What to Expect From SAPPHIRE+ASUG 2007

By Sam Sliman
President, Optimal Solutions Integration, Inc.

What to expect from SAPPHIRE+ASUG 2007 - MDM, business process experts, upgrades, A1S, and what lawsuit?

The past year has been an exciting time for SAP and SAP customers alike. SAP+ASUG 2007 will be held in Atlanta from April 22-25, and you can expect it to generate large-scale interest from the media and excitement among the SAP customer base, at a time when the SAP industry is anything but dull.

To be sure, the agenda will include the usual slate of industry- and technology-focused content that customers and prospects have come to expect. But attendees will also notice an increased focus on a few hot spots:

Master Data Management - Any SAP customer with a complex landscape wrestles with the issue of master data synchronization. SAP NetWeaver MDM is coming into its own as a solution, and customer/prospect interest is very high. Expect to see plenty of demos and testimonials that demonstrate the business value of an MDM deployment. Business Process Experts - The big trend for non-technical SAP professionals has coalesced into an official Business Process Expert community.  Membership in the community is very high despite its relatively new status. As you would expect, special interest groups and sub-communities will abound and there will be many opportunities for like-minded BPXs to network and learn. Upgrades - Although many SAP customers have already bought their ECC upgrade licenses, there are plenty who are in the beginning stages of the upgrade process.  Interest is extremely high in terms of understanding the new capabilities of the platform and implementation best practices. A1S - SAP’s highly touted A1S product, targeted for the SME market, is scheduled to be released later this year.  Media coverage of the offering will be high given the growing market anticipation and imminent release date. Look for the media and SAP customers to inquire aggressively about the recently announced lawsuit filed by Oracle, alleging that SAP’s TomorrowNow acquisition has pilfered Oracle’s IP.  Although most analysts agree that there is more smoke than fire to the claim, the lawsuit has had a dramatic effect, which is clearly Oracle’s intention as the company continues its battle to create the perception that it is gaining ground on SAP. Despite the hoopla, it is unlikely that SAP will comment on the lawsuit beyond what has already been said.

For SAP customers, prospects and partners, SAP+ASUG 2007 promises to be an exciting and extremely productive event. We at Optimal hope to see you there - booth 1533 -1535.