The EPI-USE Labs South Africa INSPIRE User Group event, held on 18 September 2024, provided an opportunity for clients and partners to engage with the latest innovations within the SAP ecosystem. To mark the occasion, we hosted the event at Johannesburg’s iconic Wanderers Cricket Stadium, with legendary cricketer, Fanie de Villiers, setting the stage with an inspiring keynote.
The EPI-USE Labs South Africa INSPIRE User Group event, held on 18 September 2024, provided an opportunity for clients and partners to engage with the latest innovations within the SAP ecosystem. To mark the occasion, we hosted the event at Johannesburg’s iconic Wanderers Cricket Stadium, with legendary cricketer, Fanie de Villiers, setting the stage with an inspiring keynote.
Watch the recap here:
The overarching theme of this year’s INSPIRE event was the power of transformation in the SAP space. From cloud-based innovations to AI integrations, the event was an opportunity to share how SAP clients can leverage modern technology to drive efficiency and secure their data in a complex digital landscape. Throughout the morning, each speaker reiterated the importance of a forward-thinking strategy, showcasing tangible examples of how businesses have successfully navigated complex challenges like migrating to SAP S/4HANA, improving test data management, and securing multi-cloud environments.
AFSUG’s vision for digital transformation in Africa
Duke Mathebula, Chairperson of the African SAP User Group (AFSUG), kicked off the event, sharing insights into AFSUG’s long-term goals, including its strategic focus on expanding collaboration across Africa and driving digital transformation on the continent.
Duke highlighted AFSUG’s role in amplifying the voice of the SAP community, helping to align SAP solutions with the evolving needs of clients in the region, explaining how User Groups and SAP have grown together since SAP's early days, and how this collaboration has strengthened through the global SAP user group executive network (SUGEN). He also gave a sneak peek into AFSUG's flagship event, SAPHILA, that will be hosted in June 2025.
The evolution of Data Sync Manager™ (DSM)
James Watson, Global Service Line Lead for Privacy and Security at EPI-USE Labs, presented the continuous evolution of DSM, which began in 2000. Over the years, DSM has expanded its capabilities, with recent advancements such as DSM Cloud, designed to streamline test data management and bolster data privacy for SAP SuccessFactors.
We've always focused on innovation, ensuring our clients have the tools they need to manage their data securely and efficiently in an ever-evolving SAP landscape.
James Watson | Global Service Line Lead for Privacy and Security at EPI-USE Labs
Throughout the session, James shared case studies like Specsavers’ SAP HCM implementation, which involved automating payroll reporting and enabling data entry by store partners through SAP BTP integrations. With DSM, Specsavers saw enhanced reporting accuracy and time savings through automated scheduling and encryption.
James also highlighted the latest innovations, including PRISM for S/4HANA, which simplifies data transformation and supports selective data transformations. From the single solution to copy specific objects through to our ability to address POPIA with archiving, retention management and data deletion, we keep Privacy and Security requirements at the heart of our product development, ensuring an effective resolution to business challenges in a compliant way.
The future of technology in SAP
Paul Snyman, Head of Product Management at EPI-USE Labs, gave attendees a glimpse into the future of SAP technology, with a focus on how AI and cloud technologies are reshaping business landscapes. During his presentation, Paul highlighted the growing reliance on AI, particularly SAP Business AI, to address the increasingly complex challenge of data sprawl. He explained that as companies continue to accumulate vast amounts of data from multiple sources, maintaining efficient and secure operations becomes more difficult. However, through the use of EPI-USE Labs' data-centric solutions, businesses can gain control over their data compliance and optimise business processes to drive smarter decision-making through AI.
Real-world examples, such as Aker Solutions, demonstrated where our DSM Suite is being leveraged to streamline operations and improve data management. Aker Solutions used DSM to reduce the size of non-production SAP systems by over 80%, while ensuring data privacy compliance in line with SAP’s cloud policies and regulations like GDPR. This enabled Aker Solutions to create a more agile, cost-effective system, reducing operational costs and improving overall performance.
We’re all about helping businesses embrace the future of AI, enabling them to simplify their SAP landscapes while maintaining the highest levels of data privacy and operational efficiency.
Paul Snyman | Head of Product Management at EPI-USE Labs
By transforming SAP landscapes and leveraging AI, companies can unlock new opportunities for growth, all while ensuring they meet the ever-evolving regulatory requirements.
Multi-cloud backup and disaster recovery strategy
Ludi Nel, Co-Founder and Technical Director of iSphere Cloud, delivered an engaging session on the importance of a multi-cloud strategy for backup and disaster recovery (BDR). As businesses increasingly rely on cloud environments, over-reliance on a single cloud provider can lead to significant risks, including vendor lock-in, outages, and vulnerabilities to security threats. While the cloud offers immense flexibility and scalability, it also brings new challenges that require careful management.
During the presentation, Ludi underscored the growing threats posed by ransomware and cyberattacks, sharing that 45% of businesses have experienced permanent data loss due to inadequate BDR strategies. A multi-cloud approach mitigates these risks by distributing critical data across multiple providers, ensuring business continuity in the event of an outage or cyberattack.
Beyond risk mitigation, Ludi also highlighted the financial and regulatory advantages of a hybrid cloud model.
A multi-cloud strategy offers not just protection but also cost efficiency, allowing businesses to balance performance and compliance needs while avoiding vendor lock-in.
Ludi Nel | Co-Founder and Technical Director of iSphere Cloud
Organisations need to take proactive steps, understanding that a robust, resilient BDR strategy is no longer optional; it's essential to safeguard your critical data and ensure operational continuity.
How SAP BTP and AI will revolutionise the way we work
Peter Blignaut, SAP Customer Advisory Manager: Business Technology Platform (BTP), delivered an insightful session on the transformative potential of SAP BTP and AI in reshaping the way businesses operate. In today’s fast-paced digital landscape, businesses are generating vast amounts of data, and the ability to turn that data into actionable insights is becoming a critical differentiator. These intelligent technologies empower businesses to not only react to current market conditions but to proactively plan and optimise operations for greater efficiency and responsiveness.
Peter shared real-world examples of how AI-driven analytics and machine learning models are enabling companies to predict customer behaviours, optimise supply chains, and automate repetitive tasks, freeing up resources to focus on strategic initiatives. One example involved AI-based predictive maintenance, where businesses are using SAP BTP to analyse data from machinery and equipment, allowing them to anticipate breakdowns before they occur, thereby reducing downtime and maintenance costs.
As we integrate AI into our operations, it’s vital that we also uphold the principles of privacy, fairness, and sustainability. Responsible AI involves not only protecting sensitive information but also ensuring that AI systems are free from bias, promote fairness, and respect human oversight. This is particularly important as organisations seek to build trust with customers and stakeholders.
Peter Blignaut | SAP Customer Advisory Manager: Business Technology Platform (BTP)
Be INSPIRED in 2024 and beyond
INSPIRE User Group events are not only a platform for knowledge sharing, but also a celebration of our partnerships with organisations across multiple industries. From discussions around SAP cloud strategies to tackling complex data privacy challenges, attendees leave with actionable insights to enhance their SAP ecosystems.
It’s so important for us – EPI-USE Labs, clients and partners – to spend time together in an environment away from the boardroom. This is where the valuable conversations take place and honest feedback is received. Throw in a few thought-provoking presentations and you have all the makings for a memorable day.
Hilton Anspach | SVP Africa & Middle East
Did you join our event? Visit our after-event page: see your email for the password, or contact us for exclusive access to the event presentations.
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