SAP’s Bold Pivot: Making the Intelligent Connected Enterprise a Reality

# AI

# Intelligent Enterprise

# SAP

Insights from SAP Connect 2025 and Muhammad Alam’s strategy for the Intelligent Connected Enterprise.

November 8, 2025

Earlier this week at SAP Connect 2025 in Las Vegas, I had the opportunity to hear Muhammad Alam, SAP’s Chief Product & Engineering Officer and Member of the Executive Board, outline SAP’s vision for the AI era. Here are my top takeaways: 𝟭. 𝗕𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝗖𝗹𝗼𝘂𝗱: 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗦𝗔𝗣’𝘀 𝗔𝗜 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆 SAP’s Business Data Cloud (BDC) has quickly become its most important innovation — and its fastest-growing product since launch in May 2024. BDC harmonizes business data across systems through 500+ pre-built data products, preserving context across orders, invoices, and cash flows. This makes AI truly business-aware and positions BDC as the foundation for the Intelligent Connected Enterprise. 𝟮. 𝗠𝗶𝗴𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝗡𝗼𝘄 𝗔𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗩𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲 SAP’s tone has shifted from “you must migrate” to “here’s the business impact of transformation.” The focus is now on outcomes — better cash flow, more innovative procurement, optimized decisions — rather than technical upgrades. The challenge ahead: enabling SAP’s teams and partners to sell value, not versions. 𝟯. 𝗔𝗜 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗧𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁: 𝗔 𝗛𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗻-𝗙𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗔𝗱𝗼𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗣𝗮𝘁𝗵 Rather than chasing the hype of full autonomy, SAP is taking a trust-first approach. AI assistants are deployed by role, offering recommendations that humans review and approve. As accuracy builds, autonomy follows. This “trust before automation” model is pragmatic — and far more sustainable for enterprise adoption. 𝟰. 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: 𝗦𝗔𝗣 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗧𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝗢𝘄𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 After years of customers building their own connections, SAP is now taking ownership of integration across its suite — from provisioning to maintenance. If successful, this removes one of enterprise IT’s most significant costs. 𝟱. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝘂𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝗔𝗱𝘃𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗲: 𝗖𝗿𝗼𝘀𝘀-𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗢𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 SAP’s argument for the suite is simple: real business optimization requires connected systems. While best-of-breed tools optimize locally, SAP’s suite can optimize globally — connecting finance, HR, procurement, and supply chain decisions through shared intelligence. 𝗠𝘂𝗵𝗮𝗺𝗺𝗮𝗱 𝗔𝗹𝗮𝗺’𝘀 𝗣𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 Muhammad delivered a precise, composed keynote — blending technical depth with strategic storytelling and authentic engagement. His direct Q&A built trust as effectively as his message. SAP’s strategy feels coherent and customer-focused. As a SuccessFactors/SAP alumnus, I’m encouraged — the vision is ambitious yet achievable. Executed well, it could make the Intelligent Connected Enterprise a reality and redefine enterprise software for the AI era. What’s your take — how do you see SAP bringing this bold vision to life?

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SAP’s Bold Pivot: Making the Intelligent Connected Enterprise a Reality

Insights from SAP Connect 2025 and Muhammad Alam’s strategy for the Intelligent Connected Enterprise.

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