This article is the second of our three-part blog series on SAP S/4HANA migrations. Part 1 explored key findings from recent industry research. Part 3 will focus on a practical example as a use case.
Integrated messaging solutions must be a key consideration in migration planning
Industry research shows that delays in S/4HANA migrations are frequently driven by integration-related issues, while legacy customizations are being cited as the leading factor putting the success of such migrations at risk. An area that relates to both is enterprise messaging. Many organizations rely on third party solutions, integrated into their applications, to send business-critical communications such as faxes, emails, or text messages directly from SAP.
A key consideration of an S/4HANA migration therefore must be that these communication channels remain fully operational. Especially in Brownfield migration scenarios, existing integrations can be assumed to carry over unchanged. A dangerous assumption: significant changes to how SAP treats integration suites and connectors with S/4HANA may lead to organizations finding that their messaging channels stop working or require significant rework.
What’s changing with S/4HANA and how this impacts integrated messaging solutions
Organizations preparing their S/4HANA migrations must consider the significant differences between the new and the old platforms. SAP NetWeaver will run out of support in 2027 and with it, its BC-SMTP and BC RFC interfaces. Businesses relying on these for fax, SMS or email integrations should switch to REST APIs soon, which are the standard interface on SAP BTP.
This shift means that organizations must find ways to keep their critical SAP messaging operational when making the move to S/4HANA and SAP BTP. Engaging early with providers of existing messaging integrations becomes a critical step in migration planning, especially when it is discovered that a solution critical for operations cannot be carried over to S/4HANA. In this case, the search for alternatives must begin immediately to not risk the success of the time-consuming and expensive migration project.
Pre-delivered integration packages can significantly speed up migration projects
What organizations should primarily be on the look for are providers that work closely with SAP. Native integrations and preconfigured packages for S/4HANA and SAP BTP can significantly reduce migration complexity. Such pre-delivered integration packages help minimize custom development, reduce the risk of late-stage integration issues, and accelerate project timelines.
Reports from SAP indicate that organizations using pre-delivered integration packages achieve substantially faster migration speeds and meaningful cost savings compared to custom-built approaches: one organization reports a whopping 5x migration speed and 20% cost savings. To fully ensure alignment with SAP standards and long-term platform compatibility, such packages should ideally be delivered by official SAP Build Partners.
In part 3, we will discuss an example of how native SAP integrations can help safeguard business-critical messaging during the move to S/4HANA.
