IBM and SAP have announced the launch of RISE with SAP on IBM Power Virtual Server, a new offering designed to facilitate and accelerate the migration of ERP systems to SAP S/4HANA Cloud in the cloud. This initiative aims to provide IBM Power customers with the fastest and easiest path to transform their ERP environments.
The two companies seek to help organizations transition and modernize their on-premises ERP environments to the cloud, supporting business processes driven by artificial intelligence.
RISE with SAP is a guided journey that provides outcome-oriented services, cloud ERP, and platforms to help organizations rethink their operating model. The inclusion of RISE with SAP on IBM Power Virtual Server as a new hyperscale offering from SAP is expected to reduce risks and improve the migration timeline to SAP S/4HANA Cloud from on-premises IBM Power Systems to the cloud within 90 days.
“RISE with SAP has become a business priority for organizations across all sectors migrating to SAP S/4HANA Cloud,” said Anurag Agrawal, founder and chief global analyst at TechAisle. “The new offering from IBM and SAP promises to be a compelling option for companies looking to migrate their critical ERP workloads securely, quickly, and with minimal disruption.”
Cloud Migration Enabled by SAP-Certified Infrastructure
By utilizing IBM Power Virtual Server, the cloud version of the IBM Power platform used for on-premises ERP, customers can more quickly transform their SAP ERP systems in the cloud, modernize business processes, and gain agility. Recognized for their high security, scalability, and reliability, IBM Power servers are ranked number one in availability among SAP-certified infrastructures**, designed for fewer disruptions and faster migrations, backed by the highly resilient and secure IBM Cloud platform.
“IBM has worked closely with SAP to provide a smooth and fast migration path for customers relying on the IBM Power platform for their SAP workloads and applications,” commented Rob Thomas, senior vice president of Software and chief commercial officer at IBM. “This new capability helps reduce the complexity of migrating to the cloud and accelerates impact, benefits we experienced firsthand in our own modernization process using RISE with SAP.”
IBM Completes Global Modernization of SAP S/4HANA Cloud Using RISE with SAP
IBM has extensive experience in modernization projects and managed services for SAP S/4HANA Cloud. In one of the largest and most complex SAP S/4HANA Cloud modernization projects to date, according to SAP, IBM recently migrated its “quote-to-cash” and “record-to-report” processes to RISE with SAP on IBM Power Virtual Server.
This project involved over 150,000 users across 175 countries in 18 months, resulting in a 30% reduction in infrastructure and related operational costs by streamlining server and data infrastructure and increasing process automation†. IBM Consulting led this transformation work from start to finish, providing the technical, implementation, and application management services necessary to help migrate and run these complex solutions securely.
“SAP is helping organizations perform at their best through cloud-based, integrated business applications powered by SAP Business AI,” said Thomas Saueressig, member of the Executive Board of SAP SE. “This announcement is another milestone in the long-term partnership between SAP and IBM, offering our mutual customers a clear pathway to the cloud designed for faster time to value, greater flexibility, and continuous innovation.”
IBM Consulting and Partner Ecosystem to Accelerate Transformation
Customers will also be able to accelerate their transformation with SAP S/4HANA Cloud by working with IBM Consulting or other SAP partners. To provide options for customers, IBM is also collaborating with other global systems integrators and service partners to design, deploy, and migrate RISE with SAP projects.
The two companies, along with a partner ecosystem, plan to work together to help IBM customers transform through RISE with SAP on IBM Power Virtual Server with combined solutions, capabilities, and joint go-to-market efforts. Customers of RISE with SAP on IBM Power Virtual Server and IBM business partners will also have access to a new IBM Transformation Suite for SAP Applications to help kickstart the migration to SAP S/4HANA Cloud and RISE with SAP. This package will include best-in-class software and services for assessing current environments, data migration, and automated testing.
More than 10,000 SAP customers over the past 50 years have used IBM to implement and run SAP solutions on IBM systems. IBM is a strategic partner of SAP throughout the lifecycle, providing comprehensive consulting and technology solutions for SAP customers, including hybrid cloud, automation, and generative artificial intelligence with watsonx.
RISE with SAP on IBM Power Virtual Server is expected to be available in the second quarter of 2025, along with a customized investment program from IBM. Customers can obtain more information to start planning their transformation using assessment and migration services from IBM Consulting and other IBM and SAP business partners.
Notes:
- Estimation based on IBM’s internal model for onboarding customers to a SAP environment when moving from SAP S/4HANA on-premises to Power Virtual Server, assuming the proper level of customer collaboration in integration and network testing.
- Based on ITIC’s 2023 Global Hardware and Server Reliability Report and the list of all hardware certified and compatible with SAP HANA.
- †Based on IBM’s results from the global migration to SAP S/4HANA Cloud and RISE with SAP.
Source: SAP