SAP Sapphire 2025 Opening Keynote - CRM Playaz Reaction
The latest CRM Playaz industry watch party was focused on the opening keynote for SAP's Sapphire 25 event held earlier this week. And with all of our leynote watch parties, we give our knee-jerk reactions in real time through the CRM/CX lens. So, while there was lots of announcements and demos taking place, we look at these events to see where CRM/CX fits into the overall presentation and discussion, because the opening keynotes usually will garner the most attention and receive the largest audience (both in person and virtually) that a vendor will receive in the year. Given that context, and with SAP being one of the biggest enterprise software companies in the world (with a definite ERP-centric foundation given its roots), we were curious to see where CRM/CX fits into the keynote messaging.
As you will see we condensed about a 17-minute wrap-up, of the nearly 2-hour keynote, into this 9 minute reaction. To see the full watch party check it out at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BIQKMOB2X4k. And below is an edited transcript of the clip, followed by an analysis of the transcript by Perplexity to how it summarized our conversation.
Edited Transcript
Brent Leary: All right, first impressions.
Paul Greenberg: Weren't great. On the one hand, technologically, even though they mostly showed just slides, I'm sure their AI is very capable. I don't know that, but, given the outcomes and results that they're presenting, which are unfortunately just static, I don't doubt it.
I like very much the integration of Joule with WalkMe. I just think that's important, and again, I don't know how well that integration works or anything like that. I am happy for their partnership with Adobe as much as it was passed over. I think on the whole, however, they blew a lot there. The lack of conversation whatsoever about CX or CRM or even sales was actually an absurdity.
And they gave it lip service. They said the word sales twice, and customer experience was written twice and that was it. They clearly have zero commitment to it, which basically, from my standpoint, kind of writes them off altogether because I'm not an ERP guy.
In the whole two hours. Other than a little teeny bit at the very end with the golf play, it was missing a right brain. The whole thing. There was no emotional content, given the nature of a keynote for a conference. And they had a lot of customers, but the customers were talking about derived revenue; revenue or efficiencies of one kind or another. Nothing about social good at all. Nothing about philanthropic or social. They mentioned the word sustainability in the beginning, and he mentioned abstractly macroeconomic conditions. But that was about it when it came to anything beyond the technology that was there.
They claimed to be end-to-end without talking about CRM and excluded customer engagement technologies that they offer. They're not an end to end platform, nor are they an intended ecosystem. Maybe they have it, but there's no evidence.
If I'm grading and I give it a D, C minus, maybe.
I pointed out my biases in the very beginning, and I have them and there's no question. You don't treat people badly and expect them to not be bothered. With that said, I was literally trying to make sure that that wasn't interfering with this. And unfortunately, it might sound like it is, but it isn't. This was not a success in anything fundamental, at least in the part of the world that we're in.
Brent Leary: This is the biggest opportunity throughout the year to get people's attention. We're looking at these keynotes through the lens of that opportunity, and the lens of where CX fits into your story. So given all that and there really wasn't much no.
Paul Greenberg: And they claim the problem is they claim it is in their story and they literally showed nothing to prove that claim.
Brent Leary: The technical capabilities are as good as any of the big 5 or 6, from just the technical aspect. I do not doubt that the stuff that they addressed, they can do. We're just giving them the pass on that because like you said, the demos were were very scripted and just really screenshots and stuff like that.
The one demo was really good. I forget, the young lady's name. She did a really good job. But CX and CRM are, combined, are biggest enterprise buy in terms of software. You would think it'd be a little bit more of importance. But as we said, they mentioned it just kind of in passing.
I also can't get by the fact that a lot of the leadership at ServiceNow actually came from SAP. So, SAP had the kind of people that we know can move the needle and build a tremendously successful CRM business. But yet and still they weren't able to do that when they were at SAP, But at ServiceNow, they are.
It feels like something did not allow them to do all the things that they're able to do at ServiceNow. And it feels like the way that the lack of focus on, really did show through in this keynote. So I can't help but think they're there. It's just a secondary thing for them. And it was kind of treated like that. And that's what I that's the overarching theme.
You're right about the Joule/WalkMe combination. I think there's some great technical opportunities or capabilities. But in the context of CX who knows what that means because they really didn’t talk about it.
The technical production [of the keynote] was great. Everything came off without a hitch. But there was no show craft. What I'm used to now is seeing those little video vignettes that really get to the core of what a customer is about. And then you're able to go into the conversation with them. We didn't have any of that.
We missed some of the post-Covid keynote components that you really should have now. You didn't have a pre-show. You didn't have that build up; the anticipation that gets you to the opening. Matter of fact, it kind of opened almost sort of like we're in the middle of it.
I'll do the caveat. I don't have a working relationship with SAP at the moment. I don't feel like I've been dissed or anything. But a lot of the people that we knew and we're capable - and we've seen them be capable of other places now - They're not there anymore.
But I, I did want to point that out just to say all the things that we're talking about take it for what it's worth, if you feel like we're jaded or we're talking because there is no connection judge everything we say with whatever grains of salt you'd like.
