Migration with SAP: On-Premise vs Cloud [Part 1]

We like to move it, move it …, we like to: move it. We move. Constantly. Forward. And Reel 2 Real’s unforgettable hit is also the right soundtrack for what we, our clients and our partners accomplish in digital business every day: we make sure that things move forward – forward towards digital thinking, data-driven action and innovation.

In order to move things forward, you do not only need good ideas, but also the right technologies and systems. And there is even more: innovation is not possible without flexibility and agility – neither in terms of software nor soft skills. If you have the right solutions and partners by your side, however, you can live up to all this forward thinking.

And since nobody these days starts from scratch when it comes to digital processes, the beat of »I Like to Move It« is not only paradigmatic for moving forward, but also specifically stands for migrating systems. This is a huge topic – not least for the software giant SAP, which still has many on-premise customers. On- what? Before we can start talking about migration with SAP, we have to explain a few basic terms. Part one of our series is therefore dedicated to the definition and differentiation of on-premise and cloud. So move it…

Migration: First Things First

From a technical perspective, you had to decide between two completely different approaches when selecting a suitable e-commerce, CRM or marketing automation system in recent years: on-premise and software as a service (SaaS). While software licences for on-premise solutions have to be purchased and installed directly on the internal company server, SaaS products outsource data and accounts to the cloud.

From a technological and historical point of view, the approach of installing something permanently is simply older than the cloud-based software-as-a-service principle. However, on-premise software has developed as well: it can also be run on external servers now – and even in the cloud.

The important distinction thus mainly lies in the question regarding the service behind it: those who are so-called on-premise customers have to take care of everything to do with the software themselves. If you opt for a SaaS solution, everything is handled by the manufacturer, i.e.  SAP.

For a long time, it therefore mainly depended on effort, costs and control which approach was the right one for your company. However, it is now also a question of availability because SaaS has so many advantages that on-premise products are on the brink of extinction. This is not only due to the competition among software providers, who have understood that cloud computing is the only future, but also because the amount of data is increasing at a pace that makes it so much easier to handle data with a SaaS solution. Thus, multi-cloud solutions have simply prevailed because they – move it, move it – are just much more flexible.

Migration to the Cloud with SAP

Our partner SAP has also been moving forward towards cloud and platform business for years: the launch of SAP Commerce Cloud at the beginning of 2018 was a milestone, and the investment in platform business was the logical consequence. SAP is currently expanding its cloud portfolio and proactively helps companies to migrate their commerce solutions from on-premise to the cloud and take customer engagement to the next level using SAP Commerce Cloud, Marketing Cloud, Sales Cloud, Service Cloud and Customer Data Cloud.

At the moment, SAP is doing a lot to get its customers moving away from on-premise solutions. In the second article of our series next week, we show you why companies should be willing to be convinced and supported.

Migration: Move It Like BayWa

In order to be successful in e-commerce, you do not just need the one shop software, but rather a tool that fits into your system landscape and corporate strategy. To put it differently: what used to be an online shop has to become an intelligent transaction platform nowadays.
BayWa is a pioneer when it comes to digitisation, but also with regard to successful platform business.

Click here to find out how the agricultural group has built up a modern e-commerce landscape.

In our new »Selecting E-Commerce Software« white paper, we have also analysed the other benefits of SAP’s commerce solution.

Besides the comparison of providers for B2C and B2B, we address strategic questions and explain what is important for a system change or an update within a company.