Differentiating GROW and RISE with SAP Customer Journeys

Objective

After completing this lesson, you will be able to differentiate the GROW and RISE with SAP transformation journeys

SAP Business Suite Terminology

There are many terms used in reference to SAP Business Suite, and they often change from one year to the next. Let's clarify some of the important terms you should be familiar with.

Graphic summarizing SAP Business Suite terms and what they refer to.

Portfolio Name

SAP Business Suite refers to SAP's entire integrated cloud portfolio across applications, data, artificial intelligence (AI), and the SAP Business Technology platform, which work together as one connected system. Business data powers AI, and AI drives smarter, faster decisions across every application.

Customer Journeys

GROW with SAP refers to the customer journey for net-new ERP customers. It provides pre-configured, pre-integrated solutions with transparent pricing and rapid time to value.

RISE with SAP refers to the customer journey for on premise SAP ERP customers. SAP's old ERP system is called Enterprise Central Component (ECC) and customers transitioning from this solution to the cloud require a focus on business transformation, modernization, and clean core principles.

Both journeys lead to the same destination: SAP Business Suite.

Applications

Applications are the core functional areas that make up the SAP Business Suite. Applications are divided by the functional role, because this is how customers organize their businesses and where they realize the most value. The application areas include:

Financial Management
Supply Chain Management
Human Capital Management
Spend Management
Sustainability Management
CX (Customer Experience) and CRM (Customer Relationship Management)

Different SAP products are mapped into the different application areas. For example, SAP SuccessFactors is in the application area of Human Capital Management. When referring to enterprise resource planning (ERP), we use the naming category Cloud ERP to simplify how we talk about the different options:

SAP Cloud ERP refers to SAP S/4HANA Cloud Public Edition.
SAP Cloud ERP Private refers to SAP S/4HANA Cloud Private Edition.

Note

SAP S/4HANA remains the official product name, however customers do not purchase SAP S/4HANA (public or private edition) as a product, they purchase an SAP Business Suite package that includes the SAP S/4HANA product along with a bundle of additional products intended to support the customer in getting the most value possible from their new ERP system.

SAP Business Suite Packages

The SAP Business Suite packages are modular bundles designed around core functional areas. For example:

SAP Finance Base and SAP Finance Premium
SAP Supply Chain Base and SAP Supply Chain Premium
SAP Core HR
SAP Strategic Procurement
SAP Cloud ERP Private

In addition to these business-focused packages, there are specialized packages that extend SAP Business Suite's value through data, AI, and SAP Business Technology Platform capabilities:

Data packages: Built on SAP Business Data Cloud, these intelligent applications, such as Finance Intelligence and People Intelligence, provide ready-to-run, AI-infused applications that turn business data into insights and workflows, which accelerates time to action.
AI packages: Built on SAP Business AI and orchestrated by Joule, these packages combine embedded AI with systems of collaborative AI agents that work across functions to answer complex business questions, automate multi-step workflows, and drive cross-enterprise efficiency.
Platform packages: Built on SAP Business Technology Platform (BTP), these capabilities enhance integration, extensibility, and innovation, which provide the technical foundation of the SAP Business Suite.

GROW with SAP & RISE with SAP

GROW with SAP: Starting fresh with SAP Business Suite

For new customers, the GROW with SAP journey accelerates and streamlines the cloud transformation with a customized methodology to quickly implement and benefit from cloud ERP.

Graphic showing characteristics of GROW with SAP

New customers are often looking for a solution they can get up and running quickly with standardized business processes, and prefer their cloud provider to manage their infrastructure. These characteristics align with SAP S/4HANA Cloud Public Edition as the ready-to-run cloud ERP that's always on the latest release and managed by SAP.

SAP S/4HANA Cloud Public Edition is always implemented in a greenfield (new implementation) scenario. Because customers always start with the standard best practice business processes, the time to go-live can be as little as four weeks. The combination of the software and resources provided throughout the transformation journey gives customers everything they need to be successful.

RISE with SAP: Transforming to SAP Business Suite

For SAP customers looking to modernize on-premises systems, the RISE with SAP journey is tailored to enable an easy transition to cloud ERP at a pace comfortable for the customer.

Graphic showing characteristics of RISE with SAP

Existing customers often require a higher degree of customization in their processes, prefer to innovate at their own pace, and need more control over their solution. These characteristics align with SAP S/4HANA Cloud Private Edition as the tailored-to-fit cloud ERP that adapts to an organization's unique transformation.

