SUGTalks

Avsnitt

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  Beyond Go-Live: Mental Health, Recovery and Recognition After a Project 09.09.2026 49min

  In the latest episode of SUGTalks, Craig is joined once again by Simon Nichols, Founder and CEO of Thrive. Together they discuss the mental health impact of delivering IT projects. Simon explains why the duration of a project matters less than the demand it places on people. He covers what happens when 18-month projects overrun to 24 or 36 months and how that shifts people from challenge to endurance to cynicism. Craig and Simon also explore the very different pressures of shorter cloud proje...
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  How SAP Runs SAP - In Conversation with Oliver Gutzeit 26.08.2026 51min

  In this episode Craig is joined by Oliver Gutzeit, Vice President, Experience Technology at SAP, to explore how SAP runs its own business on SAP. Oliver explains what it means to be customer zero, testing new products internally before they reach customers. He shares how SAP tackled its own 50-year history of custom code on the journey to a clean core. The conversation moves on to experience and why boring software fails, the importance of closing the feedback loop, and why data is the ...
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  An Update on SAP's Service and Support Portfolio, Plus a Guide to Success Plans 12.08.2026 40min

  In our latest episode, Craig is joined once again by Uwe Grigoleit, Senior Vice President and Head of Customer Evolution and Portfolio at SAP, to discuss the recent changes to SAP's customer service and delivery portfolio. Uwe explains why the new Customer Value Group brings sales, support and services together, and what that means for customers. He covers the simplification of professional services, how sovereign cloud offerings are expanding, and how to choose between the Foundational, Adva...
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  Inside SAP Cloud ERP Private with Uma Rani 29.07.2026 43min

  In our latest episode, Craig is joined by Uma Rani, President and Chief Product Officer for Cloud ERP Private at SAP. Uma sets out how SAP Cloud ERP Private has evolved since 2020 and the strategy shaping it today. She explains where Sovereign Cloud fits, and the differences between private and public cloud. Craig and Uma then turn to the autonomous enterprise. They discuss AI agents available across SAP’s environments, and how a clean core approach can help minimise customisations. To ...
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  AI In the Workplace and its Impact on Mental Health 15.07.2026 37min

  In our latest episode, Craig is joined by Uma Rani, President and Chief Product Officer for Cloud ERP Private at SAP. Uma sets out how Cloud ERP Private has evolved since 2020 and the strategy shaping it today. She explains where Sovereign Cloud fits, and why private and public cloud will not reach feature parity. Craig and Uma then turn to the autonomous enterprise. They discuss the AI agents now live across SAP's domains, and how a clean core approach keeps customisations upgrade safe. Uma ...
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  Inside SUGEN: How Global User Groups Shape SAP's Roadmap 01.07.2026 50min

  In this episode of SUGTalks, Craig is joined by Yasmin Awad, Senior Vice President and Head of SAP's Global User Group Organisation, and Philip Adams, UKISUG board member and member of the SUGEN Core Leadership Team. Together they discuss SUGEN, (SAP User Group Executive Network), exploring how the global network of more than 40 user groups helps to shape SAP's roadmap on behalf of customers. Yasmin shares why SAP invests so heavily in its user group community, while Philip offers the UKISUG ...
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  A Deep Dive on SAP Global Customer Support with Stefan Steinle 17.06.2026 48min

  In our latest episode, Craig is joined by Stefan Steinle, Executive Vice President and Head of Global Customer Support at SAP. Stefan reflects on his 26 years at SAP and how customer support has evolved from a reactive, ticket-based model to a much more proactive, personalised and global approach. He explains the thinking behind SAP's three support pillars: invisible support, the work done quietly in the background to help customers hit critical milestones; empowered support, giving cu...
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  Inside Sapphire 2026: The Autonomous Enterprise Unpacked 03.06.2026 44min

  In our latest episode of SUGTalks, Craig is joined by Conor Riordan and Ian Mallinson to discuss the main announcements and their experiences at this year's Sapphire conferences in Orlando and Madrid. Conor and Ian reflect on SAP framing itself as a business AI company and its vision for the autonomous enterprise. They also share their honest opinion on SAP’s new suite of AI agents. In addition they share why process and knowledge graphs matter alongside data, and the cost and governanc...
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  Licensing, AI and SUGEN: Your UKISUG Connect Questions Answered 20.05.2026 45min

  In our latest episode, Craig is joined by Conor Riordan, Chair of UKISUG, and Philip Adams, UKISUG Board Member and SUGEN Core Leadership Team member. Together they address some of the questions from UKISUG Connect that we didn't get to on the keynote stage. Conor and Philip share an update on the SUGEN licensing charter, including progress being made on consumption-based licensing. They also explain how SUGEN works with SAP at both an executive and country level. The conversation also ...
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  SAP's David Yawalkar on the SUGEN Transformation Charter, S/4HANA and AI 06.05.2026 33min

  In the latest episode of SUGTalks, Craig is joined by David Yawalkar, Head of Solution Management, RISE with SAP. David shares an update on SAP’s involvement with the SUGEN Transformation Charter, what SAP has learned from charter members and how customer feedback is shaping the company’s Cloud ERP messaging. He explains why SAP has committed to both private and public cloud as long-term strategic products. David also reflects on some of the themes he hears from user groups globally after tak...
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  An Interview with Sonia Nash, Head of Business AI, SAP UK&I: AI Adoption and an Unconventional Route into Tech 22.04.2026 35min

