SAP and Apple join forces to link SAP HANA Cloud platform & iOS

The recent happenings at Cupertino suggest that Apple and SAP are in serious consideration to create a software SDK that will empower developers to build iOS apps that will work seamlessly in sync with SAPA HANA cloud platform.

Apple had earlier tied up with IBM to bring the simplicity of iOS to corporate system users. However, Steve Lucas, President - SAP Digital Enterprise Platform is of the opinion that although it is natural for two giant two companies to come together to improve usability for users, the intention behind the joining forces of Apple and & SAP are starkly different.

As is commonly known, SAP is an Enterprise Resource company. Its HANA platform renders users with the benefit of cloud computing based software access for all of SAP created products like Concur, SuccessFactors, etc.

Apple on the other hand is considered the world’s biggest computer and tech related company that produces heart-winning products ranging from desktops, laptops, mobile devices and even music players. The brand is recognized for its impeccable user experience creating products that stand unique in their hardware and UI designing.

Best of two worlds ERP users and software worlds

Why does it mean so much for businesses? The image below describes well enough how the strategic partnership can turnaround efficiency for businesses that use SAP in their routine operations.

With Apple’s iOS mobile app developers will have tremendous facility. They will be able to build apps that can access business processes and core data from SAP HANA platform. The collaboration will bring the inherent benefits of iOS like Touch ID fingerprint recognition, notification alerts, location services, etc. to SAP HANA.

"Those developers who want to build enterprise-level applications will be able to leverage the HCP SDK to extend any SAP solution and build innovation on top of SAP and non-SAP apps without leaving the development environment that they're comfortable with," said Kevin Ichhpurani, SAP Executive Vice President.

Industry voices that approve of the golden handshake

The update of SAP and Apple coming together has definitely sparked interest in the software community. There are tech observers who feel that this was a long coming of both the tech giants. SAP has been working since long to bring the SAP HANA platform with mobile app accessibility. The talks are said to have been happening since 2015 when the respective CEOs of Apple and Sap met for a formal discussion about the strategic partnership possibility.

According the Sam Yen, SAP’s Chief Design Officer it is a “no brainer” for both the companies to bring together their inherent strengths for competitive advantage.

Jason Wong, a senior analyst at Gartner feels that “Apple has pretty much saturated the consumer market and needs to expand.”. This strategic partnership will definitely be the big break that Apple will want to have in the enterprise customer market segment.

100+ SAP based corporate apps for Apple devices

The strategic partnership will result in the release of 100+ of SAP based mobile enterprise applications. Some of the apps will cater to the needs of specific industries like retail, healthcare, power, etc. while the others will be intended to make things easier for SAP end-users through Apple’s design expertise. Steve Lucas further added that most of the apps will be made available in the App store for free of cost except for very few which will be charged for.

SAP has already announced several programs to roll out mobile applications for iPhone and iPad that will make it easier to access data stored in SAP based tools. Apple will also be providing an iOS SDK for developing iOS apps for using SAP HANA – the cloud-based database product. The SDK will enable corporates to build their own custom mobile aps to access, retrieve or even modify data stored in the cloud.  

The road ahead for software developers and SAP professionals

SAP certification and iOS mobile application development have been charting as the top career choices for tech aspirants. The recent turn of events between the two tech giants only emphasize how worthwhile it is for a young professional to pursue a career in iOS development. SAP HANA training will add muscle to those developers who want to develop perfect apps that will aesthetical looks and mechanical perfection.