I love the word cheat sheet. It sounds so naughty and sinister. When I use a cheat sheet it is like I am back in grade school trying to beat the system. Essentially we are about to do the same for SAP Cloud for Analytics. When I talk about beating the system I am of course not talking about doing anything that would negate an agreement or break any rules, but I have a handy list of important information in my back pocket and I am ready to share it with you.
SAP Cloud for Analytics is……….
This is as good a place to start as any. Introduced in late 2015, SAP Cloud for Analytics is a SaaS service built on the SAP HANA Cloud Platform and is intended to be used with other cloud and on-premise SAP software. The solution is a single, predictive business intelligence data system that will help with performance tracking, trend analysis, outcome prediction and decision making.
SAP calls it the “one analytics experience”.
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From One Experience to Three Layers
Let’s break it down even further. The natural question to ask is how all these components will work together to create one cohesive solution.
The answer is as follows.
The SAP Cloud for Analytics Architecture is broken down into three layers.
1) Applications
Also referred to as the Digital Boardroom app this layer is the setting that brings all the different components together. Under the applications setting all BI, Planning, Predictive and GRC functionalities are combined into one seamless user interface. Even more attractive is the fact that the software is based on SAPUI5 technology and can be customized with different apps as customers see the need.
2) Analytic Capabilities
The second layer of the SAP Cloud for analytics architecture integrates almost all SAP BI4M suite components into one cohesive environment. This is where you can enter your analytics into simple input sheets and have them spread across the different environments. The days of switching between an analysis and a planning tool are in the past. Predictive functions are integrated here as well. That means that all you have to do is select a data set and a predictive function. The platform will then take care of the rest.
3) Core Capabilities
Fully developed on the SAP HANA Cloud Platform SAP Cloud for Analytics core functions is a combination of all of the platform’s features. There are modelling and data connectivity options as well as features that allow you to either transfer or shield data between the cloud and on premise software. Naturally extensions can be custom developed using APIs. These are also based on the SAP HANA platform.
Why does any of this matter?
The SAP Cloud for Analytics offers users more scalable data analysis in its central repository of tools. These are meant to be used by a wide variety of customers in different roles and functions. Nucleus Research has also discovered that Cloud analytic solutions deliver a 2.3 times greater ROI than on-premise solutions. The main reason they attribute this to is the faster speed of new releases on cloud software. New releases and updates of course being critical to analytical success.
Think about the analytics market for a minute. It seems like lately it has become a very crowded space. With SAP Cloud for Analytics customers will be able to stay on top of the latest releases and updates. SAP has provided a platform that includes many different applications while decreasing the number of integration points that would traditionally need to be tested and debugged. Consider your headaches gone while the real work is simpler and all in one place.