Transformation Every Day

Guest: Louis Schmidlin - Co-Founder and CEO, QoreloHost: Alexander Greb - Senior Vice President, All for One GroupThe product moved. The method didn’t.SAP software has changed dramatically. The way we implement it has barely changed in 20 years. Consultants still map scope items in Excel, workshop notes get lost in SharePoint, and implementation costs often run seven times higher than the software itself. Sometimes ten.Louis Schmidlin knows this pain firsthand. He was an SAP consultant before founding Qorelo, a Berlin-based startup that uses AI to speed up SAP transformations from discovery to cutover.In this episode, Alex and Louis talk about:What TechEd 2026 revealed about the gap between agentic AI on stage and customer reality on ECCWhy so many “brownfield” decisions are really scar tissue from old R/3 projectsHow AI can take over the manual groundwork while consultants focus on leading the customerWhy every new Qorelo hire reads 450 pages of SAP ActivateSAP’s API policy, and what happens when SAP builds these capabilities nativelyChristian Klein’s message to partners: the technology is there, now it’s your problemWhat junior consultants should do now to stay relevantA conversation for everyone who has ever asked: why are we still doing it like this?Follow Louis here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/louisschmidlin/Follow Alexander: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexandergreb/Follow Johannes: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johanneslangguth/Thanks to Steven Spears for lending his voice for our podcast intro.Theme music by Luis Álvarez a.k.a. Fourth Dogma

Guest: Caroline Salen - Executive Search Consultant - Spencer StuartHost: Alexander Greb Most advice about reaching the top comes from people who have only ever watched from the outside. Caroline Salen did the job first.She spent twenty years in tech at HP, Gartner, SAP and SAP Fioneer before moving into executive search. Today she advises boards and CEOs at Spencer Stuart on who should get which job. Which means she knows both what the work really demands and what the people in the room actually decide on.And most of this conversation is not about the top job at all. It is about the years before it.We talk about why being excellent at your work stops being enough at a certain point, and what replaces it. Why the strongest CV rarely wins, because hiring is a context decision rather than a beauty contest. Why so many senior hires leave early for reasons that have nothing to do with ability. Why sideways moves often do more for a career than upward ones. Why she tells people to write down every business outcome they deliver, starting today, because you will not remember it in five years. What hands-on experience with AI is currently doing to people's market value, whatever their company says about its appetite for it. And why low ego and learning agility are now things clients ask for by name.This episode is for anyone aiming at the top level, and just as much for anyone who wants their career to pick up speed again.Follow Caroline here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolinesalen/Follow Alexander: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexandergreb/Follow Johannes: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johanneslangguth/Thanks to Steven Spears for lending his voice for our podcast intro.Theme music by Luis Álvarez a.k.a. Fourth Dogma

Guests: Andreas Breitrück - Director Applied AI - SAP SignavioTheiss Heilker - Chief Architect & Engineer - SAP SignavioHost: Alexander Greb Every company has a set of rules that nobody ever wrote down.Why you deliver to one customer differently than to all the others. Why someone in planning quietly ignores the red due date, because they know that account and they know it will be fine. Why you turn left in a certain situation when every handbook in the building says right.None of it sits in your ERP. None of it sits in your process models. It lives in the heads of a handful of people, and when they leave, it walks out of the door with them.And now we are about to hand a large part of the work to agents. So what exactly are those agents grounded in? Because a model can know everything about SAP and still know nothing about your company.At Sapphire this year, that question got a name. Company Memory. It was the moment in the keynote where people around me started whispering, what was that, what did they just say.In this episode I sit down with the two people behind it. Andreas Breitrück from SAP and Theiss Weilker, lead architect at SAP Signavio, who went from the first idea in January to the main keynote stage in May.What we get into:- What Company Memory actually is, and why it is not just another documentation project- Process atoms as the smallest unit of how your company really works- How tacit knowledge, the unwritten rules and the identity of a business become something an agent can use- Why Joule needs this layer to act in your company's sense instead of a generic one- Governance, control and sovereignty over knowledge that used to live only in people's heads- What happens to organizations that build a thousand agents without ever thinking about this layer- Why real time transformation may be harder for the organization than for the technology- What you can already start doing today, without waiting for anythingA conversation about the part of your company that no system ever captured, and what changes once it finally becomes readable.Follow Andreas here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andreasbreitruecka456/Follow Theiss here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/theiss-heilker-a160aa124/Follow Alexander: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexandergreb/Follow Johannes: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johanneslangguth/Thanks to Steven Spears for lending his voice for our podcast intro.Theme music by Luis Álvarez a.k.a. Fourth Dogma

