligence team a few days to fully install the solution and to train JAB employees how to use it. JAB employees with experience in SAP can even use their programming knowledge to create mobile applications and scenarios of their own. Each app only has to be programmed once before it’s ready for use.
New dimension of visibility and approach
All these features helped JAB and itelligence bridge real-time inventory and customer visibility. Now trading partners can make material orders and reservations with just a few clicks, and if a product is out of stock, customers simply send an email to JAB’s internal-services personnel to receive an availability date.
The real-time dynamic also allows trading partners to consult the current range whenever they wish, and update their inventory of samples without delay. Other mobile scenarios are already being planned, including a digital product catalogue with high-quality images of products. Of course, all of these capabilities are in addition to the baseline benefits provided by the it.x-mobile solution. JAB customers have all the information they need about availability, delivery times, and prices—right on their mobile devices. A firewall monitors data access for all these activities, keeping the data exchange safe and secure.
You can read more about the features of it.x-mobile, here. For more information about how itelligence helped JAB, click here.
Businesses are intensifying efforts to understand how mobile applications can help achieve business value and be developed to meet their unique needs. However, like consumers, business users want apps that offer both functional value and a user-friendly interface and experience that increase the likelihood of being embraced by employees and producing measurable return on investment and enhanced productivity.
itelligence uses its deep knowledge of SAP, middleware solutions and mobility trends to develop or consult on solutions for SAP customers. Common examples include mobile apps that simplify sales processes and provide analytics dashboards for CRM or other data. As another example, at the recent CeBIT 2012 conference, itelligence AG and Nektoon AG announced the integration of Squirro, described as a “personal digital research app,” with SAP Business ByDesign.
Understanding the needs and functionalities:
No matter the nature of the business-focused mobile app, there are several truths we’ve found to be universal to end-user adoption and satisfaction.
The first is that most successful business apps do not start from a data perspective, but instead from a user-centric perspective. This requires a strong focus on the user experience from the beginning on. Utilizing different tools such as wireframes and mockups during the design phase help to discuss and define the user interface and look & feel of the application. Utilizing an iterative design approach with continuous feedback from the customer ensures that requirements are fully covered and expectations on both sides are aligned. Read more…
The business landscape in China is constantly changing as a new generation of international companies learns how to adapt and be successful. Previously, most foreign companies that entered the Chinese market were larger businesses focused on efficient and cheaper production. While small and mid-sized companies shared similar objectives, setting up an operation in China often required a partnership or joint venture, versus operating as a single enterprise.
Recent changes in Chinese guidelines and business processes have presented attractive opportunities for small, global companies to gain a foothold. More SME have begun setting up their own operations. As the demand for business software continues to increase, many mid-sized businesses especially from Western Europe US and Japan are turning to itelligence to quickly help get them off the ground and running.
In 2011, itelligence expanded its presence in China and opened its first SAP Application Support and Maintenance Center in the country. From our base in Shanghai, we now provide complete consultancy and global SAP application support and maintenance for customers throughout Asia in English, Japanese and Chinese. We also opened a consultation facility in Shenzhen, a city in the south of China with 10 million inhabitants. This location is in the border zone with Hong Kong, China’s most heavily populated region, and has a fast-growing economy serving both the Chinese and the international markets. Read more…
-Robert Leitner, Managing Director, itelligence Austria-
This is the final contribution in a series of four blogs that provide a glimpse of itelligence’s book Business Heroes (Second Edition) that was released last week. For more background, please see this post
4.30 a.m. Get up, shower, quick breakfast. The house is still silent, my family still asleep.
Our cat returns, hungry after her night out in the great outdoors. Tired and demanding – she
gives me that sort of look. No souvenir for me this time – no mouse, no frog.
I am about to visit a medium-sized business that decided to work with itelligence a couple of
weeks ago.
This opportunity is still new, fresh, like this morning. Everything is still possible, still undecided. Outside
the sun is rising. It’s going to be a nice drive from Vienna to Salzburg. Start the car and off
we go. Less traffic at this time of the day, the rush-hour will not start until later.
And I’ve got time to look back at my life for a while.
Kilometre 200 – Linz.
The Alps can already be seen quite well from here. Right on top, the first snow sparkles in the
sun.
