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Summary – While SAP S/4HANA Public Cloud promises faster deployments, lower TCO and built-in security, enterprises risk severe lock-in, organizational rigidity and reliance on SAP roadmaps. Juxtaposing the “Adopt, not Adapt” approach with needs for modularity and autonomy highlights the value of composable architectures (microservices/API-first), open-source ERPs (Odoo, ERPNext) and hybrid cloud platforms to maintain flexibility and digital sovereignty. Solution: combine a standard SAP core with modular extensions to balance standardization and ongoing innovation.
The growing adoption of SAP S/4HANA Public Cloud reflects software vendors’ intent to enforce a uniform platform, managed and updated by themselves. Its rapid uptake is attractive thanks to a controlled total cost of ownership (TCO), accelerated roll-outs, and standardized security.
However, the “Adopt, not Adapt” model forces companies to align their processes with SAP’s standards, limiting future evolution, independence, and innovation potential. Before committing, it’s essential to assess the ERP’s flexibility and anticipate the risks of technological lock-in at both organizational and functional levels. This article unpacks the strengths and weaknesses of SAP Public Cloud and proposes more modular, sovereign alternatives.
Advantages of SAP S/4HANA Public Cloud
The solution delivers an industrialized implementation, drastically reducing deployment timelines. Its SaaS model guarantees continuous updates and centralized process management.
Rapid Deployment and Continuous Updates
Deployment of SAP S/4HANA Public Cloud relies on a catalog of preconfigured best practices for various industries. The standard modules cover a broad functional spectrum, avoiding the need to rebuild most end-to-end management processes.
Each update is scheduled by SAP, tested in advance, and deployed automatically, eliminating the need for heavy periodic migration plans. Companies benefit from regular enhancements without prolonged maintenance windows.
This automated support significantly lightens project workload, especially for SMEs and mid-sized enterprises that often lack dedicated internal upgrade teams. The result is a faster time-to-value.
For example, a mid-sized Swiss food processing company reduced its initial ERP project duration by 40% using exclusively SAP templates. This case demonstrates how standardization can simplify change management and limit configuration costs.
Lower TCO and Centralized Management
The Public Cloud model shifts infrastructure and maintenance costs to the vendor, converting CapEx into OpEx. For more advice on optimizing your cloud budget, consult our guide.
This approach frees IT departments from server operations, monitoring, and patching tasks. Teams can focus on higher-value activities, such as refining business processes.
Moreover, centralized governance simplifies process traceability and auditing. Integrated reports and dashboards provide a unified view of operational and financial performance.
A Swiss manufacturing SME achieved a 25% saving on its annual IT budget after migrating to SAP Public Cloud. These freed resources were redirected to advanced analytics projects.
Built-In Security and Standardized Compliance
SAP Public Cloud incorporates stringent security mechanisms: multi-factor authentication, encryption of data at rest and in transit, and 24/7 incident monitoring. This ensures a high level of protection without requiring in-house specialized expertise.
Regulatory requirements—GDPR, ISO standards, and sector-specific mandates—are handled by SAP’s Security Operations Center. To learn how to implement proper cyber risk management, see our guide.
Security patch management follows automated update cycles, reducing vulnerability windows. IT teams no longer need to schedule production downtime for critical patches.
A Swiss professional services group saw security incidents drop by 60% in one year, thanks to built-in security and automated updates.
“Adopt, not Adapt”: A Simple but Rigid Model
The “Adopt, not Adapt” principle eliminates customization, forcing companies into SAP’s standard framework. This uniformity restricts future flexibility and can lead to significant lock-in.
Loss of Flexibility for Specific Business Processes
When the standard model doesn’t cover certain critical steps, organizations must reshape their methods to match SAP, potentially sacrificing unique requirements. This can affect operational performance and user satisfaction.
Complex or atypical workflows are hard to implement, as any deviation requires rethinking the process or resorting to costly extensions. Large enterprises sometimes negotiate exceptions, but SMEs and mid-sized firms rarely secure such concessions.
This rigidity forces a compromise: accept a one-size-fits-all process or develop external overlays that weaken the ecosystem and increase technical debt.
A Swiss insurance company, faced with a highly specific claims settlement process, had to abandon several internal automations to comply with SAP workflows. This organizational adaptation delayed the go-live by three months.
Lock-In and Dependence on SAP’s Roadmap
Heavy reliance on native features ties the company closely to the vendor’s defined scope. Any new functionality must align with SAP’s roadmap, limiting internal initiatives.
Over time, this unbalanced relationship deepens dependence: exit or workaround costs become prohibitive if you wish to switch systems or augment the ERP with third-party solutions. To assess these costs, see our guide on the ROI of an ERP project.
