U.S. Adoption of SAP S/4HANA Rebounds After COVID-19 Slowdown as Enterprises Focus on Efficiency, Agility

U.S. adoption of SAP S/4HANA has rebounded after slowing for most of 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic stalled digital transformations, according to a new report published today by Information Services Group (ISG) (Nasdaq: III), a leading global technology research and advisory firm.

The 2021 ISG Provider Lens™ SAP HANA Ecosystem Services report for the U.S. finds S/4HANA, the enterprise resource planning (ERP) system running on SAP HANA, is evolving to better meet enterprise business needs with artificial intelligence (AI), analytics and an interactive interface.

“U.S. companies are looking to the cloud to cut costs and increase agility, especially since the pandemic sharpened their focus on these areas, but many want to ease into transformation,” said Jan Erik Aase, partner and global leader, ISG Provider Lens Research. “SAP and its ecosystem partners allow organizations to carry out staggered implementations of S/4HANA that minimize business disruption.”

To help enterprises roll out S/4HANA, SAP service providers have continued to develop AI-powered tools and accelerators in areas such as assessment, code reconciliation, data management and testing, the report says. These offerings allow for safer and faster transformations.

In addition to using proprietary tools, providers are focused on integrating Agile and DevOps methodologies within their frameworks to increase efficiency and deliver results more quickly, ISG says. These include hybrid Agile and DevOps approaches, such as Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe), for rapid development, prototyping, deployment and release, and Agile sprints. Some providers now have dedicated centers of excellence for these approaches.

Providers of S/4HANA managed services in the U.S. are introducing more automation to reduce costs and speed up delivery, according to the report. This includes AI-based conversational bots and robotic process automation (RPA), which can improve efficiency, streamline incident management and deliver other benefits. Through partnerships with the major hyperscale cloud providers, these providers are also offering platform application services including archiving, backup, disaster recovery, security, compliance and monitoring, ISG says.

U.S. enterprises are also taking advantage of a growing number of SAP partner offerings designed for rapid implementation, the report says. These include ready-to-run templates, preconfigured offerings and industry-specific solutions for S/4HANA, SAP Cloud Platform (SCP) and SAP Business Technology Platform (formerly Leonardo). In many cases, U.S. companies can now experience these offerings in labs and innovation centers before deploying them. Providers are also building ready-to-use solutions based on emerging technologies such as blockchain and Internet of Things (IoT) to address processes such as supply chain and the specialized needs of such industries as retail, utilities and manufacturing.

The 2021 ISG Provider Lens™ SAP HANA Ecosystem Services report for the U.S. evaluates the capabilities of 34 providers across five quadrants: SAP S/4 HANA System Transformation – Large Accounts, SAP S/4 HANA System Transformation – Midmarket, Managed Application Services for SAP ERP, SAP Business Technology Platform and Intelligent Technologies, and Managed Cloud Services for SAP HANA.

The report names Accenture, Capgemini, IBM, Infosys, TCS and Wipro as Leaders in four quadrants each. It names HCL as a Leader in three quadrants and Cognizant and Tech Mahindra as Leaders in two quadrants each. Birlasoft, Deloitte, DXC Technology, Hexaware, Mindtree and NTT DATA are named as Leaders in one quadrant each.

In addition, Atos, EPI-USE, Infosys, Navisite, NTT DATA and Wipro are named as Rising Stars—companies with a “promising portfolio” and “high future potential” by ISG’s definition—in one quadrant each.

Customized versions of the report are available from Birlasoft, Hexaware, Infosys, Navisite and Wipro.

The 2021 ISG Provider Lens™ SAP HANA Ecosystem Services report for the U.S. is available to subscribers or for one-time purchase on this webpage.

About ISG Provider Lens™ Research

The ISG Provider Lens™ Quadrant research series is the only service provider evaluation of its kind to combine empirical, data-driven research and market analysis with the real-world experience and observations of ISG's global advisory team. Enterprises will find a wealth of detailed data and market analysis to help guide their selection of appropriate sourcing partners, while ISG advisors use the reports to validate their own market knowledge and make recommendations to ISG's enterprise clients. The research currently covers providers offering their services globally, across Europe, as well as in the U.S., Germany, Switzerland, the U.K., France, the Nordics, Brazil and Australia/New Zealand, with additional markets to be added in the future. For more information about ISG Provider Lens research, please visit this webpage.

A companion research series, the ISG Provider Lens Archetype reports, offer a first-of-its-kind evaluation of providers from the perspective of specific buyer types.

About ISG

ISG (Information Services Group) (Nasdaq: III) is a leading global technology research and advisory firm. A trusted business partner to more than 700 clients, including more than 75 of the world’s top 100 enterprises, ISG is committed to helping corporations, public sector organizations, and service and technology providers achieve operational excellence and faster growth. The firm specializes in digital transformation services, including automation, cloud and data analytics; sourcing advisory; managed governance and risk services; network carrier services; strategy and operations design; change management; market intelligence and technology research and analysis. Founded in 2006, and based in Stamford, Conn., ISG employs more than 1,300 digital-ready professionals operating in more than 20 countries—a global team known for its innovative thinking, market influence, deep industry and technology expertise, and world-class research and analytical capabilities based on the industry’s most comprehensive marketplace data. For more information, visit www.isg-one.com.

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