To what extent should the Ariba acquisition be regarded as a break with SAP’s corporate tradition? The analysts disagree on this point. “I don’t see it as a break with its tradition of organic growth. SAP has always stressed it wants to make the most of every available opportunity, even of those outside its strategy for organic growth.” Frey holds a similar view. He recalls SAP’s 2001 takeover of TopTier Software and subsequent acquisitions. “So it’s actually been more than a decade since SAP’s growth was exclusively organic.” Fey points out.

PAC: Wise Break with Tradition

PAC analyst Niemann, however, sees “a definite break.” A wise one. “One has to realize that SAP would not have reached its planned targets through organic growth alone.” he stresses. “On the other hand”, he adds, “it seems as if SAP, like Oracle, has decided to replace ‘software as a service’ (SaaS) innovation with SaaS acquisitions. If this continues, it is going to become harder to distinguish one from the other.”

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