What does it take for B2B suppliers to grow in today’s manufacturing landscape? It starts with being visible, credible, and easy to work with.

In this episode of B2B Exchange from SAP Business Network, host Amanda Laldin speaks with Chris Luecke, industry expert and host of Manufacturing Happy Hour, about how suppliers can compete in a market where buyers are doing more research online, relying on digital channels, and expecting seamless buying experiences before they ever talk to a sales representative.

Chris shares why storytelling matters, how digital networks and marketplaces can help suppliers meet buyers where they already are, and why a strong digital presence can influence purchasing decisions long before an RFI is sent. The conversation also explores how suppliers can use data, visibility, and network engagement to refine their digital selling strategy and make smarter decisions over time.

You’ll also hear practical advice on digital transformation, including how “micro-transformations” can help suppliers adopt AI and automation in focused, manageable ways. From improving digital profiles to using AI agents for specific tasks, this episode offers clear takeaways for suppliers looking to grow, innovate, and build trust in a changing B2B manufacturing landscape.

Chapters
00:00 – Welcome to B2B Exchange
01:25 – Why supplier storytelling matters
04:33 – Digital networks and supplier visibility
07:32 – How buyers research and make decisions
09:51 – Using data and engagement to grow
11:58 – Practical digital transformation
14:14 – Trends shaping B2B supplier growth
16:04 – Closing thoughts

Learn more about SAP Business Network and sign up for a supplier account today. 👉https://sap.to/6057B8n0pJ

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About SAP:
As a global leader in enterprise applications and business AI, SAP stands at the nexus of business and technology. For over 50 years, organizations have trusted SAP to bring out their best by uniting business-critical operations spanning finance, procurement, HR, supply chain, and customer experience. For more information, visit: https://sap.to/6055B8n0pR

#SAPBusinessNetwork #B2BCommerce #Manufacturing

Grupo UMA, a leading motorcycle assembler and distributor, is accelerating manufacturing growth across Colombia and Central America with SAP Cloud ERP Private.

Operating in multiple countries and serving thousands of riders every month, the company needed standardized, automated, and data‑driven processes to support expansion – while maintaining quality and customer experience.

By implementing SAP Cloud ERP Private, Grupo UMA streamlined core business processes across finance, production, and logistics, replaced manual work with real‑time insights and end‑to‑end process integration. Global operating models, automated workflows, and transparent cost visibility now enable faster decision‑making and scalable growth across the region.

The impact: Production increased from approximately 11,000 to 17,000 motorcycles per month – with a clear path to 20,000. Across markets including Guatemala, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Colombia, Grupo Uma is improving supply chain efficiency, optimizing production capacity, and delivering consistent quality with solutions such as SAP Extended Warehouse Management (EWM).

Beyond operations, teams are shifting from manual, operational work to a more strategic, innovation‑driven, and analytics‑focused approach—helping the organization evolve into a truly data‑driven enterprise.

Discover how SAP helps manufacturers in Latin America scale faster, operate smarter, and deliver better customer experiences with cloud ERP and read the full customer story on SAP News Center:

SAP Helps Boost Grupo UMA’s Motorcycle Production

00:00 – Intro
00:23 – What is GRUPO UMA?
00:40 – GRUPO UMA and SAP
01:05 – SAP as a Fundamental Pillar
01:35 – People Transforming by SAP
02:14 – Future

Disconnected engineering, PLM, and ERP systems can slow product development and limit AI readiness.

In this SAP Partner Short, Stefan from CIDEON explains why integrating engineering data, product structures, PLM, and SAP ERP is becoming a strategic priority for discrete manufacturers, not just an IT challenge.

Hear how a connected digital thread can help improve transparency across the product lifecycle, from initial customer requirements to service. Stefan also shares how CIDEON connects engineering systems with SAP Cloud ERP, SAP S/4HANA Private Cloud, CAD integrations, and third-party PLM solutions to help data flow without interruption.

For manufacturers, this connection can support faster time to market, greater scalability, stronger KPI performance, and a more trustworthy data foundation for AI.

