Mapping your journey to SAP S/4HANA Cloud Private Edition: A practical guide for senior IT leadership
Learn about the latest developments for moving to SAP S/4HANA and SAP S/4HANA Cloud Private Edition in a practical, condensed, down-to-earth guide for executives, project managers, decision-makers, and senior IT leadership. Download the DocumentMapping your journey
to SAP S/4HANA Cloud
Private Edition
A practical guide for
senior IT leadership
2025 version
to SAP S/4HANA Cloud
Private Edition
A practical guide for
senior IT leadership
2025 version
2!|!163
Table of contents
Foreword by ASUG ................................................................................................................................................... 4
Foreword by the DSAG ............................................................................................................................................. 5
Foreword by SAP Customer Evolution ............................................................................................................... 6
Introduction ................................................................................................................................................................. 7
Part one: Strategic choices ........................................................................................................................ 9
Following the clean core concept ....................................................................................................................... 11
Integration: Foundational value of SAP Business Suite .................................................................................. 14
SAP Business AI and Joule ..................................................................................................................................... 17
The RISE with SAP journey to SAP Cloud ERP or SAP Cloud ERP Private solutions ............................... 20
Changes in cloud operations ................................................................................................................................ 21
Modernize your SAP BW with SAP BDC ............................................................................................................... 24
Transition options for HCM solutions .................................................................................................................. 26
Recent innovations in SAP Cloud ERP and SAP Cloud ERP Private ............................................................... 28
Compatibility packs .................................................................................................................................................. 31
Implementation options ........................................................................................................................................... 32
Custom code: Rethink and clean up ..................................................................................................................... 37
System conversion ................................................................................................................................................... 44
Project execution ...................................................................................................................................................... 48
New implementation ................................................................................................................................................ 52
Selective data transition .......................................................................................................................................... 56
Part two: Ingredients for project success ............................................................................................. 63
Building your skills ................................................................................................................................................... 65
Accelerating consulting excellence with SAP Joule for Consultants ...................................................... 66
RISE with SAP Methodology ................................................................................................................................ 68
Integrated toolchain: Orchestrating business transformation at scale ................................................... 76
Leveraging SAP standard content ....................................................................................................................... 78
Leveraging the power of the SAP ecosystem and partners ....................................................................... 80
Collaboration is key ............................................................................................................................................... 84
Relying on the role-based SAP Fiori UX .......................................................................................................... 85
Redesigning your processes for in-memory computing ............................................................................. 90
Leveraging the new efficiencies of ABAP ........................................................................................................ 92
Applying the power of SAP BTP .......................................................................................................................... 94
Pertinent hardware planning ............................................................................................................................... 96
Performance testing ............................................................................................................................................... 97
Manage your RICEFW .............................................................................................................................................. 98
Curate your customer and vendor master data ............................................................................................ 100
Table of contents
Foreword by ASUG ................................................................................................................................................... 4
Foreword by the DSAG ............................................................................................................................................. 5
Foreword by SAP Customer Evolution ............................................................................................................... 6
Introduction ................................................................................................................................................................. 7
Part one: Strategic choices ........................................................................................................................ 9
Following the clean core concept ....................................................................................................................... 11
Integration: Foundational value of SAP Business Suite .................................................................................. 14
SAP Business AI and Joule ..................................................................................................................................... 17
The RISE with SAP journey to SAP Cloud ERP or SAP Cloud ERP Private solutions ............................... 20
Changes in cloud operations ................................................................................................................................ 21
Modernize your SAP BW with SAP BDC ............................................................................................................... 24
Transition options for HCM solutions .................................................................................................................. 26
Recent innovations in SAP Cloud ERP and SAP Cloud ERP Private ............................................................... 28
Compatibility packs .................................................................................................................................................. 31
Implementation options ........................................................................................................................................... 32
Custom code: Rethink and clean up ..................................................................................................................... 37
System conversion ................................................................................................................................................... 44
Project execution ...................................................................................................................................................... 48
New implementation ................................................................................................................................................ 52
Selective data transition .......................................................................................................................................... 56
Part two: Ingredients for project success ............................................................................................. 63
Building your skills ................................................................................................................................................... 65
Accelerating consulting excellence with SAP Joule for Consultants ...................................................... 66
RISE with SAP Methodology ................................................................................................................................ 68
Integrated toolchain: Orchestrating business transformation at scale ................................................... 76
Leveraging SAP standard content ....................................................................................................................... 78
Leveraging the power of the SAP ecosystem and partners ....................................................................... 80
Collaboration is key ............................................................................................................................................... 84
