One of the more interesting topics that was covered in day 2 was a deeper dive into the hybris as a service (yaaS) platform and micro-services. Micro-services are smaller software modules that are focused on a single task or process. For yaaS, these are services that are going to be developed by ISV and other developers both inside and outside of SAP hybris. In many ways this is similar to app stores on smartphones. Developers can build a micro-service that can do one thing very well. This will enable yaaS customers to use only the services that they find valuable for their enterprise.
This approach is interesting because it follows the path of decomposing traditional large enterprise applications into smaller components. Traditionally software has been developed with the goal of solving all of the problems in a defined department or job function. For example, CRM was developed to address the needs of the sales staff and sales management. The problem with this approach is that most employees need to access multiple systems in order to accomplish their jobs. However, they do not need all of the features of each system. So by decomposing the large software into smaller modules, or micro-services, users can gain access to only the parts of the software that they need. Neuralytix believes that this is a positive trend for the industry. Traditional software was designed the way it was due to the limits of the technology at the time they were designed. However, over time, advances in both HW and SW have eliminated many of those limits. As such, the ability to create smaller interconnected modules that provide users with only the functions they needs and use will greatly simplify the user experience and we believe drive additional productivity. Further, the update and upgrade process for smaller, bit sizes apps is generally easier and less intrusive than traditional large upgrades.
The other main announcement from day 2 was the introduction of SAP Jam for communities. Jam is SAP’s internal collaboration tool. SAP has now extended this tool so enterprises can enable the community to discuss the company’s products. Neuralytix believes that this also is a positive development. Marketers have, in many cases, are now no longer in exclusive control of the marketing message. The rise of social media, customer review sites like Yelp and TripAdvisor, have enabled customer to have far greater influence in shaping the marketing message. Further, the rise of user generated “how to” content through sites like YouTube, can create powerful marketing collateral. In many cases potential customers will do research into a product to determine if the product will solve the customer’s problem or address their need. Being able to see a how to video that shows the product doing what you want it to do is very compelling. Being able to enable harness that content could be a valuable tool for marketers.