Modernizing Your Data Platform: The Benefits of Expert-Led SAP and Cloud Data Lake Integration
– Jul 26, 2024
For business leaders, there is a difference between acting on feelings and making actionable decisions based on real-time insights. In today’s business landscape, the ability to act on real-time, actionable insights is a competitive advantage. Understanding customer behavior as it unfolds, monitoring operational performance, and identifying market trends are crucial capabilities. These are just a few of the many advantages real-time data can offer.
However, it is common for companies to face the challenge of making informed decisions. from fragmented data landscapes. Many companies store critical data siloed in various systems.. The answer to this dilemma lies in Integrating SAP data with cloud data lakes. The integration will be a solution to unify and harness this information for comprehensive insights.
In this post, we’ll take a closer look at why companies are moving in this direction, the challenges involved, and the benefits of working with a certified expert.
Why Companies Want to Integrate SAP Data with Cloud Solutions
If your business is exploring ways to connect your on-premise ERP systems, like SAP, with cloud data lakes, you’re not alone. It’s a growing trend in the U.S. market. Leading cloud data lakes such as GCP BigQuery, Azure Data Lake, and AWS Redshift offer centralized storage that can handle massive volumes of structured, semi-structured, and unstructured data. By bridging your SAP system with these powerful data lakes, you’ll unlock a complete, real-time view of your business operations. This integration doesn’t just structure your access to information, it also empowers you to collect insights that drive smarter, faster decision-making:
The decision to integrate SAP data with cloud data lakes is often driven by several key factors:
- Strategic Data Retention in the Age of S/4HANA: As companies transition to SAP S/4HANA, preserving valuable historical data remains essential. Integrating with cloud data lakes offers a cost-effective solution to retain this data while unlocking S/4HANA’s advanced capabilities.
- Advanced Analytics without System Strain: Businesses need sophisticated analytics to drive insights and make data-driven decisions. Running complex analytics directly on an SAP system can strain resources, so cloud data lakes provide a dedicated environment for this analysis without impacting SAP system performance.
- Streamlined Operational Efficiency through Holistic Reporting: Integrating SAP data with cloud data lakes enables companies to create a unified view of their operations. By combining financial data from SAP with data from other sources, such as customer relationship management (CRM) systems or manufacturing equipment logs, businesses gain a comprehensive data set. This enables the generation of insightful reports that span departments and functions. Enhanced visibility into operational performance supports data-driven decision-making, leading to optimized processes and improved overall efficiency.
Common Challenges in SAP to Cloud Integration
Achieving seamless integration between SAP systems and cloud data lakes is complex and often beyond the capacity of in-house teams. Here are some challenges businesses typically encounter:
- Real-Time Data Replication with Low Latency: Access to real-time data requires low-latency replication from SAP to the cloud data lake. Approaches like Change Data Capture (CDC) and log mining help maintain data accuracy and consistency while reducing delays in real-time analytics.
- Minimizing ETL Script Development and Maintenance:
- Cost-Effective Data Storage and Management: Cloud data lakes provide exceptional scalability for accommodating large volumes of data. However, controlling the costs associated with storing this data, especially for historical or infrequently accessed information, demands a thoughtful strategy. Methods like data tiering, which involves moving inactive data to more cost-effective storage options, or utilizing partitioning schemes within the data lake, are essential for optimizing storage expenses while maintaining data accessibility.
Why Companies Seek External Expertise
Integrating SAP systems with cloud platforms presents significant challenges for many organizations. The intricate demands of these projects, which can often take 400 hours or more, prompt many companies to seek external support. Leveraging outside expertise helps businesses facilitate a smoother transition, lowers the risk of costly mistakes, and enhances their ability to achieve digital transformation goals. This is where oXya’s unique advantages become crucial.
The oXya Advantage
oXya brings certified, multi-platform expertise to simplify SAP-to-cloud integration projects. Our team comprises highly skilled professionals certified in SAP, GCP, Microsoft Azure, and AWS. This cross-platform expertise guarantees that our services uphold the highest standards of quality and performance, allowing us to execute projects with accuracy and dependability. Here’s how we support your digital transformation:
Certified Expertise Across Platforms
Our professionals hold certifications in SAP, GCP, Microsoft Azure, and AWS, ensuring high standards of quality and reliability across cloud environments.
Comprehensive Services
We provide comprehensive services suite. From initial setup and configuration to continuous maintenance and support, we deliver end-to-end solutions customized to meet your unique business requirements. Our offerings include:
- Initial Assessment and Planning: We assess your IT landscape and potential challenges, then develop a tailored project plan.
- Configuration and Implementation: Our experts handle system integration, optimizing performance and ensuring connectivity.
- Data Migration and Validation: We conduct thorough data migration and validation processes to guarantee accuracy and consistency.
- Ongoing Support and Maintenance: We offer long-term support, handling updates, optimization, and any technical issues post-implementation.
Security and Compliance
Data security and compliance are essential elements that no organization can afford to overlook. oXya ensures that every data transfer project adheres to rigorous security standards and regulatory requirements, including GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) and SOX (Sarbanes-Oxley Act). We implement strong security measures such as data encryption, masking, and secure access controls to safeguard sensitive information throughout the transfer process. Our expertise in compliance ensures that your data management practices align with all relevant legal and regulatory standards, helping to mitigate risks of fines and reputational damage.
Industry-Specific Benefits
Certain industries, including utilities, manufacturing, and retail, produce massive volumes of data that demand efficient handling and analysis. oXya’s solutions are tailored to meet the specific challenges encountered in these sectors. For instance:
- Utilities: We support real-time data analysis, aiding in resource management and predictive maintenance.
- Manufacturing: Our solutions streamline supply chain data integration, improving production efficiency and reducing downtime.
- Retail: We enable advanced customer analytics, inventory management, and sales forecasting for better decision-making.
Our industry-specific expertise guarantees that your data integration project aligns seamlessly with your business objectives, providing valuable insights and driving operational improvements.
Tailored Solutions for Unique Business Needs
At oXya, we recognize that every business is unique. Our customized solutions are designed to fit specific organizational requirements and budget constraints. Using tools such as SAP Landscape Transformation (SLT), BryteFlow, and Qlik (formerly Attunity), we develop a strategy that aligns with your goals, optimizes data assets, and delivers measurable results. We collaborate closely with you to design and implement a data integration strategy that aligns with your business processes, ensuring it delivers measurable results.
Need Help? Contact oXya
Seamless data transfer from SAP systems to cloud data lakes is essential for maximizing the value of your data. The complexities involved in SAP-to-cloud integration demand certified expertise and robust solutions. As a trusted partner, oXya provides customized solutions, long-term support, and a steadfast commitment to security and compliance. Contact oXya today for a consultation, and discover why 99% of our customers are satisfied, with 97% recommending our services.
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