Relying on the role-based SAP Fiori UX .......................................................................................................... 85
Redesigning your processes for in-memory computing ............................................................................. 90
Leveraging the new efficiencies of ABAP ........................................................................................................ 92
Applying the power of SAP BTP .......................................................................................................................... 94
Pertinent hardware planning ............................................................................................................................... 96
Performance testing ............................................................................................................................................... 97
Manage your RICEFW .............................................................................................................................................. 98
Curate your customer and vendor master data ............................................................................................ 100
3!|!163
Part three: Essential tools from SAP .................................................................................................. 104
Gain access and insights ..................................................................................................................................... 105
SAP LeanIX: Enhance visibility of your IT landscape to drive confident transformation ............... 106
SAP Readiness Check for SAP S/4HANA ........................................................................................................ 110
Custom Code Migration app .............................................................................................................................. 114
SAP Business Transformation Center .............................................................................................................. 116
Maintenance planner ........................................................................................................................................... 118
SAP Signavio Process Insights, discovery edition ......................................................................................... 119
Making decisions ................................................................................................................................................... 121
Complexity analysis in the Custom Code Migration app ......................................................................... 122
SAP Business Transformation Center ............................................................................................................. 123
SAP Integration Suite and Integration Advisor ........................................................................................... 126
Extract, transform, and load .............................................................................................................................. 128
System conversion and downtime tools ....................................................................................................... 129
RISE with SAP system transition workbench .............................................................................................. 133
SAP S/4HANA migration cockpit ...................................................................................................................... 135
SAP Business Transformation Center .............................................................................................................. 140
CVI cockpit ............................................................................................................................................................. 141
SAP Data Services ................................................................................................................................................ 143
Confirming correctness ....................................................................................................................................... 144
Test management in SAP Cloud ALM: Driving transparency and efficiency ....................................... 145
Data transition validation .................................................................................................................................... 148
ABAP development tools for Eclipse and quick fixes ................................................................................ 150
Governance and run .............................................................................................................................................. 152
Application lifecycle management ................................................................................................................... 153
SAP Solution Manager .......................................................................................................................................... 157
WalkMe Digital Adoption Platform .................................................................................................................. 158
Link compendium .................................................................................................................................................. 160
Conclusion ............................................................................................................................................................... 163
Part three: Essential tools from SAP .................................................................................................. 104
Gain access and insights ..................................................................................................................................... 105
SAP LeanIX: Enhance visibility of your IT landscape to drive confident transformation ............... 106
SAP Readiness Check for SAP S/4HANA ........................................................................................................ 110
Custom Code Migration app .............................................................................................................................. 114
SAP Business Transformation Center .............................................................................................................. 116
Maintenance planner ........................................................................................................................................... 118
SAP Signavio Process Insights, discovery edition ......................................................................................... 119
Making decisions ................................................................................................................................................... 121
Complexity analysis in the Custom Code Migration app ......................................................................... 122
SAP Business Transformation Center ............................................................................................................. 123
SAP Integration Suite and Integration Advisor ........................................................................................... 126
Extract, transform, and load .............................................................................................................................. 128
System conversion and downtime tools ....................................................................................................... 129
RISE with SAP system transition workbench .............................................................................................. 133
SAP S/4HANA migration cockpit ...................................................................................................................... 135
SAP Business Transformation Center .............................................................................................................. 140
CVI cockpit ............................................................................................................................................................. 141
SAP Data Services ................................................................................................................................................ 143
Confirming correctness ....................................................................................................................................... 144
Test management in SAP Cloud ALM: Driving transparency and efficiency ....................................... 145
Data transition validation .................................................................................................................................... 148
ABAP development tools for Eclipse and quick fixes ................................................................................ 150
Governance and run .............................................................................................................................................. 152
Application lifecycle management ................................................................................................................... 153
SAP Solution Manager .......................................................................................................................................... 157
WalkMe Digital Adoption Platform .................................................................................................................. 158
Link compendium .................................................................................................................................................. 160
Conclusion ............................................................................................................................................................... 163
4!|!163
Foreword by ASUG
As the Chief Community Champion (CCC) of
Americas’ SAP Users’ Group (ASUG), I have the
pleasure of speaking at hundreds of events and
to thousands of professionals who use SAP soft-
ware. I love hearing their stories about their digital
transformation journeys, because these stories
provide a path that we can all follow to unlock
the value of our SAP software and services
investments. Why expend effort on forging your
own path when you can follow the well-traveled
paths of fellow community members?