  In our latest senior leader interview, Craig is joined by Sonia Nash, Head of Business AI at SAP UK and Ireland. Sonia shares her unconventional career journey - from accounts payable into automation, solution advisory and now leading SAP's Business AI focus. She reflects on the mentors who shaped her path, the importance of curiosity, and why you don't need to be a developer to build a rewarding career in tech. Craig and Sonia also discuss the shift from AI skepticism to genuine enthusiasm a...
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  Lessons from Twinings’ Transformation: Questions from UKISUG Connect keynote answered 08.04.2026 33min

  In part two of the conversation, Craig is once again joined by Sandeep Seeripat, Global Business Transformation and Technology Officer at Twinings, to answer questions posed by the audience at his UKISUG Connect keynote. Together they explore the practical realities of Twinings’ transformation journey. This includes how to build a one-program mentality across teams and partners, and how to align around a shared vision that keeps transformation focused on business outcomes rather than technolo...
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  An Interview with Sandeep Seeripat from Twinings 25.03.2026 34min

  In part one of this two-part SUGTalks conversation, Craig is joined by Sandeep Seeripat, Global Business Transformation and Technology Officer at Twinings. Together they discuss career growth, leadership and business transformation. Sandeep shares how he moved from engineering into technology, why he sees himself as a business problem solver first, and what senior leaders need to do to make transformation meaningful and sustainable. Along the way, Sandeep discusses authenticity, curiosi...
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  Women in SAP 2026 Update: Give to Gain and Building a Stronger Community 11.03.2026 43min

  In our latest SUGTalks episode, Craig is joined by UKISUG Women in SAP Community Leads Emma Chambers and Fiona Warburg. Together they discuss the progress made by the Women in SAP community over the past year and some of the equality challenges that still persist across the tech sector. In addition, they outline how practical initiatives such as mentoring, networking and allyship are helping to support career progression and representation. They also explore this year’s International Women’s ...
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  An Interview with Emel Morris, CIO at Central Bedfordshire Council 25.02.2026 35min

  In our latest senior leader interview, Craig is joined by Emel Morris, CIO at Central Bedfordshire Council. Emel shares her journey from corporate communications into IT leadership and the skills that helped her transition into the role. She also outlines why today’s CIO must focus on stakeholder engagement, change, and aligning technology to real service outcomes. Craig and Emel also discuss pressures on public sector services, cyber security, AI alongside the importance of inclusion and Wom...
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  Working With AI, Not Against It – Insights from Mark Raben 11.02.2026 45min

  In this episode of SUGTalks, Craig is joined by Mark Raben, former SAP EMEA CTO, keynote speaker and leadership coach, to examine the role of trust, culture and leadership in the era of AI. Recorded at UKISUG Connect following Mark’s keynote, the conversation looks beyond technology to focus on human behaviour, trust and culture in transformation programmes. Mark explains how the brain works as a prediction machine, why structure alone isn’t enough for successful SAP projects, and how leader...
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  Getting More Value from SAP with a Customer Centre of Expertise 28.01.2026 43min

  In this episode of SUGTalks, Craig is joined by Phil Creek, Intake Demand Lead at the SAP Centre of Expertise at Boots, and Rohan Parikh, SAP Platform Architect at Maersk, to explore the value of building an SAP Customer Centre of Expertise (COE). The conversation builds on the UKISUG SAP Customer Centre of Expertise Insights paper, covering why COEs matter, the importance of senior sponsorship, what effective governance looks like, and the skills a modern COE needs. Phil and Rohan share prac...
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  UKISUG Connect 2025 Keynote Insights 14.01.2026 39min

  Recorded live at UKISUG Connect 2025 at the ICC in Birmingham, Craig Dale is joined by Cliff Saran, Technology Editor at Computer Weekly, and Gerren Maine, host of SAPCHAT, to unpack the keynotes and what they mean for SAP users. They discuss the key points raised, including the need for balance between AI ambition and practical delivery, why “foundations first” keeps coming up, and how looming maintenance timelines are still shaping transformation plans. They also explore cloud ...
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  Unpacking SAP's Snowflake Partnership 17.12.2025 28min

  In this episode of SUGTalks, Craig is joined by Russell Smith, Vice President of ERP Transformation Technology at AstraZeneca. Together, they unpack SAP’s newly announced partnership with Snowflake and what it really means for SAP customers in practice. Russell shares why AstraZeneca was involved early, how the collaboration supports large-scale S/4HANA transformation, and where zero-copy data sharing can remove complexity and accelerate timelines. The conversation explores semantically rich ...
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  The Cost of Doing Nothing - Part 2 03.12.2025 43min

  In this episode of SUGTalks, Craig continues the conversation with Ian Mallinson, UKISUG Board Member, and David Yawalkar, Head of Solution Management, RISE with SAP, to discuss SAP’s cloud roadmap and what that means for customers. They explore the differences between S/4HANA on-prem and cloud editions, including cloud-only AI, sustainability tools, central finance, and new Business Data Cloud apps. The discussion also covers clean core, how tools like Signavio, LeanIX and BTP support ...