Guest:  Dirk Häussermann - Managing Director - SAP Germany Hosts: Alexander Greb - Consulting Director - cbs corporate business solutionsJohannes Langguth - Head of Business Transformation and Architecture - SAP SE"AI is a time machine." That is how Dirk Häussermann, Managing Director of SAP Germany, sums up the technology reshaping his customers, his organization, and his own working day.In this episode he sits down with Alexander Greb and Johannes Langguth to talk about what has actually changed, and what has not.We get into why business AI has a completely different job than ChatGPT, why he has not yet seen a single real autonomous enterprise, and why fifty years of legacy might be a data advantage rather than a handicap. Dirk is direct on the roadblocks: the customers still betting on on premise, the governance models that will not survive their first AI agent, and the partners who stay stuck in implementation mode instead of leading the data and architecture conversation.He also makes the case that the AI talent everyone is fighting over is mostly already sitting inside your organization, pushes back hard on the lazy AI layoff narrative, and explains why shorter project cycles are good news for partners, not a threat.His core message for anyone waiting for the perfect moment: there is no shortcut, and there is no sneaking out. All in on AI.A candid conversation about data, governance, talent, and why the next transformation cannot take another five years.Follow Dirk here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dirk-h%C3%A4u%C3%9FermannFollow Alexander: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexandergreb/Follow Johannes: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johanneslangguth/Thanks to Steven Spears for lending his voice for our podcast intro.Theme music by Luis Álvarez a.k.a. Fourth Dogma

Guest: JP Haas - CEO & Co-Founder Conduct.AIHost: Alexander Greb - Consulting Director - cbs corporate business solutionsWhat if the truth about your business was hidden in your own code?Somewhere in your SAP system, there's a rule that sends certain trucks to gate B instead of gate A. Nobody remembers why. Multiply that by 20 years of custom code and business logic, and you understand why enterprise transformation feels so slow, and so nerve-wracking.In this episode, Alexander Greb sits down with JP Haas, founder and CEO of Conduct AI. JP and his co-founders came out of Palantir and built what they call an AI operating system for enterprise IT, one that reads your system's own code and finally tells you how your business actually runs.We get into why changing a mission critical SAP system can feel like open-heart surgery, how a six-day bottleneck was traced to two edge conditions nobody knew were fighting each other, and what shifts for everyone in the ecosystem, especially consultants, once the guesswork is gone.If you're staring down an S/4HANA Transformation and quietly dreading it, this one is for you.Follow JP Haas here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/janphilipphaas/Website Conduct AI: https://conduct.ai/On Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/conduct-ai/On X: https://x.com/ConductAIFollow Alexander: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexandergreb/Follow Johannes: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johanneslangguth/Thanks to Steven Spears for lending his voice for our podcast intro.Theme music by Luis Álvarez a.k.a. Fourth Dogma

Guest: Wolfgang Epting - Black Belt Business Data Cloud - SAPHost: Alexander Greb - Consulting Director - cbs corporate business solutionsWhat does it take to finish 23 Ironmans — and lead one of SAP's most exciting data transformations at the same time? Wolfgang Epting, SAP Black Belt for the Business Data Cloud, joins Alexander Greb on Transformation Every Day to talk about one of the biggest shifts in enterprise technology right now: the road to the Autonomous Enterprise.At this year's Sapphire, SAP laid out a bold vision — AI-powered enterprises that don't just react, but reason, decide, and act. But behind every intelligent agent is a foundation of trustworthy data. And that's exactly where Wolfgang lives and breathes.In this episode, we unpack what the SAP Business AI Platform really means in practice, why the Knowledge Graph is the connective tissue that makes agentic AI actually work, and how SAP's Business Data Cloud evolved from a promising launch into the data backbone of enterprise AI. We also get into why master data governance is no longer optional, what the Walmart AI rollback teaches us about context and data quality, and why the old rule — garbage in, garbage out — is more relevant than ever.And yes, we also talk about what crossing 23 Ironman finish lines teaches you about showing up for transformation, even when it gets hard.If you're navigating your organization's AI journey and wondering where to start — or where things might be going wrong — this one's for you.Follow Wolfgang here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wolfgang-epting-60640088/Also approach Wolfgang if you are interested in his motivational speeches on Iron Man races. Follow Alexander: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexandergreb/Follow Johannes: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johanneslangguth/Thanks to Steven Spears for lending his voice for our podcast intro.Theme music by Luis Álvarez a.k.a. Fourth Dogma

Guests: Jon Reed - Chief Analyst - DiginomicaJosh Greenbaum - Principal - Enterprise Application ResearchHost: Alexander Greb - Consulting Director - cbs corporate business solutionsThe keynotes are done. The announcements have been made. Now it's time to talk about what Sapphire 2026 actually meant.In this episode, Alexander Greb is joined by two of the most respected independent analysts in the SAP ecosystem — Jon Reed (Diginomica) and Josh Greenbaum (Enterprise Applications Consulting) — for an unfiltered breakdown of everything that happened in Orlando.They get into the Autonomous Enterprise vision and how much of it is actually ready today. They talk about why the partner community is facing its most significant business model shift in a generation — and what the six different types of SAP partners each need to do differently. They cover what the best customers at Sapphire had in common, why your 20 years of SAP experience alone won't carry you through what's coming, and what SAP still needs to get right on APIs, MCP, transparency, and partner advocacy.Plus: the question everyone is asking but nobody wants to answer: what percentage of the Autonomous Enterprise is actually here right now? Jon and Josh give their numbers. And they don't duck it.The episode closes with three things everyone in the SAP ecosystem should act on right now: one to investigate, one to stop worrying about, and one to watch closely over the next six months.If you were at Sapphire, this will sharpen what you saw. If you weren't, this is the briefing you needed.Follow Jon: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonerp/Follow Josh: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshuagreenbaum/Also take a look at: https://diginomica.com/Follow Alexander: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexandergreb/Follow Johannes: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johanneslangguth/Thanks to Steven Spears for lending his voice for our podcast intro.Theme music by Luis Álvarez a.k.a. Fourth Dogma

