SAP Solution: Amazon

Under the agreement, Tech Data will install local AWS sales and technical teams in European countries.

It is often external influences that force an organization to adopt new technologies and innovate. Covid-19 may be one such influence. If such a game-changing event doesn't drive us to change, what will?

Traditional markets are changing drastically. Only selling products is not enough anymore; service providers with innovative, highly flexible business models are taking over. The biggest driver behind billing innovation is digitalization.

Die-hard Star Trek fans know it: In the sixth movie under Captain Kirk, the "old" Enterprise crew sets off on a journey to the "undiscovered" land. Of course, this land is not a place, but the future.

Amazon has changed the rules of the game in retail once and for all. Customizing systems is no longer a recipe for success. Instead, it's the service that counts.

This week marked the first joint appearance of SAP co-CEOs Jennifer Morgan and Christian Klein at the presentation of the company's third quarter financial results.

The digital world is becoming increasingly networked. Global networks are already shaping our future. Amazon, Google, Uber & Co. have shown the way, and the age of traditional on-premise solutions has long since passed its zenith, including in accounting.

More and more SAP customers aim for a hybrid cloud or multi-cloud approach. Linux can serve as the foundation—also in combination with container technologies like Kubernetes.

According to a study by Deutsche Telekom, 46 percent of mid-sized businesses think that digital expertise will be a major success factor in the future. 55 percent are already using or planning to use IoT applications.

Amazon Web Services has been certified for various SAP applications for several years. The attractive offer provides light and shade, but a vendor lock-in also has to be verified.

Many retailers look with unease at Amazon's seemingly unstoppable growth. In September, the online giant's market value cracked the magic one-trillion-dollar mark. Retailers must now react.

Cloud computing is supposed to be a megatrend - say the vendors and analysts. SAP's existing customers have other priorities, answers and challenges.