SAP RISE managed services limitations

In 2023, 70% of SAP customers were considering RISE. By mid-2024, that number dropped into the low 40s. The shift raises a big question: what made so many rethink the move? I’ve supported RISE customers around the world — from North America to Europe to APAC. And the patterns I’m seeing? They’re consistent, and a bit unsettling. Here’s what’s driving the hesitation: 1. Service Level Disappointment - 99.7% uptime sounds fine until it hits your critical workflows. 2. Hidden Complexity - What looked like a bundled solution often turns into 100+ pages of service exclusions. 3. Slow Execution - Simple tickets take weeks. Why? Lack of automation and fragmented delivery teams. 4. The Premium Paywall - Want the service you thought you were buying? There’s a premium tier for that. What started as a CFO-friendly commercial model has hit resistance from Ops teams who are left holding the bag. RISE isn’t failing. But the experience gap is real. And for many customers, that’s been enough to hit pause...or backpedal entirely. If you’ve evaluated RISE or lived through the shift, what was your biggest surprise? I’d love to hear it in the comments.

"RISE with SAP": A New Name, Same Old Challenges 🤔 When SAP introduced the "RISE with SAP" offering, it was marketed as a comprehensive, 𝗮𝗹𝗹-𝗶𝗻-𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 that simplifies your path to the cloud. One contract, one predictable price. But as many of us in the industry know, the reality is often more complex. 🔄 𝗔 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗖𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗮𝘁𝘀: While "RISE with SAP" promises a single, streamlined contract, the reality is that it often doesn't cover everything. As your business needs evolve, so too will the requirements for your SAP environment, leading to billable changes that weren’t part of the original agreement. This lack of flexibility can quickly turn a predictable cost structure into a moving target. 🚨 𝗗𝗲𝗰𝗮𝗱𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗠𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗱 𝗦𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲: Managed service providers (MSPs) have been in the SAP game for years, supporting large clients with their SAP environments—sometimes for decades. These MSPs have faced significant challenges in establishing near- and offshore delivery centers that meet client expectations and quality standards. It’s been a long, arduous road with many lessons learned along the way. 🛠️ 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗴𝗴𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗹: SAP is relatively new to the managed services arena, and they’re facing the same challenges that MSPs have already battled: inconsistent quality, unmet client expectations, and growing frustration. Clients need reliable, high-quality service, and when this isn't delivered, it can lead to dissatisfaction and even contract termination. 😕 𝗡𝗼 𝗘𝗮𝘀𝘆 𝗘𝘅𝗶𝘁: With traditional MSPs, if the service quality didn’t meet expectations, clients had the option to export their SAP landscape and move to a different provider or bring the systems back in-house. Unfortunately, with "RISE with SAP", there's no straightforward exit scenario. While it's not impossible to switch to a different MSP, the process is far from easy. 🚪 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗶𝘀𝗸 𝗼𝗳 𝗟𝗼𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗖𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗿𝘀: If SAP doesn’t improve the quality of its managed services, they could risk losing customers not just to other MSPs, but to entirely different ERP competitors. Companies that have spent years perfecting their on-premise SAP environments need more than a catchy tagline—they need real, reliable service that justifies the move to the cloud. 🔍 For decision-makers in companies that currently run SAP on-premise, it’s critical to weigh these factors 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 to "RISE with SAP". The promise of simplicity is alluring, but the execution is where the real challenges lie. 💡 Is "RISE with SAP" truly a step forward, or just a rebranding of old struggles? The decision to move to the cloud should be made with eyes wide open. What’s your take? Share your thoughts in the comments below! (* picture from Stephanie Klepacki on Unsplash)

RISE with SAP: Customer Responsibilities For SAP BASIS Are Still Key Many organizations are learning that RISE with SAP isn’t a fully hands-off SaaS or IaaS solution. While it does bring significant simplification, customers are realizing that key responsibilities—especially around SAP Basis remain in-house. The idea of significantly downsizing or removing the internal SAP Basis team is no longer a realistic expectation. In fact, customer side Basis responsibilities continue to be critical, even in a RISE environment. #Understanding the Scope: Roles & Responsibilities in RISE SAP provides a clear #RolesandResponsibilities document for RISE with SAP, outlining what tasks are: Covered under the standard offering Optional (and available through additional SAP Cloud Application Services - CAS) and Outside of SAP’s responsibility #Someof the key areas where customer Basis teams remain heavily involved include: 1. Security Patch Management SAP applies critical patches automatically—but customers must handle testing, non-critical patches, and other remediation efforts. 2. Transport Management Transport migrations, TMS, and RFC management remain fully within the customer team’s domain. 3. System Refresh SAP may assist with the database copy, but preparation and post-refresh activities are the customer’s responsibility. 4. Monitoring and Capacity Planning Daily system monitoring, memory management, and long-term capacity planning are not covered by default. 5. User Roles and Authorizations Managing roles and authorizations also remains with the customer, often involving Basis and Security teams closely. #SAPSecurity #RiseWithSAP #SAPNote #CyberSecurity #SAPBASIS #SAPCVE #SAPPrivateCloud #SAPPatchTuesday #SAPSecurityNote #SAP #SAPGUI #SAPFRONTEND #SAPLOGONPAD #RISEwithSAP #SAPERP #CloudERP #DigitalTransformation #SAPMigration #SAP #SAPBuildWorkZone #SAPBTP #SAPJoule #SAPStart #AI #Productivity #SAPCloud #FutureOfWork #SAPBusinessAI #RISEwithSAP #DigitalTransformation #ArtificialIntelligence #SAPActivate #SAPProjectManagement #SAPImplementation #SAPTips #SAPGUI #SAPFiori #SAPCPI #EnterpriseSecurity #SAPSecurity #SAP #SAPMobility #SAPSupport #SAPCommunity #SAPPartners #SAPBasis #SAPFiori #SAPSupport #SAPConsulting #SAPSecurity #SAPAuthorizations #Fiori #S4HANA #SAPGUI #SAPIDM #SAPCommunity #SAPConsultants #SAPHANA #SAP_Basis_Solutions #SAPS4HANA #KSA #sapbasisconsultant #saudiarabia #CIO #ITMANAGERS #SAPPROJECTMANAGERS #SAPABAP #SAPBI #SAPFICO #SAPMM #SAPSD #SAPPP #SAPQM #SAPPM #SAPHCM #SAPHR #SAPSF #Vision2030 #SaudiArabia #SaudiTalent