Walldorf, December 16, 2024 – According to a joint survey* conducted by the German-speaking SAP User Group (DSAG), the Americas‘ SAP Users‘ Group (ASUG) and the UK & Ireland SAP User Group (UKISUG), artificial intelligence (AI) in general is becoming increasingly important in companies. Nevertheless, only a few respondents consider themselves to be experts in this field. While numerous companies are in the process of learning and implementing their first AI pilot projects, the survey also shows that there are concerns regarding security, data quality and governance. While half of respondents feel that the potential of AI is currently overrated, more than a third of respondents expect AI to revolutionize entire industries.
The recent DSAG-ASUG-UKISUG survey shows that AI is becoming increasingly important in companies. However, only 7 percent of DSAG members surveyed (ASUG: 6 percent | UKISUG: 6 percent) consider themselves experts in AI and 8 percent (ASUG: 2 percent | UKISUG: 5 percent) in generative AI. In addition, 52 percent (ASUG: 49 percent | UKISUG: 44 percent) of respondents are currently in the process of learning about AI, and 46 percent (ASUG: 44 percent | UKISUG: 41 percent) are expanding their knowledge of Generative AI. The results make it clear that the development of know-how is in full swing. There is a great need for information and there is still a lot to be done – by users, partners and software manufacturers alike. “We as DSAG will support our members with the necessary information via the relevant committees,” promises Jens Hungershausen, DSAG Chairman of the Board.
Potential for AI implementations
Overall, the survey participants feel that the current technological, social and economic change is challenging. Only 11 percent (ASUG: 12 percent | UKISUG: 6 percent) of DSAG participants can easily keep up with the pace of change. 59 percent (ASUG: 59 percent | UKISUG: 70 percent) can keep up to some extent, while 24 percent (ASUG: 23 percent | UKISUG: 19 percent) cannot.
From DSAG’s point of view, it is therefore not surprising that there is still room for improvement with regard to the implementation of AI. For example, only 6 percent (ASUG: 7 percent | UKISUG: 5 percent) of respondents stated that they use AI in many areas. 24 percent (ASUG: 25 percent | UKISUG: 29 percent) use AI in some areas. 11 percent (ASUG: 10 percent | UKISUG: 13 percent) of those surveyed by DSAG stated that they do not use AI. “The survey results show an interesting tension between reluctance and progress in the implementation of AI in companies,” says Hungershausen, adding: ”The rapid development of AI technologies can be overwhelming for companies. What’s more, many, especially in the SME sector, may not have the necessary financial resources, technical infrastructure or specialists to implement AI comprehensively.”
AI pilot projects maintain competitiveness
According to the survey, 32 percent (ASUG: 25 percent | UKISUG: 30 percent) are currently carrying out AI pilot projects and 23 percent (ASUG: 20 percent | U-KISUG: 15 percent) are considering AI pilot projects. “Pilot projects allow companies to test AI in a controlled environment without making an immediate, comprehensive commitment. This reduces financial and operational risks. Pilot projects are a way of not losing touch,” Hungershausen is convinced. At the same time, they allow companies to gain valuable experience, build up internal expertise and better understand the technology. This helps in the decision-making process for future, more extensive AI implementations.
AI for process optimization and data analysis
The companies that say they use or plan to use AI primarily rely on the technology to make internal processes more efficient and gain valuable insights from data. For example, 61 percent (ASUG: 61 percent | UKISUG: 53 percent) of respondents said they use AI to optimize business processes, while 60 percent (ASUG: 58 percent | UKISUG: 54 percent) use AI-supported analyses of data to gain insights. “With AI, processes such as production, logistics or personnel management can be automated and optimized, which leads to immediate cost savings and an improvement in competitiveness. In addition, AI-supported data analysis makes it possible to make well-founded and data-based decisions – an advantage that many companies clearly recognize,” explains Hungershausen.
Interestingly, the use of AI to support strategic business decisions only plays a role for 21 percent (ASUG: 20 percent | UKISUG: 21 percent) of respondents. To develop new generative AI products and services, 31 percent (ASUG: 26 percent | UKISUG: 27 percent) use AI technology, while the use of fee-based AI subscription services is also mentioned by 31 percent (ASUG: 19 percent | UKISUG: 31 percent) of the companies surveyed. “As can be seen here, companies initially rely on proven use cases, for example by optimizing existing processes in order to generate quick and clearly measurable added value. This is not surprising in economically challenging times. In addition, the development of new products or creative services with AI requires additional expertise, which, as already mentioned, is currently still lacking in many companies,” says Hungershausen.
