Let’s Talk Data: Data Professional Podcast | SAP

In this episode of Let’s Talk Data, host Venkata Giduthuri sits down with Justin Lynch, SAP Data Architect Program - Americas Regional Lead, to discuss the modernization journey with SAP Business Data Cloud for on-premises SAP BW, SAP BPC, SAP BusinessObjects, and SAP HANA systems to embark on the Autonomous Enterprise journey. The conversation specifically focuses on what it takes to modernize SAP BW with SAP Business Data Cloud.

Justin outlines the importance of the modernization journey and how it differs from migration. The discussion highlights options for modernizing SAP BW to take advantage of the latest AI innovations in SAP Business Data Cloud.

The key highlight is the process of readiness assessment, getting into the details of how the information is collected and analyzed, taking into consideration various complexities built by the customers over the years.

Finally, Justin shares the benefits customers gain from the latest innovations in SAP Business Data Cloud after the migration, such as data products and knowledge graphs, which are the foundational elements of an autonomous enterprise platform.

Whether you are a BW engineer, NetWeaver administrator, enterprise architect, data architect, or platform engineer, this episode offers valuable insights into how to choose the best path for modernization with SAP Business Data Cloud to build for AI-driven architectures.

Key Topics of Discussion:

Why Modernization with SAP Business Data Cloud: Explore why organizations are modernizing SAP BW and moving toward a more cloud-ready, AI-enabled data landscape.

Options to Modernize SAP BW: Compare the lift-and-shift and greenfield approaches for moving SAP BW to Business Data Cloud.

Getting Started with SAP BW Modernization: Learn how organizations can assess their current environment and determine the right modernization path.

Readiness Assessment Insights: Understand what the SAP BDC assessment evaluates and how its findings help guide modernization decisions.

Innovation Benefits with SAP Business Data Cloud: Discover how BDC enables new AI, data product, knowledge graph, and analytics capabilities.

 

Subscribe to The Let’s Talk Data Podcast 

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Connect Justin Lynch 

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Connect With Venkata Giduthuri 

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Links to CTA: 

https://www.sap.com/products/data-cloud/sap-bw-migration.html 

https://www.sap.com/products/data-cloud/sap-migration-assessment.html

In this episode of SAP Let's Talk Data Podcast, host Corrie Birkenes is joined by Ridwan Bhuiyan, Vice President of Digital Products at Chubb, and Tina Rosario, Chief Data Officer at SAP, for an insightful conversation on how data is transforming sustainability, resilience, and business decision-making.  

Ridwan shares his unique journey from environmental science to leading digital transformation initiatives, explaining how data quality, governance, and collaboration became the foundation for solving complex business challenges. Together, he and Tina explore why successful sustainability programs depend on trusted, high-quality data rather than technology alone. They discuss breaking down organizational silos, treating data as a strategic product, and creating modern data foundations that empower better decisions across the enterprise. 

The conversation also highlights the growing importance of geospatial analytics, external data integration, and cross-functional collaboration to measure environmental impact and climate resilience. Finally, they examine the opportunities - and responsibilities - that come with AI, emphasizing the need to balance innovation with sustainable resource consumption and long-term thinking. 

Whether you're a data leader, sustainability professional, or executive looking to build a more resilient organization, this episode offers practical insights into using data to drive meaningful business outcomes while preparing for the challenges of tomorrow. 

