Bright eyed and severely jet-lagged, the Customer Empowerment Team arrived in Sydney for the first ever Customer Empowerment (CE) Day dedicated to SAP S/4HANA Cloud in Australia!
The Customer Empowerment program is all about keeping it real. And since SAP S/4HANA Cloud customers are located across every major city in Australia (with massive distances in between said cities,) we were crossing all our fingers and toes praying for a respectable turnout. Typically, with events such as this, there is a drop off between the number of attendees who RSVP and those who attend the event. So, truth be told, we really didn't know what to expect.
Our jaws hit the floor at 9AM on a Monday morning when 95% of our registration list showed up bringing us to a total of 18 attendees. We didn’t know whether to be shocked or flattered that customers flew in from Perth and Melbourne for the event – but we were so glad to have them all!
So, what was it that made this event such a success? How is it different from other events?
Events like these are one of the ways we, as SAP, can learn what to do better, and in turn, provide the functionality to serve you better. CE Days are in no way, shape, or form marketing or sales events. These are deep dive conversations where customers can put all their cards on the table and look the people who make the decisions in the eye and say, "X isn't working. What are you going to do about it?"
These events are your opportunity not to hold back. Although much good was covered throughout the day, I think we can learn most through customer concerns and constructive criticisms. Are there flaws in the process? Yes – but we’re working on it. Trust in us to know that we will not sit and do nothing with this feedback. We take it very seriously and will improve some of these issues with every new release.
By the end of the day, customers were hungry for another event. They were impressed with the 1905 release update – especially by Vice President, Product Management S/4HANA Cloud, Sanjai K's 2-hr Product Advisory Council session. You can view the agenda from the Sydney event here.
Customers loved the networking, the candid conversations, and learning where others are in the process. Interestingly, all have said they will eventually move to Cloud. They let us know that they want to have in-depth discussions around reporting, change management, data management, and roadmap sessions – as this is critical for them to get accurate scope information. They particularly enjoyed the “D-shop” and seeing the innovations in farming, solar power, and anti-aging technology that SAP is working on within the community.
When asked the reasons this meeting was important for them, customers answered:
To learn more about upcoming Customer Empowerment Days, visit the S/4HANA Cloud Community.
To hear about our past events, take a look at the recap blogs below:
The Customer Empowerment program is all about keeping it real. And since SAP S/4HANA Cloud customers are located across every major city in Australia (with massive distances in between said cities,) we were crossing all our fingers and toes praying for a respectable turnout. Typically, with events such as this, there is a drop off between the number of attendees who RSVP and those who attend the event. So, truth be told, we really didn't know what to expect.
Our jaws hit the floor at 9AM on a Monday morning when 95% of our registration list showed up bringing us to a total of 18 attendees. We didn’t know whether to be shocked or flattered that customers flew in from Perth and Melbourne for the event – but we were so glad to have them all!
One customer said, "A day like today shows us you take us seriously and our feedback seriously – thank you."
Another stated, "My opinion as a customer finally matters – this is the first time I feel like you are listening vs. selling."
So, what was it that made this event such a success? How is it different from other events?
Connecting customers with other customers
"Within the first 10 minutes, I knew it was already worth my time. [I received] a connection of a customer in the US experiencing exactly what I am – saves me time and can’t wait to talk to them. Thank you."
"The networking is so powerful and a real validation of letting us talk to each other. I do not feel alone in this process.".
No pointless conversations
Events like these are one of the ways we, as SAP, can learn what to do better, and in turn, provide the functionality to serve you better. CE Days are in no way, shape, or form marketing or sales events. These are deep dive conversations where customers can put all their cards on the table and look the people who make the decisions in the eye and say, "X isn't working. What are you going to do about it?"
For example, one attendee expressed that "This is Australia and not Germany. Not all countries run like Germany – please do the homework first. Australia's fiscal year runs from 1st July to June 30th.”
These events are your opportunity not to hold back. Although much good was covered throughout the day, I think we can learn most through customer concerns and constructive criticisms. Are there flaws in the process? Yes – but we’re working on it. Trust in us to know that we will not sit and do nothing with this feedback. We take it very seriously and will improve some of these issues with every new release.
It's about YOU – our customers
By the end of the day, customers were hungry for another event. They were impressed with the 1905 release update – especially by Vice President, Product Management S/4HANA Cloud, Sanjai K's 2-hr Product Advisory Council session. You can view the agenda from the Sydney event here.
Customers loved the networking, the candid conversations, and learning where others are in the process. Interestingly, all have said they will eventually move to Cloud. They let us know that they want to have in-depth discussions around reporting, change management, data management, and roadmap sessions – as this is critical for them to get accurate scope information. They particularly enjoyed the “D-shop” and seeing the innovations in farming, solar power, and anti-aging technology that SAP is working on within the community.
When asked the reasons this meeting was important for them, customers answered:
To learn more about upcoming Customer Empowerment Days, visit the S/4HANA Cloud Community.
To hear about our past events, take a look at the recap blogs below:
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