Close
  • Latest News
  • Cybersecurity
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Mobile
  • Networking
  • Storage
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
Read Down
Sign in
Close
Welcome!Log into your account
Forgot your password?
Read Down
Password recovery
Recover your password
Close
Search
Menu
Search
  • Latest News
  • Cybersecurity
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Mobile
  • Networking
  • Storage
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
More
    Home Applications
    • Applications

    SAP Co-founder Discusses Competitors, Potential Buyers

    By
    Renee Boucher Ferguson
    -
    May 19, 2006
    Share
    Facebook
    Twitter
    Linkedin

      ORLANDO, Fla.—Hasso Plattner, co-founder of SAP AG, the worlds largest software developer, said he views three companies as potential competitors in the next five years: Oracle, Microsoft and Google.

      “I still regard Oracle as a competitor,” said Plattner during a news conference at SAPs annual Sapphire user event May 16-18 here.

      “But sooner or later, someones going to ask the question [to Oracle CEO Larry Ellison]: What did you do with my $20 billion dollars [spent during an ongoing two-year acquisition spree]? Its shareholders money, not his. Then theres Microsoft. Then Google… If Google buys Oracle, Im shaking in my pants.”

      In 10 years, Plattner said there will be an Asian company in the top-tier competitive mix—a main reason SAP is focusing its energies on the Asian market.

      Plattner said there was a similarly diminutive group of companies that could potentially acquire SAP: IBM, Microsoft and Google.

      “I dont see any more,” said Plattner, stressing that SAP is not involved in any merger discussions.

      Plattner, who is the chief of SAPs supervisory board, spent much of his time at this years Sapphire user conference discussing innovation—and the necessity of innovating through design.

      During a keynote address May 18, Plattner discussed how companies—particularly SAP—have to stimulate creativity in order to innovate and prosper.

      “We have to do more, do breakthrough innovation to differentiate ourselves,” said Plattner.

      “What we create today might become a commodity in the future.”

      /zimages/5/28571.gifTo read more about SAPs mySAP suite, click here.

      To this end, Plattner said companies have to think of production in a holistic way—laterally as opposed to systematically—starting with users (watching, learning and reading to figure out their daily experience).

      Plattner said it is also important to add expertise from different disciplines to a design concept team.

      “We have to look at one subject from as many angles as possible,” said Plattner.

      The other means of achieving creativity is through rapid (and cheap) prototyping—starting on a sheet of paper with different colored pens works well—and enabling that process to evolve, said Plattner.

      “When I hired years ago designers, they always remain a little outside, they became artists,” said Plattner. “Then I said, what is the purpose of that? Then they became very focused and that was wrong. We should have kept them free.”

      The goal: To build products that captivates customers.

      “It sounds ridiculous to talk about delight and SAP,” said Plattner.

      “But why not? A door handle can be elegant. Everyone can handle an iPod (because of the elegance of its design) but not everyone can handle a piece of software. There is some work to do.”

      Plattner said it is imperative to apply creativity and design concepts not only to softwares user interface, but also to the platform, applications, hardware and the network.

      While Plattner never really mentioned the intense development efforts under way at SAP as it moves from a monolithic structure to a much more open, services-based architecture, the implication was there.

      When asked later if he thought SAP has struck the right balance between innovation and the work at hand keeping its customer base happy—between the right brain and the left—Platter did not hesitate.

      “We did it very well in the first phases of SAP,” said Plattner, referring to the early days of the company when he and three others left IBM to start SAP.

      “We had the luxury of no home, no garage. We were living at the customer site. When we developed accounts receivable we were monitoring those [people]. It helped tremendously. Now we are embarking on a road to get better.”

      /zimages/5/28571.gifCheck out eWEEK.coms for the latest news, reviews and analysis about productivity and business solutions.

      Avatar
      Renee Boucher Ferguson

      MOST POPULAR ARTICLES

      Android

      Samsung Galaxy XCover Pro: Durability for Tough...

      Chris Preimesberger - December 5, 2020 0
      Have you ever dropped your phone, winced and felt the pain as it hit the sidewalk? Either the screen splintered like a windshield being...
      Read more
      Cloud

      Why Data Security Will Face Even Harsher...

      Chris Preimesberger - December 1, 2020 0
      Who would know more about details of the hacking process than an actual former career hacker? And who wants to understand all they can...
      Read more
      Cybersecurity

      How Veritas Is Shining a Light Into...

      eWEEK EDITORS - September 25, 2020 0
      Protecting data has always been one of the most important tasks in all of IT, yet as more companies become data companies at the...
      Read more
      Big Data and Analytics

      How NVIDIA A100 Station Brings Data Center...

      Zeus Kerravala - November 18, 2020 0
      There’s little debate that graphics processor unit manufacturer NVIDIA is the de facto standard when it comes to providing silicon to power machine learning...
      Read more
      Apple

      Why iPhone 12 Pro Makes Sense for...

      Wayne Rash - November 26, 2020 0
      If you’ve been watching the Apple commercials for the past three weeks, you already know what the company thinks will happen if you buy...
      Read more
      eWeek


      Contact Us | About | Sitemap

      Facebook
      Linkedin
      RSS
      Twitter
      Youtube

      Property of TechnologyAdvice.
      Terms of Service | Privacy Notice | Advertise | California - Do Not Sell My Information

      © 2021 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

      Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.

      ×