InsideSAP, the official media partner of the upcoming SAUG Summit Online Speaker Series, virtually sat down for an exclusive interview with SAP Australian User Group’s (SAUG) CEO Jason Hincks to talk about how SAUG rapidly adapted to the changing business climate, switching the SAUG Summit Live to a 100{8bf2b29f36318f0ac46ab1cc03d7035abce669a1cea16c9ed62389a818fa22fd} digital event that will feature stimulating, sharp one-hour sessions.
Keeping pace with the ever-changing business landscape and COVID-19 environment, SAP Australian User Group (SAUG), an independent not-for-profit industry association centred on providing information, access, and advocacy for SAP customers and professionals, has recently announced that it will be shifting the SAUG Summit Live to a full-on digital conference with a new event structure that would continue to deliver high-impact content, the latest updates, inspiring customer stories, and insights from the experts on the ground, all exclusive for SAUG members.
InsideSAP had the privilege to have a one-on-one interview with SAUG’s CEO Jason Hincks to discuss the decision behind the innovation and the details of the upcoming SAUG Summit Online 2021 Speaker Series to be held online on 30th Aug – 2nd Sept 2021.
SAUG Summit Reimagined
Hincks shared the background behind coming up with a new event format for the SAUG Summit that is much different from last year’s digital event. With a very short timeline of five weeks to design and execute a digital event, SAUG had to find an effective way to deliver the same quality presentation and content to the SAP Australia community. Most importantly, they had to consider the members’ sentiment, which was part of the research that SAUG has done, of spending long hours on the computer attending whole-day digital events. That led to the design principle for the SAUG Summit Online Speaker Series.
“The design principles were three presentations per day, so I hour running between 10 and 11 o’clock over the 4 days. Two of those days were the original summit days…”
Taking from the key learnings from last year’s digital summit, the CEO said that aside from great, relevant content that gets people engaged, people are now more likely to attend events that are a bit shorter and sharper.
“We saw really good responses to a little bit more interaction in that digital space, so people liked the panels, they liked the fireside chats, they liked those opportunities… not just the PowerPoint. The case studies, people like those and they get learnings from them but we get more high engagements in those sessions that are a little bit more of a free-flowing format, interactive.”
Engaging SAUG Members with Sharp Sessions
Each day of the Summit aptly themed Transform, Redefine, Innovate, and Optimise, features three high-impact sessions– one Thought Leader Keynote, a case study, and a deep-dive panel discussion– all in one hour.
August 30: Transform
The first day of the summit includes the Thought Leader Keynote Interview session between Peggy Renders, SVP & GM Customer Experience APJ, SAP, and SAUG CEO Hincks on how to interact with customers, engage with employees, and run a smarter enterprise. The Expert Keynote presentation will tackle optimising and simplifying business transformation followed by a panel discussion to engage the SAP Australia community.
August 31: Redefine
Michelle Lucas, Customer and Product Strategy Director at Lion, will talk about how Lion runs a multi-function go-live during COVID lockdown in the Customer Keynote Presentation. The Expert Keynote Presentation on Day 2 will touch on the latest methodologies for better SAP project delivery, followed by a panel discussion on how businesses redefined the way systems, enterprises, and people run.
September 1: Innovate
Featuring a Thought Leader Keynote Interview on the key SAP innovations as well as an Expert Keynote Presentation on Simplifying and speeding up SAP innovation implementation and adoption. A panel discussion on how to develop an innovation strategy and culture of innovation follows.
September 2: Optimise
Featuring a Customer Keynote Presentation on Optimising with a major S/4HANA implementation at a key organisation. A 20-minute Expert Keynote Presentation will touch on Utilising the latest Dev-Ops methodologies for better SAP project delivery, followed by a panel discussion.
The SAUG CEO emphasised:
“During these periods where there are probably less opportunities for networking, less opportunities to be engaging with your colleagues, and people in the sector. Things like our Special Interest Groups have given people the opportunity to continue to learn, continue to develop, continue to stay abreast of what’s happening within the SAP ecosystem. And combine those with those publications like yours (InsideSAP), they’ve been critical in making sure that the people don’t regress in their knowledge even though they’re not getting that information… in an office environment.”
Though the Speaker Series is offered exclusively for free to SAUG members, Hincks highlighted that there is enough time for non-members to inquire on how to get access to the SAP event.
The SAUG Summit Online 2021 is the only independent, not-for-profit, member-run SAP event, created by customers for customers. SAUG delivers to its over 6000 members across 300+ companies unparalleled opportunities to ensure their SAP investments are optimised through exclusive programs and events. Every year, members get free access to over 70 virtual and face-to-face sessions, providing them networking opportunities with peers and insights from SAP users and experts.
Visit SAUG to register and get updates on the upcoming SAUG Summit Online Speaker Series and future events. For non-members, you may visit the SAUG Membership Page for more information.