 

Key Topics of Discussion: 

 

Why sustainability data strategy doesn’t start with technology — it starts with evangelism and business buy-in

How sustainability teams inherit downstream data quality challenges from procurement, operations, and energy systems

The power of modern data platforms and data products to break sustainability out of the "ivory tower" report

Geospatial analytics as a storytelling tool for climate resilience and vulnerability assessment

What makes a great data and analytics leader — communication, consultative thinking, and comfort with iterative failure

A thought-provoking closing debate on AI, data centers, and resource competition — and whether we’re consuming at a rate future generations can sustain
 
 
 
 

Subscribe to The Let’s Talk Data Podcast 

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Connect Ridwan Bhuiyan 

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Connect With Tina Rosario 

LinkedIn 

 

Connect With Corrie Birkeness 

LinkedIn 

 

 

Additional Resources: 

From Silos to Strategy: What 20 Years of SAP Data Management Taught One Practitioner: https://community.sap.com/t5/data-professionals/gh-p/data-professionals   
To learn more about SAP Data and AI solutions, please check out SAP Business Data Cloud at https://www.sap.com/products/data-cloud.html   
And to engage further, please join our Data Professionals Community on https://community.sap.com/t5/data-professionals/gh-p/data-professionals  

Managing Sustainability Data Proactively: Corporate Sustainability Reporting (Directive) as a Driver: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/isj.70043  

From Silos to Strategy: What 20 Years of SAP Data Management Taught One Practitioner: https://community.sap.com/t5/data-professionals/gh-p/data-professionals  

To learn more about SAP Data and AI solutions, please check out SAP Business Data Cloud at https://www.sap.com/products/data-cloud.html  

Chubb Resilience and Risk Consulting: https://www.chubb.com/us-en/business-insurance/services/resilience-services.html  

Ridwan's LinkedIn profile:  www.linkedin.com/in/ridwan-bhuiyan  

And to engage further, please join our Data Professionals Community:  https://community.sap.com/t5/data-professionals/gh-p/data-professionals

What does it really take to become a data-driven organization? In this episode of Let's Talk Data, host Corrie Birkeness is joined by data strategy expert Shelly McQuigg and SAP Product Marketing Director Kara Reed for a practical discussion on building a successful data strategy that delivers measurable business value. Together, they explore why effective data strategies must begin with business outcomes—not technology—and how trusted, governed data is the foundation for analytics and AI success.  

Shelly and Kara share lessons from decades of experience leading enterprise data initiatives, including standardizing global KPIs, establishing executive sponsorship, and creating governance models that balance control with business agility. They explain why data professionals need both technical expertise and business knowledge to influence organizational change and drive adoption.  

The conversation also examines how modern data architectures, including data fabric, enable organizations to create a single definition of the truth without physically centralizing data. Finally, the discussion turns to AI, highlighting why data quality, governance, and trusted information have become more critical than ever before. Whether you're a data leader, architect, analyst, or executive, this episode provides actionable guidance for creating a scalable data strategy that supports business growth, operational efficiency, and trusted AI initiatives. 

 

Key Topics of Discussion: 

Building a business-first data strategy focused on corporate KPIs, measurable outcomes, and business value.  

The importance of data governance in creating trusted, standardized, and high-quality enterprise data.  

The evolving role of data professionals as business partners, strategists, and organizational influencers.  

Modern data architecture and data fabric, enabling a single definition of the truth across distributed systems.  

Preparing data for AI, emphasizing why governance, quality, and trusted data are essential for successful AI adoption. 

 

Subscribe to The Let’s Talk Data Podcast 

Apple Podcasts 

Spotify 

YouTube 

 

Connect With Shelly McQuigg 

LinkedIn 

Connect With Kara Reed 

LinkedIn 

Connect With Corrie Birkeness 

Linkedin 

 

Additional Resources:

To learn more about SAP Data and AI solutions, please check out SAP Business Data Cloud at https://www.sap.com/products/data-cloud.html

To engage further, please join our Data Professionals Community on https://community.sap.com/t5/data-professionals/gh-p/data-professionals

In this episode of Let’s Talk Data, host Daniel Dukes of SAP America is joined by Lisa Horwich, founder of Pallas Research and a leading B2B tech qualitative researcher who interviews CISOs, data architects, and security professionals to surface actionable insights for technology companies. 