Learn more. 👉 https://url.sap/26q672

#SAP #DigitalThread #ManufacturingAI

Cirque du Soleil transforms finance operations with SAP Business AI, automating invoices and enhancing supplier experiences.

Creativity meets intelligence in Cirque du Soleil’s journey with SAP. Known for reimagining live entertainment, Cirque du Soleil also innovates behind the scenes—streamlining operations and scaling global finance processes with SAP Business AI.

With more than 4,000 employees and 50 shows running worldwide, Cirque du Soleil needed a faster, smarter way to manage complex supplier relationships and financial transactions. The company adopted the AI Invoice Assistant, powered by SAP Business AI, to simplify invoice processing, reduce manual workloads, and deliver faster response times with multilingual support.

Now, finance teams can focus on strategic work while automation handles repetitive tasks—improving accuracy, consistency, and supplier satisfaction. With SAP Business AI, Cirque du Soleil has achieved new levels of operational agility, enabling them to continue inspiring audiences through innovation both on and off the stage.

“AI is helping us simplify, scale, and automate,” says Marianne LaRochelle, Vice President of Marketing, Cirque du Soleil. “With SAP, we’re embracing the next chapter of intelligent business.”

This partnership demonstrates how SAP Business AI integrates seamlessly into enterprise processes, combining intelligence with trusted business data. From finance and procurement to HR and supply chain, SAP helps organizations work smarter, faster, and more creatively.

00:00 – Introduction
00:26 – The Challenge: Complex Global Finance Operations
01:05 – Introducing the AI Invoice Assistant
02:02 – Automation and Multilingual Efficiency
02:48 – Supplier Experience Transformation
03:30 – The Future of Business AI at Cirque du Soleil

Discover how Cirque du Soleil brings creativity and intelligence together with SAP: https://sap.to/6056B8GRX6

Get a quick tour of the SAP Sapphire 2026 data and analytics highlights, with practical context on what they mean for enterprise AI.

In this special Sapphire 2026 update, Klaus-Peter Sauer breaks down the major announcements across SAP Business AI Platform, SAP Business Data Cloud, SAP HANA Cloud, Reltio, Joule agents, and BDC Connect. The focus: why enterprise AI needs more than better models. It needs trusted business data, process context, and governance built into the foundation.

You will see what is new in:

✅ SAP Business AI Platform: A unified platform to build, integrate, manage, run, and govern enterprise AI agents, apps, and workflows.
✅ SAP Business Data Cloud as the context layer for AI: The business data fabric that helps agents, applications, and decisions draw from trusted, governed business context.
✅ SAP Knowledge Graph: A structured map of business entities, processes, and relationships across the SAP landscape, helping AI agents navigate business context instead of guessing.
✅ SAP HANA Cloud in SAP Business Data Cloud: SAP HANA Cloud becomes the AI database for SAP Business Data Cloud, supporting transactional, analytical, and multi-model workloads in one engine.
✅ Reltio in SAP Business Data Cloud: Multi-domain master data management, AI-based entity resolution, and golden records across SAP and non-SAP sources.
✅ SAP Master Data Governance in SAP Business Data Cloud: Governance becomes part of the data flow, helping verify and align data products before agents use them.
✅ Joule Agents in the business data fabric: Create data products, planning models, analytics models, and dashboards through natural language.
✅ SAP Analytics Cloud story generation: Joule can use data models and business context to generate dashboards and visualizations automatically.
✅ BDC Connect for Amazon Athena: Planned bidirectional, zero-copy integration between SAP Business Data Cloud and Amazon Athena, expanding the open data ecosystem.

