Christian Klein, CEO of SAP.
German business software maker SAP has announced a €2 billion (R41 billion) restructuring plan that will affect 8,000 positions.
This is as the company says it aims to focus more on growing its artificial intelligence (AI) business unit.
Job changes will be covered by voluntary leave programs and internal reskilling measures, and the company is expected to exit the business in 2024 with a workforce similar to current levels, SAP notes.
This year, it will focus even more on key strategic growth areas, particularly business AI, and intends to transform its operational setup with AI-driven efficiencies.
The company recently spear a suite of generative AI capabilities and a centralized resource center to help software developers leverage AI for business applications.
SAP’s financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year ended December 31, released yesterday, show that cloud revenue grew 20% for fiscal 2023, supported by cloud revenue growth of 25% to constant exchange rates in the fourth quarter.
“We met or exceeded our 2023 outlook in all key indicators. Thanks to exceptional order intake, our current cloud order backlog increased by 27%, a record level,” says Christian Klein, CEO of SAP.
“We are confident in the company’s prospects in 2024. Building on this strong position, SAP is opening the next chapter: with the planned transformation program, we are intensifying the shift of investments to strategic growth areas, in particular Enterprise AI.
“Going forward, this will allow us to continue to be at the forefront of innovation, while increasing the scalability of the operating model. »
Dominik Asam, CFO of SAP said: “2023 was a year of inflection. We kept our promise and achieved double-digit operating profit growth despite an unfavorable macroeconomic environment.
“In 2024, we will focus on establishing the right earnings growth gradient to achieve our raised ambition for 2025 and sustain growth and financial performance beyond. »
