SAP SE history, company profile (overview) and history video
SAP SE is a multinational software company headquartered in Weinheim, Germany. It produces software for the management of business processes, developing solutions that facilitate effective data processing and information flow across organizations.
The name SAP is an initialism of the company’s original German name: Systemanalyse Programmentwicklung (System Analysis Program Development). Being an initialism, not an acronym, SAP is pronounced as individual letters (S-A-P), not as a word (“sap”).
SOLUTIONS
The company offers solutions across a wide range of areas:
- ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) and Finance;
- CRM and Customer Experience;
- Network and Spend Management;
- Digital Supply Chain;
- HR and People Engagement;
- Experience Management;
- Business Technology Platform;
- Digital Transformation;
- Small and Midsize Enterprises;
- Industry Solutions.
HISTORY
SAP was founded in 1972 as SystemAnalyse Programmentwicklung (System Analysis Program Development) by five former IBM employees – Dietmar Hopp, Hasso Plattner, Claus Wellenreuther, Klaus Tschira, and Hans-Werner Hector. Their idea was to create software that integrates all business processes and enables data processing in real time.
By 1975, the company had built applications for financial accounting (RF), invoice verification, and inventory management (RM).
In 1977, SAP’s “R” System began running on Siemens hardware.
In 1979, the company started developing R/2, the second generation of its software.
In 1988, SAP became SAP AG, a publicly-traded company.
In 1989, SAP’s data center now housed servers from IBM, Siemens, DEC, and Hewlett-Packard (HP).
In 1993, SAP started working with Microsoft to port SAP R/3 to the Windows NT operating system.
In 1996, Coca-Cola decided to implement SAP R/3.
In 1997, Deutsche Post, Daimler-Benz, and General Motors implemented SAP R/3.
In 1999, SAP launched its mysap.com strategy. The strategy combines e-commerce solutions with SAP’s ERP applications on cutting-edge Web technology.
In 2001, SAP added enterprise portals to its solution portfolio by acquiring TopTier.
In 2005, the company acquired the retail providers Triversity and Khimetrics.
In 2007, the company acquired Pilot Software, a California-based provider of strategy management software, Yusa, OutlookSoft, Wicom, and MaXware.
In 2008, SAP completed the acquisition of Business Objects, a French company specializing in business intelligence applications.
In 2010, SAP announced its plans to acquire Sybase, one of the largest business software and service providers specializing in information management and mobile data services.
In 2011, the first customers started using the in-memory database SAP HANA, which can analyze data in seconds – instead of days or even weeks.
In 2011, SAP also announced the acquisition of SuccessFactors, one of the leading providers of cloud applications.
In 2012, SAP acquired Ariba.
In 2013, the company acquired hybris.
In 2014, SAP acquired Fieldglass and Concur.
In 2016, SAP announced a partnership with Apple to combine powerful native apps for iPhone and iPad.
In 2017, SAP and Google announced a partnership to make SAP HANA available on Google’s public cloud platform.
In 2018, SAP announced its plans to acquire Qualtrics International.
With more than 105,000 employees from over 140 countries, SAP SE is considered one of the world’s leading producers of software for the management of business processes. According to Forbes, it is considered one of the Largest Public Companies in the World.
*Information from Forbes.com, Wikipedia.org, and www.sap.com
**Video published on YouTube by “SAP“