SAP has announced their move into yet another vertical market – the commercial printing industry – with their partnership with unit inc. and a new mySAP All-in-One industry solution, Print.IT. Each news story we have published about the company has received significant visits from our members with additional feedback. “Are they serious about the commercial printing industry? Does SAP and their partners understand this industry? How do they view the competitive landscape?”

For answers, WhatTheyThink.com went to the top person at SAP in charge of implementing this strategy. Mr. Pat Hickey has been the Director of SMB (Small and Medium Business) Solutions since 1998. His primary focus has been the roll out of the SAP Accelerated Solutions program. Mr. Hickey is responsible for developing and providing strategic direction for the small and medium business market in North America - including print.

During his eleven years with SAP, Mr. Hickey has held increasingly senior positions. Prior to his position with the SMB team, he was a Senior Manager with SAP’s Professional Services Division where he worked on rapid implementation projects with small and medium organizations.

WTT: SAP AG has been positioned as an enterprise resource management (ERM) system, a customer relationship management (CRM) system, an enterprise information management (EIM) system, and a supply chain management (SCM) system. Many of our members are familiar with the SAP brand, but give us a better understanding of your business?

Mr. Pat Hickey: SAP, incorporated in 1972, is an "inter-enterprise" software company. As of the end of 2001, we had more than 44,500 software installations at over 17,500 customers and more than 12 million users all over the world. Our customers are not just multinational enterprises by small and midsize businesses as well as. With more than 900 partners offering complementary software, services and hardware, the SAP has a wide-ranging partner system.

The mySAP.com e-business platform provides an open, collaborative Internet platform that supports various business applications including but not limited to enterprise portals, customer relationship management, supply chain management, exchanges, supplier relationship management, product lifecycle management, business intelligence, financials and human resources.

mySAP.com enables its users to conduct commerce, access personalized content, and interact and collaborate in professional communities composed of an organization, its suppliers, customers and shareholders. SAP also offers enterprise portals and mobile applications that are customizable and offers direct access to its software solutions as well as third-party applications and services.

Prepackaged mySAP All-in-One partner solutions, such as Print.IT, are currently available for services organizations, advertising agencies, commercial printers, and retail/wholesale distributors, and more than 50 prepackaged industry-specific solutions are under development worldwide. Developed in conjunction with SAP's extensive partner network, each undergoes a stringent qualification program to ensure a complete, scalable, cost-effective solution.


WTT: While the WTT Printer Confidence Index continues to reflect flat or decreasing demand for printing services, a bright spot continues to hold when almost 25% in the July survey said they would be considering buying print management software in the next 6 months. At the same time, software analysts are still forecasting flat or lower sales of enterprise software, ERP, and CRM systems. Why have you chosen to target the printing and publishing industry now?

Mr. Pat Hickey: We feel that SAP has a tremendous future in small to medium business (SMB) market; that SMBs are the new audience for enterprise management solutions. Our definition of SMB is a company with revenues under $500 million. While we don’t break out our market penetration by size, about 50% of all our installs are into companies in that size range.

Because the commercial print industry is nearly entirely made up of small to medium-sized business with revenues under $100 million, and the competitive landscape is still fragmented, SAP believes that the time is right to offer this industry-specific solution, print.IT.


WTT: Could you provide us a little more detail about your partner strategy? How do you work with your industry partners?

Mr. Pat Hickey: Our "Go to Market Strategy" is well defined across our industry partners. We invest in our brand presence across all SMBs and work our partners in each industry. SAP offers mySAP All-in-One prepackaged out-of-the-box functionality as the primary technology for key business processes, e-business communication and collaboration functionality, and industry-specific solutions developed through partners who have deep domain experience.

We support our partners where the industry lives, breathes and makes decisions with brand campaigns, sponsor advertising, jointly developed information bases, and other marketing tactics including lead generation. Through our partners we develop solid references and consult with and advise industry thought leaders.


WTT: What is your strategy to penetrate the commercial print industry?

Mr. Pat Hickey: SAP’s strong background in business management and manufacturing systems and unit inc.’s knowledge of the commercial print industry provide a well-rounded solution with the industry-specific functionality needed for the production of complex, custom printing.

The mySAP "All-in-One" Print.IT solution is targeted toward commercial printers in the $20 to $30 million range. It is a single solution developed to provide configuration, multiple quoting, and supply chain and production management, and interfaces with printer control systems. Legacy workflow systems can be integrated with the print.IT solution, you do not have to rip out what you have and start over.


WTT: Your partnership with unit inc. - what are your expectations?

Mr. Pat Hickey: We are excited about moving into the commercial print industry. While SAP has broad business management knowledge, unit inc. complements us with their knowledge of industry requirements.

unit inc. implements, integrates and supports SAP applications for manufacturing and distribution companies. Together we have developed the only SAP vertical application for the printing industry by combining unit inc.’s industry expertise and mySAP e-Business best practices into one packaged solution. unit inc. is a certified SAP reseller who represents and licenses SAP and mySAP applications.

Every industry has niche software providers that have served the industry for a long time. As stated, we believe the competition in the commercial print industry for ERP and other management solutions is fragmented and highly changeable. Our intent is to win 20% of all the deals sold into the printing industry in the next three to five years.


WTT: SAP is not a company well known in the commercial print industry, although you have a strong background in manufacturing and production management systems. As you enter this market, what is your message to our members?

Mr. Pat Hickey: We believe SAP has a compelling message for the market. We are a strong company partnered with a technology partner who has deep industry knowledge and experience, we have the functionality to compete, and we are in this for the long term.

SAP carefully prioritizes the industries into which it enters. While commercial printing is not the largest niche for which we have developed solutions, the prepackaged print.IT solution simplifies implementation and is more cost effective for small to medium-sized companies than more complex integrated solutions.