Chapters:
00:04 – Welcome to the Sapphire 2026 Special Edition
00:25 – Why Enterprise AI Needs Business Context
01:03 – Data and Analytics Announcements at Sapphire
01:11 – SAP Business AI Platform
02:10 – SAP Knowledge Graph
02:30 – Where SAP Business Data Cloud Fits
03:08 – Four Major SAP Business Data Cloud Announcements
03:15 – SAP HANA Cloud as the AI Database for BDC
03:58 – Reltio and Master Data Management
05:05 – Joule Agents in the Business Data Fabric
06:17 – BDC Connect for Amazon Athena
07:12 – What Sapphire 2026 Signals for Enterprise AI
07:46 – Summary and Outro

Learn more about SAP Business Data Cloud: https://sap.to/6051B8GLQX
Learn more about SAP Datasphere: https://sap.to/6053B8GLQZ
Join our SAP Datasphere community to stay up to date: https://sap.to/6054B8GLQw
Check out our product roadmap for SAP Datasphere: https://sap.to/6056B8GLQj

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About SAP:
As a global leader in enterprise applications and business AI, SAP stands at the nexus of business and technology. For over 50 years, organizations have trusted SAP to bring out their best by uniting business-critical operations spanning finance, procurement, HR, supply chain, and customer experience. For more information, visit: https://sap.to/6055B8GLQl

#SAPBusinessDataCloud #SAPBusinessAI #BusinessData

See how ZF Group is using SAP RISE, SAP Business Data Cloud, and AI to modernize a complex global manufacturing landscape.

At SAP Sapphire Madrid 2026, Thomas Buck, Chief Information Officer at ZF Group, shares how ZF Group is preparing for AI at scale while transforming a highly customized SAP ECC environment shaped by years of growth and acquisitions. With more than 150,000 employees across 29 countries and 160+ plants, ZF is using RISE with SAP and SAP Business Data Cloud to move toward clean core, make data AI-ready, and build a stronger foundation for innovation.

The conversation explores how ZF is applying AI to an industry-specific quality management challenge: the 8D problem-solving process. Today, teams manually review historical reports, search for similar cases, identify root causes, and assess whether issues could recur across other products. Working with SAP through a forward-deployed engineering approach, ZF built a custom AI framework with four agents to help analyze historical data, compare current cases, support root cause analysis, and propose solutions based on past cases.

ZF also shares the expected business value, including faster processes, improved quality, and potential savings in the mid double-digit millions of euros. The discussion closes with how WalkMe helps users adopt new AI-enabled ways of working and how SAP Max Success Plan supports ZF’s broader transformation journey.

Chapters:
00:00 – Welcome and ZF’s AI journey
00:28 – ZF’s global manufacturing scale
01:13 – Moving from complex ECC landscapes to clean core
01:56 – RISE with SAP and SAP Business Data Cloud
03:08 – Industry AI and the 8D quality process
04:24 – Building a four-agent AI framework
05:07 – Forward-deployed engineering with SAP
06:05 – AI value and expected savings
07:14 – Driving adoption with WalkMe
08:31 – What’s next for ZF and SAP

Watch the full Customer Success Keynote. 👉https://sap.to/6050B8GXnq
Watch all SAP Sapphire replays on demand. 👉https://sap.to/6052B8GXns

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LinkedIn: https://sap.to/6054B8GXnQ
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About SAP:
As a global leader in enterprise applications and business AI, SAP stands at the nexus of business and technology. For over 50 years, organizations have trusted SAP to bring out their best by uniting business-critical operations spanning finance, procurement, HR, supply chain, and customer experience. For more information, visit: https://sap.to/6050B8GXn0

#RISEwithSAP #SAPBusinessAI #SAPSapphireMadrid2026

See how Fonterra is using RISE with SAP, clean core, and AI to modernize business processes while delivering value along the way.

At SAP Sapphire Madrid 2026, Toby Granwal, Chief Information Officer at Fonterra, shares how the farmer-owned dairy cooperative is transforming a large, complex manufacturing and supply chain footprint. As New Zealand’s largest business, exporting dairy products to more than 100 countries, Fonterra is moving to SAP S/4HANA through RISE with SAP to simplify ways of working, move back to standard, and create a foundation for innovation.