Paul Greenberg: I will tell you this when you're watching what we're watching, obviously there's going to be some coloration based on lack of relationship or bad relationship. But what you see, you see. Also what you don't see that you're expecting to see, you don't see.
Brent Leary: ServiceNow calls themselves CRM. Their messaging is about being a CRM company. Yeah. You ain't getting that message over here.
Paul Greenberg: Oracle really doesn't purely message as a CRM company, but they message with CRM as a really important component of their end to end capability. And Oracle, because they got the hardware and the software, probably are the only ones that can make the actual end-to-end claim. SAP can't even make that claim now. Not until they show some CRM consideration.
Microsoft understands that. Look, Dynamics is never going to be a giant revenue producing part of their business. Business apps for them is a necessary part of their overall ecosystem and a necessary part of their platform, regardless of how much revenue it makes. They're not going to get rid of it because without it, they're incomplete.
SAP does not get that. They are doing some smart things like the WalkMe acquisition to use WalkMe through its ubiquity in the complexity part.
Brent Leary: And the Perplexity partnership. Those were the two high notes.
Paul Greenberg: And Adobe may have been a high point, but we have no idea. They just announced it and walked away from it.
The Perplexity thing, and the idea that SAP can use that for anything internal or external is fantastic. The WalkMe ubiquity is incredible because it also means you can pretty much use SAP for anything from anywhere.
Brent Leary: The opportunity for SAP to really be a significant player in the space, which would then make the end-to-end way more end-to-end. The opportunity is there, and the carrot to be a player is there. Because the better each of those components are, including CRM, the more complete your end-to-end can be.
And so you would think that would be incentive enough to really beef it up. And showcase it! And in your biggest audience of the year it was barely mentioned.
Sapphire 2025 keynote Watch Party Transcript- Perplexity Analysis
**Overall Impressions**
- The keynote left both Brent Leary and Paul Greenberg underwhelmed, particularly from the perspective of CRM (Customer Relationship Management) and customer experience.
- While SAP demonstrated strong technical capabilities and integrations—such as with WalkMe and Adobe—the presentation primarily relied on static slides and scripted demos, lacking dynamic or interactive elements[1].
- The speakers acknowledged SAP’s technical competence, especially in AI and integration, but felt these strengths were presented in an uninspiring and overly technical manner, failing to engage or excite the audience beyond "bits and bytes"[1].
**Key Criticisms**
- **Neglect of CRM and Customer Experience:** The keynote barely mentioned CRM, customer experience, or sales, which the speakers found "absurd" given SAP's claims of being an end-to-end platform. There was little evidence of commitment to these areas, making SAP's "end-to-end" claims unconvincing[1].
- **Lack of Emotional and Human Content:** The event lacked "right brain" elements—there was no emotional storytelling, no social good or philanthropic messaging, and minimal reference to sustainability beyond passing mentions. Customer stories focused solely on revenue and efficiency, not broader impact[1].
- **Missed Opportunity for Engagement:** The keynote failed to leverage its large audience for storytelling or brand building. There were no engaging pre-shows, build-up, or customer vignettes that would create anticipation or emotional connection, making the production feel flat and uninspired[1].
- **Cultural and Organizational Issues:** The speakers noted that SAP has lost much of its past innovation edge and now mostly delivers "table stakes" features. Talented CRM leaders have left SAP for competitors like ServiceNow, suggesting organizational or cultural barriers to CRM success within SAP[1].
**Positive Notes**
- **Technical Production:** The technical execution of the event was smooth, and the integration of WalkMe and Perplexity was seen as a smart move, potentially enabling broader and more flexible SAP usage[1].
- **Innovative Features:** Some features, like the integration with Perplexity for search and the WalkMe acquisition, were highlighted as positive steps, though not groundbreaking compared to past innovations[1].
**Comparisons and Context**
- The speakers contrasted SAP’s approach with competitors like Oracle and Microsoft, who, even if CRM is not their main revenue driver, still treat it as a vital part of their ecosystem and messaging. SAP, in contrast, does not appear to recognize the strategic importance of CRM within its platform[1].
- The lack of focus on CRM and customer engagement technologies was seen as a missed opportunity, especially given the size and influence of the keynote audience[1].
**Conclusion**
- Both Leary and Greenberg graded the keynote poorly (C- or D), citing a lack of vision, innovation, and emotional resonance. They concluded that unless SAP changes its approach to CRM and customer experience, it cannot credibly claim to be an end-to-end platform provider[1].
- The overall sentiment is that SAP’s technical strength is not matched by storytelling, strategic focus, or innovative leadership in CRM and customer experience, leaving the keynote—and SAP’s positioning—lacking in several key areas[1].
Sources
[1] Sapphire-2025-Keynote-our-take.txt https://ppl-ai-file-upload.s3.amazonaws.com/web/direct-files/attachments/29397469/710b8083-321e-476b-9e3d-bf400500d977/Sapphire-2025-Keynote-our-take.txt