Cultural Shift Toward Standardization
Adopting the standard demands a major cultural transformation: business and IT teams must abandon long-standing practices, often triggering change resistance.
Success thus relies more on change management than on technology. Training, workshops, and internal champions are critical to embedding the new standardized logic.
Without appropriate project governance and executive sponsorship, adoption can become forceful, leading to delays, dissatisfaction, and even partial abandonment of the solution.
As a case in point, a Swiss public institution had to engage nearly thirty key users for six months to realign its processes with SAP before relaunching the project with dedicated change-management support.
Edana: strategic digital partner in Switzerland
We support companies and organizations in their digital transformation
Toward a Composable Architecture: Microservices and API-First
Breaking the ERP into independent services enables domain-driven evolution. An API-first approach facilitates progressive integration and modularity.
Functional Decoupling and Domain-Driven Evolution
By isolating each business function into a microservice, organizations can evolve their systems incrementally. To delve deeper into hexagonal architecture and microservices, see our dedicated article.
Each microservice maintains its own development, testing, and deployment cycle, speeding time-to-market for new domain-specific features.
This granularity avoids full-ERP redeployments for single changes. Impacts remain confined, and patches can be applied continuously without disrupting the overall ecosystem.
Additionally, modularity simplifies technology swaps: a component can be replaced by a higher-performing or open-source alternative with minimal dependencies.
Progressive Integration with the Existing ERP
SAP Public Cloud’s open APIs allow microservices to connect to the ERP core. Data exchanges use standards like OData or REST, ensuring compatibility and traceability. For robust API testing, consult our guide.
When a domain migrates to a microservice, processes are orchestrated via middleware or an event bus. This ensures asynchronous, resilient communication between components.
This in-place strategy limits initial rework: the ERP stays at the heart of operations, while extensions are added as needed without a global overhaul.
A Swiss logistics provider developed a warehouse management microservice, coupled via API to SAP’s core module. The four-month deployment showed hybrid coexistence works without service interruption.
Open-Source ERP and Hybrid Platforms: Regaining Freedom
Open-source solutions and hybrid clouds offer controlled customization and lower licensing costs. Adopting a mixed ecosystem preserves digital sovereignty and flexibility.
Odoo and ERPNext for a Modular Foundation
Odoo and ERPNext provide granular modules covering finance, inventory, CRM, and production. To compare options, see our article on open-source vs proprietary ERP.
The open-source codebase allows feature adaptation without relying on a vendor roadmap. Active communities offer a wealth of certified plugins and regular updates.
Low licensing costs—often limited to support—free up budget for custom development and business-specific adaptations.
These alternatives suit organizations seeking a complete ERP core while retaining the freedom to tailor processes and integrate third-party tools without constraints.
Native Cloud Stack and Controlled Customization
Serverless platforms, containers, and event-driven functions enable building an ERP by assembling best-of-breed services. To understand cloud hosting vs on-premise, see our guide.
This “best-of-breed” approach avoids monolithic architecture: maintenance, scaling, and security are handled by specialized, optimized components.
Usage-based pricing reduces TCO when workloads fluctuates. Organizations can scale up or down without renegotiating a global contract.
With this flexibility, IT leaders maintain control over architecture, choose their monitoring, logging, and CI/CD tools, and avoid vendor lock-in.
Domain-Driven Approach: ERP as a Component
Leveraging Domain-Driven Design (DDD), organizations clearly model each business context. The ERP becomes a component among others, like CRM or payroll modules.
Each bounded context has its own data model and services, fostering team autonomy and functional coherence.
Exchanges occur via API contracts or events, ensuring each domain evolves according to its own roadmap. This reduces technical debt and secures future transitions.
This strategic alignment creates an evolutive ecosystem where the standard ERP coexists with custom, open-source, or third-party solutions to form a truly sovereign architecture.
Build an ERP Architecture That Is Both Standardized and Agile
Successful ERP projects hinge not just on vendor selection but on a target architecture balanced between standardization and modularity. SAP S/4HANA Public Cloud provides a robust, secure foundation ideal for organizations ready to adopt fixed best practices. Meanwhile, composable architectures, open-source solutions, and hybrid platforms serve as levers to preserve flexibility, independence, and accelerated innovation cycles.
Before embarking on your transformation, clarify your strategic processes, tolerance for lock-in, and autonomy ambitions. A contextualized technology roadmap aligned with your business priorities ensures agility and digital sovereignty.
Our experts are ready to co-design a tailor-made ERP architecture combining the best of SAP standards and open alternatives. Every project is unique: we adapt our approach to maximize your return on investment and support sustainable growth.