SAP S/4HANA Cloud Private Edition can be implemented in a greenfield (new implementation) or brownfield (system conversion) scenario. It's also common for customers to implement both SAP S/4HANA Cloud Public and Private Edition in a two-tier ERP scenario. The combination of the software and resources provided throughout the transformation journey gives customers everything they need to be successful.

Key Customer Personas

Decisions made in one corner of the business inform and enhance what's happening in another. Processes and insights flow freely, enabling real-time collaboration, adaptability, and sustainability.

With that said, SAP is evolving to address the interconnected challenges of modern enterprises. Rather than offering isolated solutions, SAP now aligns its comprehensive, integrated suite of applications, data, and artificial intelligence (AI) to the priorities of specific customer personas. These packages are modular, allowing customers to adopt solutions tailored to their needs while connecting and optimizing every business function.

This shift recognizes that business disruptions, like supply chain issues or talent gaps, create ripple effects across the enterprise. By focusing on personas, SAP ensures that its solutions empower each leader to address their unique challenges while fostering collective success.

Graphic listing the different key customer personas.

Who are the key customer personas?

SAP Business Suite packages are designed around key customer personas, each representing a critical leadership role with distinct responsibilities.

Key Customer Persona	Challenge	Role	SAP Business Suite Focus
Chief Financial Officer (CFO)	Balancing growth and profitability in a complex economic landscape.	Steers transformation by ensuring financial strategies align with business goals.	Delivers tools to optimize financial performance, drive cost efficiency, and support strategic investments.
Chief Procurement Officer (CPO)	Optimizing cost, quality, availability, and sustainability in procurement processes.	Manages sourcing and supplier relationships to ensure operational efficiency and environmental responsibility.	Provides solutions to streamline procurement, enhance supplier collaboration, and integrate sustainability metrics.
Chief Operating Officer (COO)	Running resilient global supply chains amidst constant disruptions.	Oversees operations to ensure efficiency, adaptability, and continuity across supply chains.	Offers capabilities to strengthen supply chain resilience, improve visibility, and mitigate risks.
Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO)	Retaining and engaging talent as skills requirements evolve.	Drives workforce strategies to attract, develop, and retain talent in a dynamic labor market.	Includes tools to enhance talent management, employee engagement, and skills development.
Chief Revenue Officer (CRO)	Meeting rising customer expectations in a competitive market.	Leads strategies to drive revenue growth and enhance customer experiences.	Equips teams with solutions to personalize customer interactions, optimize sales processes, and boost loyalty.
Chief Information Officer (CIO)	Driving business innovation while modernizing IT infrastructure and ensuring scalability.	Leads the transformation of IT systems to support strategic goals, integrating advanced technologies to enable AI-powered innovation and enterprise-wide agility.	Provides tools for IT modernization, data integration, and AI-driven innovation.

Commercial Packages

Detailed information about the SAP Business Suite packages is available through dedicated Learning Journeys (these are only accessible by SAP employees and partners), and pricing information is publicly available on the SAP website.

SAP Business Suite	SAP Cloud ERP Private
Learning Journey: Positioning & Selling SAP Business Suite Packages	Learning Journey: Positioning & Selling SAP Cloud ERP Private
SAP.com: SAP Business Suite Package Pricing	SAP.com: SAP Cloud ERP Private Package Pricing

Note

SAP Cloud ERP (SAP S/4HANA Cloud Public Edition) is included in the "SAP Business Suite" column of the table.

Service Delivery Model

SAP delivers and manages the software, support, infrastructure, and technical services under one Service Level Agreement (SLA).

This includes maintaining the software availability uptime defined in the SLA, and technical system operations, landscape deployment, and upgrade installation, in addition to other tasks.

Graphic showing SAP's responsibilities versus SAP Partner responsibilities

Partners deliver advisory, implementation, and application management services to facilitate a seamless transition to the cloud for customers.

This includes guiding a customer through a greenfield, brownfield, or selective data transition by configuring business processes, developing extensions, setting up integrations, migrating data, and conducting business process tests. Other partners in the application management arena support customers by planning and coordinating release upgrade preparation and follow-up activities, and/or delivering continuous application management operations as a third party support service on top of the support SAP provides.

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