SAP is taking a big step into SaaS with Simple Finance, a set of applications based on its in-memory Hana Enterprise Cloud platform.
The software will encompass a full range of finance functions, including planning, analysis, accounting, financial operations and consolidation, SAP said.
In-memory computing will enable the application to run processes such as a month-end close in real time, rather than batch jobs, according to SAP. It will also provide self-service reporting and analytics for finance workers; predictive analytics for financial scenarios; and real-time connections to business networks such as SAP’s own Ariba service.
Simple Finance will be available via subscription. It will be possible to link it with other SaaS (software-as-a-service) applications as well as on-premises deployments, SAP said.
Existing SAP customers can migrate their current finance environments to Simple Finance as well, according to SAP.
Simple Finance will be launched for 25 industries and in more than 50 countries, SAP said. No general availability date was provided, although the wait may not be too long given that SAP is likely reusing a great deal of the code already written for its on-premises finance software.
More details of Simple Finance, which will be offered as a managed service, are expected to be revealed this week at Sapphire, which runs through Thursday in Orlando.
The application’s title reflects a theme newly anointed sole CEO Bill McDermott sounded repeatedly during a keynote address Tuesday.
“The most intractable CEO issue of our time is complexity,” McDermott said. “It’s getting worse and worse. We see a dream for a simpler SAP, and a simpler customer experience.”