The conversation explores why Fonterra sees this transformation as more than a technology upgrade. With two manufacturing sites and its U.S. market already live, the team is focused on delivering value before the full rollout is complete. That includes embedding AI into real workflows across cash application, maintenance order recommendations, and conversational planning for transportation management.

Fonterra also discusses how SAP and Fonterra teams worked together through a forward-deployed engineering approach to identify high-value AI opportunities. One example is services procurement, where Joule can help turn unstructured invoice data into service entry sheets through a more intuitive user experience. The discussion closes with the importance of adoption and change management, including how tools like WalkMe can help users embed new ways of working at scale.

Chapters:
00:00 – Welcome to SAP Sapphire Madrid
00:19 – Fonterra’s global scale and supply chain
00:51 – Transforming with RISE with SAP
01:34 – Delivering value during transformation
02:05 – Clean core as a foundation for AI
03:10 – Finding high-value AI use cases
03:48 – AI in cash application and transportation planning
04:05 – A best-practice approach to AI value
05:16 – Forward-deployed engineering with SAP
05:49 – Services procurement with Joule
06:46 – Scaling agentic workflows
07:28 – SAP as a transformation partner
08:16 – Adoption, change management, and WalkMe

Watch the full Customer Success Keynote. 👉 https://youtu.be/dG9aBkJCcso
Watch all SAP Sapphire replays on demand. 👉https://www.sap.com/events/sapphire.html

Follow SAP:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sap/
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About SAP:
As a global leader in enterprise applications and business AI, SAP stands at the nexus of business and technology. For over 50 years, organizations have trusted SAP to bring out their best by uniting business-critical operations spanning finance, procurement, HR, supply chain, and customer experience. For more information, visit: https://www.sap.com/index.html

#RISEwithSAP #SAPBusinessAI #SAPSapphireMadrid2026

See how EssilorLuxottica and SAP are exploring AI-powered smart glasses to make retail operations faster, smarter, and more personal.

At SAP Sapphire Madrid 2026, Davide Schinetti, Chief Operating Officer at EssilorLuxottica, joins SAP to showcase how wearable technology, SAP Joule, and connected back-end systems can support new retail experiences. The conversation begins with the scale of EssilorLuxottica’s global business, from advanced eye care solutions and iconic eyewear brands to retail networks and smart glasses.

The live demo shows how a store associate could use Ray-Ban smart glasses with Joule embedded to access customer order history, reorder products, check store availability, and support personalized recommendations in real time. By connecting speech, AI, customer data, inventory, and SAP back-end systems, the experience helps store teams respond faster while keeping the interaction natural and human.

EssilorLuxottica also shares how the use case was developed jointly with SAP in just two weeks and how the teams are continuing to explore opportunities across retail operations and supply chain. With 602 sites and 119 distribution centers, EssilorLuxottica is looking at how SAP and AI can help simplify complex operations and create more seamless experiences for customers and employees.

Chapters:
00:00 – Welcome to SAP Sapphire Madrid
00:28 – EssilorLuxottica’s global scale and brands
01:19 – Wearable technology use cases
02:01 – Introducing smart glasses on stage
03:02 – Using Joule to access customer order history
04:02 – Reordering eyewear with SAP back-end data
04:32 – Personalized upsell recommendation
05:13 – Checking product availability in store
06:06 – Adding products to checkout
06:40 – Technology behind the demo
07:14 – Built together in two weeks
07:47 – What’s next for SAP and EssilorLuxottica

Watch the full Customer Success Keynote. 👉 https://youtu.be/dG9aBkJCcso
Watch all SAP Sapphire replays on demand. 👉https://www.sap.com/events/sapphire.html

Follow SAP:
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About SAP:
As a global leader in enterprise applications and business AI, SAP stands at the nexus of business and technology. For over 50 years, organizations have trusted SAP to bring out their best by uniting business-critical operations spanning finance, procurement, HR, supply chain, and customer experience. For more information, visit: https://www.sap.com/index.html

#SAPBusinessAI #RetailAI #SAPSapphireMadrid2026

See how Ericsson is scaling AI with Joule, SAP Business Data Cloud, and a problem-first approach to transformation.

