SAP's customers are tired of hearing buzzwords

SAP customers are growing tired of vendor buzzwords and hype, desiring more practical advice on digital products, according to a recent survey.

Research conducted by the UK & Ireland SAP User Group found that 80 percent of respondents were skeptical of terms such as "digitalization" and "digital transformation". Fifty-eight percent of SAP customers also believe that vendors over-hype their terminology.

Chairman of the User Group Philip Adams believes that technology vendors still have much to add, but need to be clearer with their messaging.

"Our message is plain and simple", he said at the UKISUG 2015 conference. "We don’t need to hear the buzzwords, we just want to work with you in practical ways to help define that business case [for digital transformation], to understand the process design, the hands-off transformation advice you can give us so that we can define our strategy and start implementing these projects".

Despite the rising skepticism, businesses readily admit the importance of digital transformation. Thirty percent of those surveyed already have a digital strategy and 36 percent of those that do not are still embracing digital projects. Risks associated with digitalization are proving challenging, however, particularly security fears and managing an increase in data flows.

"Clearly the majority believe digital transformation is a priority for their organization", Adams explained. "I’m sure there are many reasons [other firms do not possess a digital strategy], from time, resources, management support, expertise, not being sure where to start".

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