For years, conversations around S/4HANA have followed the same pattern: timelines, migration approaches, technical architecture, risk migration.
What's missing is the bigger picture.
What we're seeing now, and what we believe will define the next wave of successful transformations, is a move away from 'ERP implementation thinking' towards building a data-driven business.
This change is being accelerated by SAP Business Data Cloud (BDC) and it's forcing organisations to reconsider how they tackle S/4HANA from the ground up.
Most notably, data is no longer an afterthought. Historically, many S/4 programmes focused on getting the system live first. Reporting, analytics and advanced data capabilities came later, often bolted on once the dust has settled. This approach has lost efficacy as businesses want real-time insight and leadership teams want visibility across operations. With AI initiatives being funded and expected to deliver value, BDC pushes a different approach: one that asks how a data foundation that drives decisions can be built.
This article contains insight from Conexus Managing Director Connor Wall.
How to use SAP BDC to approach S/4 HANA:
The businesses doing this well are reshaping how decisions are made within their organisation across finance, supply chain, HR and commercial operations. When data sits at the centre of a transformation:
Reporting becomes faster and more worthwhile.
Leadership teams no longer have to wait weeks for insight.
AI and automation become more realistic.
The part that many businesses underestimate is that this entails an operating model shift. There's a lot of excitement around unified data platforms, and rightly so, but we are seeing some common mistakes. Some overcomplicate things early and lose momentum, others forget to treat BDC as a strategic enabler and many still structure their programmes around traditional ERP delivery models without recognising that the required skillset has changed significantly.
If your transformation strategy still looks the same as it did five years ago, there's a good chance you're already behind.
Why should your business lean in to SAP BDC?
Across the market, we're seeing data strategy becoming part of the core transformation conversation. Businesses are creating a stronger foundation for AI, analytics and automation, leading to faster and more efficient decision-making as silos begin to disappear. In turn, programmes become more future-focused instead of just delivering technical upgrades.
That being said, this approach doesn't come without its challenges.
There's a considerable skills gap, with the market simply not containing enough people who truly understand both ERP transformation and modern data architecture. Planning becomes more complex because companies need to align business and data strategy early and change management becomes harder as this materially impacts how people work.
But what's important to keep in mind is that avoiding these complexities won't remove them, it'll only kick them down the line.
Where talent becomes the differentiator:
Technology doesn't fail programmes, people and structure do.
As data becomes central to S/4HANA, the profiles organisations need are beginning to change. You'll still need strong functional expertise, but now you also need people who understand data architecture, integration strategy, analytics and business transformation. In short, there is a growing expectation of traditional SAP consultants to embody transformation leadership, and companies that don't rethink their hiring strategy now are likely to end up scrambling halfway through delivery.
Building delivery models based on how programmes used to run, hiring profiles aligned to legacy implementations and treating data strategy like an afterthought is becoming an incredibly risky approach. S/4HANA is the foundation for how businesses operate, make decisions and compete, and the people you put around it will dictate its success.
How we can help:
Successful programmes treat talent planning as part of the transformation design itself, not as something secondary or reactive. The biggest risk your organisation is facing right now isn't moving too slowly, it's implementing tomorrow's technology with yesterday's mindset.
Our role is to help organisations understand what their team structure needs to look like, access niche SAP, data and transformation talent across both contract and permanent markets and build teams that are aligned with where the programme is going. We go beyond go-live, we ensure businesses come out stronger, faster and better-equipped to compete.
If you're currently planning an S/4HANA programme or are reassessing your data strategy, let's talk.