Lisa and Daniel explore how AI is fundamentally reshaping the cybersecurity landscape- from AI-powered phishing and expanded attack surfaces to risks like prompt injection, jailbreaking, and data poisoning. They also tackle the persistent challenge of shadow data and data sprawl, where sensitive information lives outside sanctioned IT infrastructure, making it nearly impossible to classify and protect. 

The conversation covers the spectrum of security tools available to organizations, from point solutions to holistic Data Security Posture Management (DSPM) platforms, and closes with key best practices: zero trust, least privileged access, multi-factor authentication, and using AI defensively to combat the very threats it enables. 

 

Subscribe to The Let’s Talk Data Podcast 

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Connect Lisa Horwich 

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Connect With Daniel Dukes 

LinkedIn 

 

Additional Resources: 

To find out more about Lisa and security research, visit Pallas Research 

To connect with others on the topic, check out the Data Professionals community

SAP Trust Center: Data Protection & Privacy: SAP’s dedicated trust center resource covering data protection policies, privacy safeguards, and the security protocols SAP employs across its cloud ecosystem — directly relevant to the episode’s discussion of data visibility, shadow data, and keeping sensitive organizational data secure.

In this special episode of Let's Talk Cloud ERP, host Jennifer Frank McGrory welcomes IBM Consulting leaders Bill Pietrowski, Devraj Bardhan, and Jim Griffin to the podcast to discuss the latest developments in IBM's enterprise-wide cloud ERP transformation and the business value achieved since their last conversation. 

 

The team shares how IBM has generated more than $4.5 billion in savings through a transformation strategy centered on process simplification, operational efficiency, and SAP modernization. Listeners will hear how IBM continues to advance its clean-core approach across finance, procurement, supply chain, and other critical business functions while creating a more agile and connected enterprise. 

A significant portion of the discussion focuses on Human Capital Management and the role of SAP SuccessFactors within IBM's broader business transformation. The guests explore how integrating HR with SAP S/4HANA has improved workforce planning, governance, employee experiences, and manager self-service while reducing HR operating costs and accelerating response times across the organization. 

The conversation also highlights IBM's AI-first strategy and how intelligent automation is being applied across HR, procurement, finance, and employee services. With more than 155 AI use cases deployed, IBM shares lessons learned around prioritization, change management, governance, and scaling AI responsibly to drive measurable business outcomes. 

Whether you're leading a cloud ERP initiative, modernizing HR operations, or evaluating enterprise AI strategies, this episode provides valuable insights from one of the world's largest transformation programs. 

 

Key Topics of Discussion: 

IBM's Cloud ERP Transformation Journey 
How IBM has generated more than $4.5 billion in value through process simplification, SAP modernization, clean-core principles, and enterprise-wide operational transformation.  

The Strategic Role of SAP SuccessFactors in Business Transformation 
Why IBM views Human Capital Management as a critical component of its ERP strategy and how integrating SAP SuccessFactors with SAP S/4HANA improves workforce planning, governance, and employee experiences.  

The "Eliminate, Simplify, Automate" Framework 
The framework IBM uses to evaluate business processes, reduce complexity, eliminate non-value-added activities, and prepare operations for automation and AI.  

Scaling AI Across the Enterprise 
Lessons from deploying more than 155 AI use cases across HR, procurement, finance, and supply chain, including how IBM prioritizes opportunities and measures business impact.  

Governance, Change Management, and the Future of Work 
How IBM balances innovation with governance, security, and data privacy while helping employees and managers adapt to new AI-powered workflows and digital ways of working. 

 

Subscribe to The Let’s Talk Data Podcast 

Apple Podcasts 

Spotify 

YouTube 

 

Connect With Bill Piotrowski 

Linkedin 

Connect With Devraj Bardhan 

Linkedin 

Connect With Jim Griffin 

Linkedin 

Connect With Jennifer Frank McGrory 

LinkedIn 

 

Don’t stop here – discover more: 

Experience SAP Like Never Before: Cloud ERP Simulation Challenge: 

https://events.sap.com/noam-cloud-erp-sim-vew/en_us/home.html