The rapid pace of change and the shift towards cloud and digital strategies are accelerating. Businesses are modernizing their digital core and adopting new cloud technologies to thrive in the new digital economy, allowing them to optimize data and applications for cloud environments and enabling swift access to cloud-powered innovations. However, embarking on a cloud journey is an ongoing process that must continuously adapt to evolving business needs to deliver agility, ensure governance, and achieve cost benefits. A generic, one-size-fits-all approach to cloud migration often falls short of meeting specific business objectives. Therefore, selecting the right strategic partner to assist with designing and implementing a system to achieve migration goals becomes the second most crucial decision after choosing the ERP system.
Hitachi Digital Services, a wholly owned subsidiary of Hitachi Ltd., is an edge-to-core digital consultancy and technology services provider that enables organizations to realize the full potential of AI-driven digital transformation. Hitachi Digital Services creates end-to-end value for clients by leveraging a technology-unified operating model that integrates cloud, data, and IoT. This is achieved through innovative digital engineering, comprehensive implementation services, and diverse products and solutions. Their global delivery capabilities allow them to offer tailored, on-site, near-shore, or offshore solutions to meet customers' specific needs.
Hitachi Digital Services excels in connecting solutions, leveraging industry expertise, and integrating advanced AI technologies. This focus ensures they deliver the best for their customers, reinforced by strong market recognition and a commitment to customer satisfaction. Hitachi's enterprise application services are focused on four key areas:
- Starting with advisory services to assess enterprise maturity, conduct cloud migration assessments, and create transformation roadmaps.
- Facilitating cloud migration through Greenfield, Brownfield, or hybrid models tailored to clients' needs.
- Providing end-to-end managed services for public, private, hybrid clouds, and on-premise environments.
- Enhancing ERP investments with value-added solutions like smart manufacturing, connected solutions, AI, ML, and analytics to drive further business value.
Digital Advisory Services for SAP
From an SAP perspective, Hitachi focuses on three key areas to deliver its services. First, Modernizing the Digital Core involves keeping the digital core clean and modernized through SAP S/4HANA-specific assessments and migrations, starting with "Phase Zero" using tools like Signavio to evaluate the customer's existing applications and the SAP landscape. Second, Cloud Integration leverages Hitachi's strong partnerships with AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud, delivering solutions across all three hyperscalers. As a SAP on AWS certified partner, and holding a similar partnership with Microsoft, Hitachi supports public, private, and hybrid cloud environments, bringing comprehensive cloud solutions to customers. Third, Hitachi’s Solution Implementation focuses on key areas like RISE with SAP, using partnerships and certifications to deliver tailored solutions that maximize customers' SAP investments and drive success and efficiency.
Bhusan Chand, Senior Vice President, Global Head of Enterprise Applications at Hitachi Digital Services emphasizes, “Hitachi Digital Services is experiencing significant market traction and driving growth through key partnerships. Globally, we are a prominent RISE partner and recognized for our midmarket expertise, a segment where few companies compete effectively. Our specialization in SAP S/4HANA transformations is gaining considerable traction, and our long-standing partnership with SAP, dating back to 1994, underscores our evolving excellence.”
Hitachi Digital Services has a proven SAP expertise in automotive, chemical and food processing, industrial manufacturing, and aerospace sectors. The company's approach integrates intelligent solutions, ensuring predictable outcomes and leveraging specialized expertise. They use advanced tools and accelerators for fast-track assessments and project execution tools to streamline implementations. Hitachi’s three-way collaborations with SAP, AWS, or Azure further strengthens their market position, allowing them to handle the entire sales cycle from Presales Discovery, through the software quote to cash deal execution cycle, through delivery of consulting services, and by providing application managed services. Hitachi's team simplifies complex SAP initiatives, demystifies SAP RISE, builds business cases, and guides customers on the best hyperscaler solutions, driving successful outcomes and fostering long-term partnerships.
Chand highlights, “Our SAP practice is the fastest-growing segment in Hitachi Digital Services' enterprise applications business, expected to achieve nearly 40% growth this year. Despite market challenges like the pandemic, we have seen remarkable success, such as the 100% remote global rollout of SAP S/4HANA for Tokyo Chemical Company across multiple regions. Significant traction with SAP RISE and other implementation projects reflects the growing preference for phased rollouts over Big Bang implementations.”
Additionally, Hitachi’s Cloud Modernization for SAP Environments offers comprehensive services to optimize SAP workloads for the cloud. It includes a thorough cloud assessment of all applications, a global design and migration plan aligned with business priorities, and SAP S4/HANA Cloud services based on best practices. The program ensures a smooth transition with change management strategies and streamlined support through Application Managed Services. Leveraging over 20 years of SAP expertise, Hitachi enhances SAP investments by integrating machine learning, analytics, and robotic automation to create smart, connected operations, addressing business challenges and simplifying delivery of desired outcomes.
Case in Point
Morgan Foods, a leading private-label canned goods manufacturer, faced challenges in keeping up with customer demand due to rapid growth. To address this, they partnered with Hitachi to improve operational inefficiencies in their manufacturing model. In October 2019, they began migrating from SAP ECC 6.0 EHP7 to SAP S/4HANA, incorporating new features for improved production planning, scheduling, and supply chain visibility. Despite the COVID-19 crisis, the project was completed in eight months with enhanced user experience and new functionalities using Fiori and Analysis for Office. This upgrade has significantly improved efficiency across various departments, including accounting, planning, production, and quality management, ensuring Morgan Foods can meet demand and continue its growth trajectory.
Morgan Foods' optimized supply chain significantly boosted their efficiency and value, enabling better forecasting, production planning, and decision-making. The streamlined business processes support growth and innovation, allowing the company to meet customer demand and deliver high-quality products on time, even during peak seasons and the global pandemic, while reducing inventory requirements. Enhanced ERP functionality has improved warehouse management, supply chain operations, and business transparency. Cloud-based hosting offers predictable monthly costs, and the new system maximizes efficiency and customer satisfaction, supporting Morgan Foods' ongoing expansion and innovation.
Over the past year, Hitachi Digital Services has achieved several significant milestones. The company has been recognized as a leader among leaders in the market. Their SAP S/4HANA implementations have been particularly successful, with 11 go-lives in the last 12 months, often rescuing failed or stalled projects initiated by other providers. Hitachi's commitment to long-term customer relationships is evident, with many clients partnering with them for over a decade, reflecting their dedication to exceptional customer satisfaction and enduring partnerships. Hitachi has also developed solutions like a three-way invoice match solution innovation using SAP BTP no-code/low-code, soon to be available on SAP's marketplace, and is working on sustainability solutions. Their managed services offering excels with a 99% customer retention rate, providing comprehensive 24/7 support across various capacities. These accomplishments underscore Hitachi's commitment to driving success and innovation for their clients, solidifying their position as a trusted partner.