65 percent (ASUG: 61 percent | UKISUG: 59 percent) of respondents consider AI to be useful when it comes to detecting anomalies in integration processes. 62 percent (ASUG: 61 percent | UKISUG: 58 percent) see a benefit in AI in relation to the creation of integration flows or logic between SAP and non-SAP applications. 57 percent (ASUG: 55 percent | UKISUG: 66 percent) see a benefit in AI when it comes to summarizing financial analyses.
Transparency, clarity and data are crucial
According to the DSAG-ASUG-UKISUG study, several factors are elementary for companies and organizations considering an AI project. For 95 percent (ASUG: 92 percent | UKISUG: 97 percent) of respondents, transparency and clarity about the location and database of the AI are of great importance. 89 percent (ASUG: 91 percent | UKISUG: 93 percent) also attach great importance to fair pricing models. 89 percent (ASUG: 84 percent | UKISUG: 78 percent) of participants consider it essential that AI solutions can be seamlessly integrated into existing systems. With regard to SAP, 71 percent (ASUG: 61 percent | UKISUG: 47 percent) consider the ability to operate AI independently of the operating model to be crucial. “The flexibility of being able to operate independently of the SAP operating model is crucial in light of the fact that SAP has guaranteed the provision of innovations for S/4HANA in the long term until 2040,” explains Jens Hungershausen. What applies to the S/4HANA Private Cloud should also be available for S/4HANA On-Premises with the same scope of services.
Need for knowledge development with AI is high
“It is astonishing that almost a third of companies still have no official plans regarding the use of AI. In view of the hype that has been going on for some time now, I expected more companies to be beyond the discussion stage,” says the DSAG CEO. According to the survey, the reason why this is not the case could be that, for example, selecting the right AI tools for existing needs is seen as challenging. Half (ASUG: 41 percent | UKISUG: 44 percent) of those surveyed stated this. In turn, 27 percent (ASUG: 34 percent | UKISUG: 36 percent) think that they lack the necessary skills to make full use of AI tools, while 24 percent (ASUG: 21 percent | UKISUG: 25 percent) complain that there are not enough high-quality AI tools.
Security, data quality and governance as obstacles
Overall, the increasing use of AI technology appears to be causing mixed feelings among respondents. For example, 61 percent (ASUG: 52 percent | UKISUG: 54 percent) stated that they were both excited and worried. Enthusiasm is triggered above all by the opportunity to save time. Respondents in the DACH region are particularly concerned about security, data quality and governance. “In the DACH region in particular, companies have high expectations in terms of data protection and transparency. It is up to us to ensure that the introduction of AI is accompanied by clear guidelines and a strong focus on the quality of the data in order to build trust in these technologies in the long term,” says Hungershausen.
Potential of AI
The survey also shows that opinions on the potential of AI are divided: 57 percent (ASUG: 48 percent | UKISUG: 52 percent) of respondents see advantages, but feel that AI is overrated. Two percent (ASUG: 5 percent | UKISUG: 6 percent) believe that the potential of AI is greatly overestimated, while 37 percent (ASUG: 37 percent | UKISUG: 32 percent) believe that AI will revolutionize industries. 4 percent (ASUG: 10 percent | UKISUG: 11 percent) of respondents are unsure how to assess the potential of AI.
The survey makes it clear that AI technologies are becoming increasingly important, but there is still a lot of catching up to do in terms of expertise and implementation. While many companies are in the learning phase and are carrying out initial pilot projects, challenges such as a lack of specialists, financial resources and technical infrastructure appear to be major obstacles, especially in SMEs. The respondents see AI primarily as a tool for process optimization and data analysis, but security concerns as well as data quality and governance requirements are dampening the euphoria.
*Survey basis DSAG-ASUG-UKISUG survey
The DSAG-ASUG survey “Use of Artificial Intelligence” was conducted in August and September 2024 among the members of the three interest groups. The responses of 246 participants from DACH who completed the questionnaire in full were analyzed. 73percent of the companies are headquartered in Germany, 11percent in Austria and 10percent in Switzerland. 6 percent in other countries. In terms of the divisions that took part in the survey, IT was in the lead with 64 percent, followed by management with 8 percent, finance and HR with 4 percent each and research and development with 3 percent. On the ASUG side, 260 people took part in the survey and 123 on the UKISUG side.
Note: For the filter question on understanding AI, generative AI, etc., all responses were taken into account for the evaluation, including the responses from participants who did not complete the survey in full. Accordingly, the responses from 277 DSAG, 263 ASUG and 140 UKISUG survey participants were taken into account here. When asked about relevant factors for the use of AI, the answers with “I don’t know/no issue” were excluded from the analysis.
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