At the heart of any digital transformation strategy is
your SAP ERP application. In ASUG’s latest annual
research on SAP S/4HANA, we learned that 56%1
of the North American customer base has either
moved to SAP S/4HANA or is in the process of
moving to SAP S/4HANA. While this statistic is
impressive, it tells me that we still have a lot of
work to do as 2027 rapidly approaches. Over the
next few years, 44% of our customer community
will need to make this journey—a journey that
requires careful planning, preparation, precise
execution, and, most important, time. And there is
no time like the present to begin this journey. This
is why this practical guide is such a great map for
your journey ahead.
If you are wondering why this journey is necessary,
let me point to one of the most disruptive forces
shaping our work today: artificial intelligence. What
began in late 2023 as experimentation with genera-
tive AI tools has now matured into real, embedded
business capabilities. SAP has started infusing AI
directly into ERP processes—helping finance teams
close the books faster, supply chain leaders predict
and prevent disruptions, and IT teams automate
routine support tasks at scale. Many of our members
are no longer asking “if” they should use AI but “how”
they can operationalize it responsibly across their
enterprises.
For this AI transformation to succeed, ERP systems
must be cloud based, delivered as software as a
service (SaaS), and streamlined to support inno-
vation. A cloud ERP foundation not only reduces
the weight of customizations but also creates the
agility required to adopt AI capabilities and other
emerging innovations as they arrive. This is your
business case for moving forward.
The pages that follow serve as a practical field
guide for senior IT leadership to chart their journey
to SAP S/4HANA. It provides a comprehensive
overview of the key decisions, strategic choices,
and implementation options available for you to
transition to this next-generation ERP.
My goal, and the goal of ASUG, is to support and
guide you through your transformation journey,
providing you with the latest developments and
best practices in a practical, condensed, and
easy-to-understand format. I hope that this
guide will serve as a valuable resource for you.
As a community, we are here to support each
other in adopting this essential technology. Our
businesses need it to not only survive but thrive
in this rapidly evolving new world.
Best regards,
Geoff Scott
CCC, ASUG
1. “Evolving SAP S/4HANA Journeys: Beyond Deadlines to Measurable Value,” ASUG Research sponsored by BearingPoint, 2025.
Foreword by ASUG
As the Chief Community Champion (CCC) of
Americas’ SAP Users’ Group (ASUG), I have the
pleasure of speaking at hundreds of events and
to thousands of professionals who use SAP soft-
ware. I love hearing their stories about their digital
transformation journeys, because these stories
provide a path that we can all follow to unlock
the value of our SAP software and services
investments. Why expend effort on forging your
own path when you can follow the well-traveled
paths of fellow community members?
At the heart of any digital transformation strategy is
your SAP ERP application. In ASUG’s latest annual
research on SAP S/4HANA, we learned that 56%1
of the North American customer base has either
moved to SAP S/4HANA or is in the process of
moving to SAP S/4HANA. While this statistic is
impressive, it tells me that we still have a lot of
work to do as 2027 rapidly approaches. Over the
next few years, 44% of our customer community
will need to make this journey—a journey that
requires careful planning, preparation, precise
execution, and, most important, time. And there is
no time like the present to begin this journey. This
is why this practical guide is such a great map for
your journey ahead.
If you are wondering why this journey is necessary,
let me point to one of the most disruptive forces
shaping our work today: artificial intelligence. What
began in late 2023 as experimentation with genera-
tive AI tools has now matured into real, embedded
business capabilities. SAP has started infusing AI
directly into ERP processes—helping finance teams
close the books faster, supply chain leaders predict
and prevent disruptions, and IT teams automate
routine support tasks at scale. Many of our members
are no longer asking “if” they should use AI but “how”
they can operationalize it responsibly across their
enterprises.
For this AI transformation to succeed, ERP systems
must be cloud based, delivered as software as a
service (SaaS), and streamlined to support inno-
vation. A cloud ERP foundation not only reduces
the weight of customizations but also creates the
agility required to adopt AI capabilities and other
emerging innovations as they arrive. This is your
business case for moving forward.