Guest:  Mark Green - Founder - Change RebellionHost: Alexander Greb - Consulting Director - cbs corporate business solutionsFor years, change management was the first line item cut from the budget. The "filler." The nice-to-have. The thing the project manager could probably handle anyway.Mark Green has spent nearly 30 years proving that wrong — and he's done it without a single traditional framework, upsell tactic, or overpriced PowerPoint deck.In this episode, the founder of Change Rebellion joins me for an honest, no-nonsense conversation about why so many transformations still fail, what the big consultancies got catastrophically wrong, and why the grumpiest person in your next workshop might just be your most important ally.We also get into AI — not the hype, not the hysteria, but what it actually means for the people sitting at the ground floor who've already been asked to change everything three times this decade.And yes. We also talk about LinkedIn. At length. Unapologetically.In this episode:Why change management was dismissed for decades — and who's responsibleThe hidden cost of going live without bringing your people with youHow to handle change fatigue when the next big disruption is already hereWhat great change leadership actually looks like from the insideWhy being honest with people is still the most underrated tool in the roomFollow Mark here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-green-3368744/Join Change Rebellion: https://changerebellion.com/ Follow Alexander: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexandergreb/Follow Johannes: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johanneslangguth/Thanks to Steven Spears for lending his voice for our podcast intro.Theme music by Luis Álvarez a.k.a. Fourth Dogma

Guests:  Javier Ruiz Iza - Director Digital Finance & Performance Management - WärtsiläBernhard Rother - Consulting Director - cbs corporate business solutionsHost: Alexander Greb - Consulting Director - cbs corporate business solutionsIn this episode of Transformation Every Day, Alexander Greb talks with Javier Ruiz from Wärtsilä and Bernhard Rother from cbs Corporate Business Solutions about Wärtsilä’s move from a highly customized SAP ECC landscape into SAP S/4HANA Private Cloud using a selective transformation approach.This is not a polished marketing story. It is a very open conversation about the real challenges behind large-scale ERP transformation programs: stakeholder management, expectation overload, clean core discussions, selective data migration, testing strategies, business continuity, and the constant tension between innovation and operational stability.One of the strongest takeaways from this episode is that successful S/4HANA programs are usually not the ones trying to change everything at once. Wärtsilä deliberately focused on getting to S/4HANA fast, keeping the business stable, and postponing non-critical innovation to later value-driven initiatives.Javier shares why “testing, testing, testing” became one of the key success factors of the entire program, how internal trust and organizational credibility shape transformation success, and why clean core should be treated as a design principle rather than a standalone project.Bernhard explains why protecting a program from overload is critical, why organizations need clear transformation guardrails, and why ERP transformation should never be treated as just another IT upgrade.Topics include: SAP ECC to SAP S/4HANA Private Cloud  Big Bang vs phased transformation  Selective data transition  Clean Core strategy  Business continuity during go-live  Stakeholder and expectation management  AI, analytics, and future innovation  Post-go-live operating models  Testing and cutover best practices A practical and refreshingly honest discussion about how to create fast value from SAP transformation without getting lost in transformation.Follow Jaiver here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/javier-ruiz-iza/Follow Bernhard here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bernhard-rother-6a456377/Follow Alexander: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexandergreb/Follow Johannes: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johanneslangguth/Thanks to Steven Spears for lending his voice for our podcast intro.Theme music by Luis Álvarez a.k.a. Fourth Dogma

Guest:  Oliver Dorsner - Consulting Director / Member of the Executive Board - cbs corporate business solutionsHosts: Alexander Greb - Consulting Director - cbs corporate business solutionsWhy do so many SAP transformations struggle to deliver fast and real value?In this episode, Alexander Greb speaks with Oliver Dorsner, who has spent more than 25 years leading large-scale transformation programs. Together, they unpack what really happens inside S/4HANA journeys once the initial strategy meets organizational reality.The conversation goes beyond the usual Brownfield versus Greenfield debate and looks at what actually drives success or failure. From the difference between technical migration and real business change, to the role of culture, decision-making, and timing.They discuss why there is no such thing as a pure Greenfield transformation, how companies end up stretching programs far beyond reasonable timelines, and what it means to be “lost in transformation.”Most importantly, they explore how to regain control, refocus on value, and make better decisions when complexity starts to take over.If you are planning an S/4HANA move, already in the middle of one, or wondering why the promised value is not materializing, this episode offers a clear and honest perspective.Follow Oliver: https://www.linkedin.com/in/oliver-dorsner-41b33219/Follow Alexander: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexandergreb/Follow Johannes: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johanneslangguth/Thanks to Steven Spears for lending his voice for our podcast intro.Theme music by Luis Álvarez a.k.a. Fourth Dogma