At SAP Sapphire Madrid 2026, Esra Kocatürk Norell, Vice President, Customer Experience, Enterprise IT at Ericsson, shares how AI is becoming central to both Ericsson’s technology road map and the way the company runs day to day. Esra from Ericsson joins SAP’s Manos to discuss the company’s 150-year history of innovation, its vision for limitless connectivity, and how AI, cloud, and advanced mobile networks are coming together to power the next wave of digitalization.

The conversation explores Ericsson’s approach to scaling AI: start with real business pain points, prioritize measurable outcomes, and apply AI where it can make a meaningful difference. Ericsson also shares how it has moved beyond isolated pilots, reaching 85,000 active live users on unified Joule through strong executive sponsorship, governance, and a clear focus on scalable use cases.

Ericsson also explains why data is foundational to AI at scale. With a business data fabric powered by SAP Business Data Cloud, Ericsson can define business meaning, manage access rules, and build reusable governed data products across AI, analytics, and applications. The discussion also covers Ericsson’s modernization with RISE with SAP, clean-core extensions on SAP Business Technology Platform, and co-innovation with SAP in human capital management.

Chapters:
00:00 – Welcome to SAP Sapphire Madrid
00:36 – Ericsson’s 150-year innovation journey
01:20 – AI, cloud, and advanced mobile networks
02:32 – A problem-centric approach to AI
03:17 – Scaling beyond isolated pilots
03:52 – Why AI at scale becomes a data challenge
04:18 – SAP Business Data Cloud and business data fabric
05:21 – Modernization with RISE with SAP
05:54 – Innovating and transforming with data and AI
06:27 – Co-innovation in human capital management
07:06 – Creating new ways of working with AI

Watch the full Customer Success Keynote. 👉 https://sap.to/6052B8Gphy
Watch all SAP Sapphire replays on demand. 👉https://sap.to/6056B8GphM

Follow SAP:
LinkedIn: https://sap.to/6058B8GphO
Instagram: https://sap.to/6059B8GphP
Facebook: https://sap.to/6050B8Gphu
Threads: https://sap.to/6051B8GphR

About SAP:
As a global leader in enterprise applications and business AI, SAP stands at the nexus of business and technology. For over 50 years, organizations have trusted SAP to bring out their best by uniting business-critical operations spanning finance, procurement, HR, supply chain, and customer experience. For more information, visit: https://sap.to/6053B8GphT

#SAPBusinessAI #SAPJoule #SAPSapphireMadrid2026

AI agents are multiplying fast. SAP AI Agent Hub helps you discover, manage, and govern them in one place.

As organizations adopt agentic AI across platforms, models, and MCP servers, visibility becomes essential. Without a clear view of how many agents exist, what they do, who owns them, and which business processes they support, teams risk duplicating work, increasing costs, and creating governance gaps.

In this video, see how SAP AI Agent Hub acts as a command center for enterprise AI agent management and governance. It helps make AI agents, AI models, and MCP servers visible across the full lifecycle — from planning and discovery to optimization and decommissioning. By grounding agents in architecture and business process context, SAP AI Agent Hub helps organizations understand how each agent contributes to business outcomes.

You’ll also learn how SAP AI Agent Hub maps agents to the business capabilities they support, the processes and applications they touch, and the data they access. With runtime verification and lifecycle governance, teams can strengthen compliance, improve control, and better understand workforce implications as AI agents become part of everyday operations.

Explore SAP AI Agent Hub:
https://www.sap.com/products/artificial-intelligence/ai-agent-hub.html

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About SAP:
As a global leader in enterprise applications and business AI, SAP stands at the nexus of business and technology. For over 50 years, organizations have trusted SAP to bring out their best by uniting business-critical operations spanning finance, procurement, HR, supply chain, and customer experience. For more information, visit: https://www.sap.com/index.html

#SAPBusinessAI #AgenticAI #EnterpriseAI