The pages that follow serve as a practical field
guide for senior IT leadership to chart their journey
to SAP S/4HANA. It provides a comprehensive
overview of the key decisions, strategic choices,
and implementation options available for you to
transition to this next-generation ERP.
My goal, and the goal of ASUG, is to support and
guide you through your transformation journey,
providing you with the latest developments and
best practices in a practical, condensed, and
easy-to-understand format. I hope that this
guide will serve as a valuable resource for you.
As a community, we are here to support each
other in adopting this essential technology. Our
businesses need it to not only survive but thrive
in this rapidly evolving new world.
Best regards,
Geoff Scott
CCC, ASUG
1. “Evolving SAP S/4HANA Journeys: Beyond Deadlines to Measurable Value,” ASUG Research sponsored by BearingPoint, 2025.
5!|!163
Foreword by DSAG
SAP systems have been the digital backbone of
companies and institutions worldwide for many
decades.
In economically challenging times, efficiency and
scalability are more important than ever—and with
them, a reliable ERP system. With SAP Cloud ERP
Private solutions at the core of the new SAP Business
Suite, companies can combine powerful software
with innovations such as AI, which are generally
only practical and feasible in cloud-based
environments.
For several years now, SAP software landscapes
have been evolving in a more modular direction,
opening up new paths toward greater flexibility.
An approach based on SAP Business Suite, familiar
to many from the on-premises world, now combines
the proven strength of highly integrated business
processes with the advantages of modern cloud
technology. This enables companies to modernize
their SAP architectures step by step and benefit
from innovations more quickly—without having to
carry out lengthy migration projects from monolithic
systems.
The clean core strategy, along with the newly
introduced matrix for the clean core concept,
provides additional transparency about how
“clean” a system truly is. The aim is to make it
even faster and easier in the future to integrate
innovations and updates into the ERP core.
The integrated toolchain, including SAP Signavio,
SAP LeanIX, and SAP Cloud ALM solutions, together
with RISE with SAP Methodology, provides valuable
tools and methods for a successful business and
cloud transformation. This guide explains how users
can introduce and apply them effectively—because
ultimately, that’s what it’s all about: creating real
business value with SAP solutions.
These fundamental changes in SAP architectures
require a long-term transformation at all levels.
As the German-Speaking SAP User Group (DSAG),
with more than 4,000 member companies, we dis-
cuss this transformation within our working groups
as it takes shape in day-to-day business practice.
This manifesto serves as a helpful building block
to support companies in successfully completing
this journey.
Thomas Henzler
Executive Board Member for Sales,
Production, and Logistics, DSAG
Deputy Chairman of the Board
Foreword by DSAG
SAP systems have been the digital backbone of
companies and institutions worldwide for many
decades.
In economically challenging times, efficiency and
scalability are more important than ever—and with
them, a reliable ERP system. With SAP Cloud ERP
Private solutions at the core of the new SAP Business
Suite, companies can combine powerful software
with innovations such as AI, which are generally
only practical and feasible in cloud-based
environments.
For several years now, SAP software landscapes
have been evolving in a more modular direction,
opening up new paths toward greater flexibility.
An approach based on SAP Business Suite, familiar
to many from the on-premises world, now combines
the proven strength of highly integrated business
processes with the advantages of modern cloud
technology. This enables companies to modernize
their SAP architectures step by step and benefit
from innovations more quickly—without having to
carry out lengthy migration projects from monolithic
systems.
The clean core strategy, along with the newly
introduced matrix for the clean core concept,
provides additional transparency about how
“clean” a system truly is. The aim is to make it
even faster and easier in the future to integrate
innovations and updates into the ERP core.
The integrated toolchain, including SAP Signavio,
SAP LeanIX, and SAP Cloud ALM solutions, together
with RISE with SAP Methodology, provides valuable
tools and methods for a successful business and
cloud transformation. This guide explains how users
can introduce and apply them effectively—because
ultimately, that’s what it’s all about: creating real
business value with SAP solutions.
These fundamental changes in SAP architectures
require a long-term transformation at all levels.
As the German-Speaking SAP User Group (DSAG),
with more than 4,000 member companies, we dis-
cuss this transformation within our working groups
as it takes shape in day-to-day business practice.
This manifesto serves as a helpful building block
to support companies in successfully completing
this journey.
Thomas Henzler
Executive Board Member for Sales,
Production, and Logistics, DSAG
Deputy Chairman of the Board