Kilometre 310 – Salzburg.
A wood-processing company close to the motorway, exuding plumes of smoke… another SAP
client.
Kilometre 380 – finally there.
After a four-hour-drive, I’m finally here. I wonder, is my cat still asleep? My aim is
hidden in a small valley, surrounded by ski resorts, close to the river Salzach: a medium-sized
business that decided a couple of weeks ago to implement SAP with our help. We
agreed to spend the whole day on a preliminary meeting – start slowly, focus, be diligent.
Right from the start: talk to each other, listen to each other, commit to each other, respond to
each other.
That’s how to cooperate. It’s been a perfect day and yet another rewarding customer visit.
You can also find the second edition of “Business Heroes in SMBs – Worldwide” on Amazon
-Uwe Bohnhorst and Steve Niesman-
We’re pleased to announce that itelligence was awarded the SAP Pinncale Award for the SAP PartnerEdge Global Volume Reselling Partner of the Year.
Uwe Bohnhorst, Chief Operating Officer, itelligence AG, “With this premier global recognition program, SAP recognizes those partners who have excelled the partnership with SAP and promoting mutual business. The winners in this category had been evaluated upon a series of global but also regional criteria, such as total license revenue, number of net new names, over achievement of business plans, compelling offerings etc. This year itelligence did more than 100 net new software names for itelligence and SAP with a more than 20% year-on-year growth in revenue. Our installed base also contributed strongly with double digit growth in license revenues and more than 200 customer transactions.”
These awards signify itelligence’s hard work and great success over the past year in establishing a truly global offering in Europe, the U.S. and Asia, while strengthening our SAP business service portfolio,” contimues Steve Niesman, itelligence U.S. president and CEO. “We are proud to have elevated not only our long-time, global business partnership with SAP, but most notably our outsourcing capabilities with innovative solutions customers need today such as our it.ServiceCloud, new SAP HANA test drives and enhanced support for SAP B1 On-Demand. We provide extraordinary value by offering SAP customers one expert business partner for integrated application support and hosting, with dedicated customer focus and industry knowledge.”
The official award ceremony will take place at this year’s SAPPHIRE NOW in Orlando.
A complete list of SAP Pinnacle Award finalists and winners is available at SAP.com.
More information can be found in the press release on the website of itelligence.
-Jamil Chaker, itelligence, Knowledge Management-
Prof. Dr. Ralf Schengber, Jörg Deibert, Horst Biere, Torsten Scholz, Dr. Christoph von der Heiden, Klaus Eck, Susanne Schaefer-Dieterle, Herbert Vogel, Brigitte Büscher, Laurenz Esser, Gerd Wöhler and Dr. Jörg Schillinger (from left to right)
Klaus Eck, communications consultant and PR blogger
- Klaus Eck, communications consultant and PR blogger, began the forum with his presentation called “How long can Facebook & Co go on?” in which he explained the development of communication. 76.1% of Internet users in Germany are also registered on social networks. The most important reasons for registering and participating in social networks are sharing and transparency. Social networks are about receiving information and communication. The fact that everyone has the possibility to post an entry means that journalists are losing their role as information gatekeepers. Thanks to their ability to provide information in real time, social media are becoming an increasingly popular means of procuring information. “Ultimately, social media is an indication of a cultural change,” says Mr. Eck. But a distinction had to be made between private information, such as about the family or hobbies, and personal information, such as work. Private information should not be in the Internet, but forwarding personal information did not present problems.
- Prof. Ralf Schengber, Professor of Marketing at the Münster University of Applied Sciences
The second presentation was held by Prof. Ralf Schengber, Professor of Marketing at the Münster University of Applied Sciences, on the issue of “How is social media changing our buying behavior?” He spoke about the interaction between online and offline activities. Nowadays people find out about a product on the Internet before they go into a shop to buy it, or vice-versa, looking at the products “offline” first and then reading more about them online afterwards. Schengber breaks this buying behavior down into three phases: Read more…
-Xiaodong Liam Song, Business Consultant itelligence China-
This is the third in a series of four blogs that provide a glimpse of itelligence’s book Business Heroes (Second Edition) that was released last week. For more background, please see this post
I opened the door and skeptically looked up the stairs. A smell of dust and cleaning powder was the first thing that hit me as I began to run.
