The Evolution of SAP and the Cloud: How Google Workspace and SAP S/4 HANA Transform Data and Insights

Billions of users have made Google Workspace the most connected and creative platform for business, and now those tools are becoming even more powerful as Google and SAP continue to expand their joint efforts. In the near future, SAP clients will be able to seamlessly integrate their existing S/4 HANA infrastructure into the most comprehensive and user-friendly suite of collaboration tools found in Google Workspace.

Bringing SAP and Workspace together is as transformative as pairing peanut butter with jelly. This analogy is particularly apt because, as good as SAP is, it is somewhat dry and static — just like peanut butter can be. Adding the “jelly” of Google Workspace, however, transforms something that’s good into something that’s great. Being able to directly integrate data and other information from Google Docs and Sheets into SAP will be a game changer.

SAP and Google as Technology Leaders

The importance and ubiquity of SAP can’t be overstated. As one of the original enterprise resource planning software vendors, SAP pioneered many of the functions and processes that drive the mission-critical functions of the enterprise in ways that would be nearly impossible to replace. Over the past several years, however, the emergence of powerful, cost-effective, and flexible cloud-based solutions has challenged the traditional SAP model. In response, SAP has introduced S/4 HANA to take advantage of these new capabilities that arise from the cloud.

In a similar fashion, Google Workspace is a clear leader when it comes to collaboration software. Built on Google’s cutting-edge technology, Google Workspace offers a suite of tools and services that are both intuitive and comprehensive. Google Workspace was built in the cloud (i.e., cloud-native), so it seamlessly and efficiently delivers the best of new collaboration technologies in ways that enable and inform business.

The Benefits of Combining S/4 HANA and Google Workspace

Like a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, the connection between SAP S/4 HANA and Google Workspace is greater than the sum of its parts. Some of the most important advantages include:

• Integration of external data: SAP has always done a bang-up job with native data, but the enterprise of the future requires data from a wide variety of sources to drive new functionality — including AI and ML. The addition of Google Workspace opens SAP to the whole wide world of data in all of its conceivable forms.
• Addition of more analytics capabilities: SAP has always excelled at analytics, but here, too, the enterprise of the future needs a much wider set of options — including the previously mentioned AI and ML as well as the ever-expanding options for dashboards, graphics, and other tools. Importantly, these capabilities can be delivered more quickly and efficiently with modern tools.
• Increased data efficiency: The long, slow evolution of data in the enterprise has often led to a confused muddle of information that has unclear provenance and immature governance protocols. Having the opportunity to unify data across multiple sources makes it possible to rationalize data, thereby lowering costs and increasing reliability.
• Faster, more responsive processing and analytics: Everything moves faster these days, and data and insights need to keep pace. The period from data ingestion to analytic insight needs to be as short as possible, and putting the ability to act in the hands of frontline decision makers is a prime benefit of adding Workspace to SAP S/4 HANA. Google Workspace can move at the speed of the modern enterprise.

Getting the Most Out of Google Workspace for SAP S/4 HANA

The coupling of Workspace with S/4 HANA will open a wide range of possibilities for the analytical capabilities of the enterprise, and it’s not too soon to begin preparing for these new possibilities. Maven Wave, an Atos Company, has deep experience in helping companies navigate the transition to new technologies, including cooperation in alpha and beta programs for new features and functionality. Contact us today to find out how we can help.