An Agile Approach for Modernizing SAP for Long-Term Resilience with Less Technical Debt

Your Blueprint For Achieving Clean Core and Resilient Design Through Incremental Improvement 

By Olavo Figueiredo  
Summary 

Today’s businesses are under growing pressure to modernize, but modernization efforts can introduce risk, cost, and complexity instead of reducing them. In my experience working with SAP customers over the last 15+ years, the most successful transformations are defined by how thoughtfully they design, customize, and evolve their SAP landscape. This article shares practical insights on how to reduce technical debt, embrace clean core principles, and modernize SAP in a way that delivers lasting business value. 

SAP Is at a Turning Point, and So Are Its Customers 

Most SAP customers I speak with today are standing at a fork in the road. Some are still running ECC systems that have grown and evolved for decades. Others have already moved to S/4HANA, only to realize they carried forward more technical debt than they expected. And many are trying to decide what comes next. 

What’s clear is this: modernization is no longer optional. But modernization done poorly can be just as limiting as standing still. 

The goal shouldn’t be to get to S/4HANA at all costs. The goal should be to build an SAP environment that supports the business, not one that slows it down. And it should be built thoughtfully to accommodate future growth and solve real business challenges.   

The Three Challenges I Hear Over and Over 

Across industries and geographies, the same themes consistently emerge: 

  1. Turning AI and new technology into real ROI 
    Organizations are past the “what is AI?” stage. The real question now is how to scale it responsibly and turn it into measurable business outcomes. 
  2. SAP projects take too long and cost too much
    Leaders rightly ask why ERP programs still take years when platforms and tools have advanced so much. 
  3. Customizations are becoming a liability
    Years of accumulated, poorly designed customizations make upgrades harder, innovation riskier, and systems harder to maintain. 

How do customers address these challenges? 

Clean Core Is About Discipline, Not Limitation 

One of the biggest misconceptions I encounter is that “Clean Core” means no customization. That’s simply not realistic.

Every business has unique processes that create their competitive advantage. Those processes often require custom solutions. Clean core isn’t about avoiding customization: it’s about customizing intentionally.

A clean core strategy means: 

  • Keeping the ERP core as standard as possible
  • Using supported extension mechanisms when customization is required
  • Designing solutions that are resilient, upgrade-safe, and easier to evolve 

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Greenfield vs. Brownfield Isn’t the Real Question 

Customers often ask me whether greenfield or brownfield is “better.” The honest answer is: it depends. 

Brownfield can reduce short-term risk and cost, but it can also carry forward old problems if there’s no follow-through. Greenfield creates opportunity, but it introduces its own risks if design is rushed or scope isn’t controlled. 

Whether labelled a brownfield or greenfield implementation isn’t the point, the critical factor is to make intentional design decisions and align them to long-term business goals. 

Design Is the Most Consequential Phase of Any SAP Program 

If there’s one area where organizations underestimate long-term impact, it’s design. 

Blueprinting and solution design are where you decide: 

  • What stays in the core
  • What becomes an extension
  • How flexible your system will be five, ten, or twenty years down the road  

Rushing this phase to meet deadlines or budgets almost always leads to higher costs later. Good design requires balance between business needs, time & budget, and technical realities. 

You Don’t Need to Start Over to Fix Technical Debt 

I often speak with organizations that feel trapped by past decisions. The good news is that fixing technical debt doesn’t require starting from scratch. 

A structured clean core program can: 

  • Assess existing customizations
  • Retire what’s no longer needed
  • Refactor risky extensions
  • Move the right functionality to platforms like SAP BTP 

Done incrementally, this approach reduces risk and keeps the business running while modernization happens in parallel. 

Modern SAP Should Evolve With the Business 

At its best, SAP should be an enabler—not a constraint. Systems should be easier to upgrade, simpler to support, and flexible enough to adapt as business needs change. 

That outcome doesn’t come from technology alone. It comes from: 

  • Thoughtful design
  • Disciplined customization
  • Incremental improvement
  • The right partners who understand business, functional, and technical realities 

Modernization done right isn’t about a single project, it’s about setting your organization up for continuous progress. 

 

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roadmap?

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