Floors one and two were easy. Running up one or two sets of stairs is normal for me. I was more or less on my own and only heard other people from a distance.
Between the third and fourth floors, the ambience of the house became boring. Recurring images make you lose a certain level of orientation. There were no logos or images. Just grey walls and more stairs. Had I already passed the landing on the fourth floor? Maybe I should take a break? My breathing had become shorter, and there was a long way to go.
“I am data, hear me roar! How HANA can make a real difference in the public sector” is a great post of the NTT DATA Group Company extend in Australia!
It explains the use and impact of HANA, predominantly in the Public Sector, in very vivid way. So, enjoy reading!
http://blog.extendtechnologies.com.au/i-am-data-hear-me-roar-how-hana-can-make-a-real-difference-in-government/
Logistics Execution (LE) software is all about access to real-time information in real-world environments. When a warehouse worker scans a barcode or a storm slows down a shipment, the right people need to know, right away. SAP has developed a suite of integrated software that promises to meet these demands, and change the future of LE in the process. This suite includes two distinct but highly integrated bundles: SAP Supply Chain Management (SAP SCM) and SAP Supply Chain Execution (SAP SCE).
SAP SCM contains all the functionality needed for logistics planning, forecasting and scheduling, while SAP SCE equips the enterprise with functionality around extended warehouse management and transportation management, including event management and global trade management for customs and international shipping.
SAP SCM and SAP SCE will make virtually all areas of supply chain management and execution more efficient, which will in turn move distribution centers away from cost centers and establish them as profit centers. Read more…
Like this:
The First Decade of Its Internationalization
- Hans Schlegel, Former Board Member, SAP AG -
This blog is the second in a series of four blogs that provide a glimpse of the forthcoming publication of itelligence’s Business Heroes (Second Edition). For more background, please see this post.
The world looked very different some 30 years ago when I was cutting my teeth in IT. Little did I know that my life, and the global business world, were about to be drastically changed forever, and for the better.
Founded in 1972 by Dietmar Hopp and four other former IBM engineers, SAP was still a very young, growing company 10 years later – and hardly anyone knew yet what it was. In the early 1980s, I was evaluating a replacement for accounting systems that were still running on so-called magnetic account machines. IBM, a first and preferred vendor, was proposing an integrated file system with extensive transaction processing capabilities (it used DL/1 to access IBM’s IMS databases). I came across SAP/R 1 and was immediately impressed by its on-line and real-time way of working. Read more…
What is the best approach to get something started? If experienced, you know exactly what to do. But how do you start when you are lacking experience, e.g. if you want to start a career as a miniature racing driver or slot circuit owner without having a clue? You either have to ask some experts or you have to rely on the offers of the industry. And the industry soon has the brilliant idea (also in commercial terms), to come up with preconfigured starter packages with a tempting price tag on it …
For those of you with an eye on SAP-related topics on our international blog, you have probably seen the acronym RDS, which stands for Rapid Deployment Solutions. So you might wonder what makes RDS relevant, and why it is mentioned so frequently by people including my colleague David Cairat. Is RDS really that important, especially when “all-in one packages” have been around for quite some time? The answer is “yes,” and I will tell you why. Let’s have a closer look at each of the three parts of RDS:
Rapid
We all know the common waterfall model for software development and the usual long implementation periods, which often last more than a year. And we all know what this usually means for the motivation of the project team as well, especially when you have a lot of changes involving scope and timeline. Read more…
-Tom Saeys, SAP SLcM Solution Architect, itelligence AG-
This blog is the first in a series of four blogs that provide a glimpse of itelligence’s book Business Heroes
(Second Edition) that was released last week. For more background, please see this post
In 2007, most people couldn’t imagine this role SAP would play in Thuwal, Saudi Arabi. But later that year, a 14-square-mile lot along the coast of the Red Sea set the stage for today’s King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), a globally renowned graduate research university that makes significant contributions to scientific and technological advancement.
By September 2009, driven by a $12.5 billion dollar investment from King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, the fully-operational campus took the first steps in its journey from vision to reality. itelligence was selected to implement SAP and its Student Lifecycle Management (SLcM) to support the main university’s administrative functions, including student administration. Read more…
