How SAP Users Can Utilize Third-Party Cloud Services to Achieve Systemic Resilience

⇨ Due to the global rise in the amount of expanding data and instabilities caused by crises like COVID-19 companies realize that their on-premise legacy ERP systems may not provide the necessary scalability and resilience anymore.

⇨ Migrating to the cloud can help businesses optimize most of their functions. However, they need to be prepared to address complex processes associated with it.

⇨ To make the most out of the journey towards digital transformation, SAP users should carefully weigh all their options, including finding the right match among the third-party cloud service providers.

When cloud applications first appeared on the market in the early 2000s, companies expected them to become a revolutionary concept. Today, the cloud can optimize most businesses’ functions, and many organizations are moving to it from their on-premise legacy systems. Having proved itself as a reliable, scalable, and resilient software, it is not surprising how much investment pours into its deployment across the world.

However, with the cloud’s innovative solutions arrives responsibility for addressing the complex processes associated with it. Especially in the case of cloud migration for SAP, businesses need to navigate processes of data migration, staff training, and system updates while following regular changes in regulations on security and compliance. For that reason, many SAP users seek advice and guidance from cloud migration specialists, such as Amazon Web Services (AWS).

3M is a global manufacturing and material science company. It produces various products, including adhesives and building materials, and cleaning and medical supplies. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the organization drastically increased its supply of face masks to meet the global demand. Soon it realized that its large ERP data center which was running across 1,200 servers was outdated and could not provide the scalability, resilience, or stability that the company required in the time of crisis.

Consequently, 3M began seeking solutions from a third-party cloud services provider that could assist it in its digital transformation journey. After considering all available options, 3M Enterprise IT selected AWS as its preferred partner in the cloud migration journey. Their choice fell on AWS because not only is Amazon one of the oldest suppliers of cloud migration services, but it also provides AWS Professional Services, a global team of experts that can help customers realize desired business outcomes using AWS.

After scheduling the full migration of its ERP to occur within the first 18 months of cloud deployment, AWS Professional Services proved to be a vital tool during performance testing and evaluation of results. 3M worked with the AWS team to adjust the process to find the most efficient way to migrate workloads with the least amount of business disruption. Eventually, the SAP migration was completed in only 15 months – at the same time as 3M was manufacturing millions of vital respirators and masks.

3M’s approach to digital transformation shows that it is highly important to weigh all options when moving to the cloud. Finding the right match across various third-party cloud service providers is of utmost importance because it can help achieve a smooth, fast, and scalable transition and build systemic resilience without disrupting the vital functions of the business.