#71: Tech Connect, Vanishing Nerds, Clean Core, Giving Thanks
In this issue:
From the Tech Connect Corridors
Last week, I had the chance to attend the ASUG Tech Connect conference, which also was the official SAP TechEd “tour stop” on our side of the pond. The event was bigger and better than last year, and it’s super clear that these in-person gatherings bring great value.
I find that the most interesting things often happen in random conversations in the corridors. So, here’s an unofficial, “I spy with my little eye” conference reportage.
Many attendees seemed unaware of tools and features that have been available for quite some time. For example, the existence of ATC (see this 2012 post) and the ability to develop OData services in ECC were revelations to some.
Speaking of ECC, some customers remain quite happy with this Toyota Camry of ERP systems. Honestly, I can’t blame them. 2027 is going to be a fun year.
These conferences tend to be heavily attended by management types. I hope they’re better managers than technologists because, hoo boy... Listening to some of these folks eventually made me lose it and jump on a proverbial soapbox during one of the sessions (my apologies again to the presenter). Managers, please check your information with the actual experts in your organization. And maybe let those experts attend a conference once in a while, too.
I attended several sessions about “AI something” and Joule. Joule got plenty of space in our last two issues, so I won’t go into details. But the vibe was eerily similar to how SAP talked about RPA not long ago. And now it’s like, “RPA who?” Hope to see more practical info in 2025, but the pattern is all too familiar.
These events provide SAP folks a chance to climb down from their ivory towers and hear from the unwashed masses. While there were many opportunities for this, I remain skeptical that they will lead to meaningful change. It seems bananas are stuck a bit too firmly in certain ears. JP
I’d like to thank the Americas SAP User Group (ASUG) for inviting us to the event and generally supporting our endeavors. Thank you!
Making GenAI Really Real
A stomach flu bug stopped me from presenting last week at ASUG Tech Connect. I was so pumped to give my talk "Making GenAI Real: Project Lessons Learned". I'm sorry, 40-minute-long slide deck - you may never see the light of day. However, I can salvage a few nuggets for you, dear reader! Here are three takeaways I've gleaned in the last year.
First, people don't know what generative AI can do. Your second order of business (after proving that it can work for your use) is show and tell. Educate people about what you're giving them. Show them examples. The team I work with has a standing order to create short explainer videos, and when the non-techies see them, they instantly cook up ideas of their own. When it comes to something totally new, people need to see to understand.
Second, re-think design possibilities. Generative AI is not just "you type text into a chat window, and you get back possibly interesting text." Agents can make intelligent things happen in the background without any user interaction! Documents can be created with pre-baked intelligent comments! Sending IMs back and forth with a GPT is just the beginning.
Finally, in the enterprise there can be speed shock. Now that certain classes of actions can happen just by prompting, the distance between idea and prototype is shrinking. Some teams - e.g. security, infrastructure, and support - may not be equipped to move with the speed that a cracked AI team can. Establish patterns to ensure that a fast-moving AI factory can pair with ready-to-go delivery mechanisms. PM
Cleaning The Clean Core
Like ogres and onions, SAP’s “clean core” messaging has layers. We’ve already peeled back some of them here and here, but there’s more to uncover.
Even though it’s still unclear whether “clean core” is a methodology or a strategy, SAP marketing has successfully convinced IT managers of its importance. “Are you doing clean core? We’re doing clean core! How’s your clean core journey? Cleaning hard or hardly cleaning, eh?”
I think almost everyone agrees on the key points though. “Modifications are bad” is straight up from “no s*t Sherlock” department. And who is against using released APIs? Not me. The hiccup? Sometimes APIs are… not released. Or don’t exist. Or are half-baked.
If you think this is a task for SAP to “do the needful” and release better APIs, you must be new here. Obviously, this is a task for customers to humbly ask SAP “can I haz APIs?”. To do that, just go to this website (SID required), submit a request, wait for five other customers to vote on it, and then SAP will… uh… I’m not sure but maybe think about it? Easy peasy. And very helpful when you need to deliver functionality by Friday.
On a brighter note, there are some updates on the most frequently asked clean core questions:
How do we check our “cleanliness”?
A recommendation that might work for most customers is to use the ATC tool, which everyone should be using anyway. SAP maintains a list of released APIs that ATC can reference to check your system. Please do try this at home.What about IDocs?
The idea that IDocs should be replaced with OData services wasn’t met with enthusiasm at Tech Connect. IDocs aren’t just about data transmission; they also come with many useful tools that OData or SOAP interfaces simply don’t have. While the idea of using AIF was floated, AIF is a framework, not a set of ready-to-use transactions.
I think this issue will remain open for quite some time. If you’re heavily using IDocs for EDI interfaces (other scenarios may be better suited for using OData), it’s probably best to leave them be for now—and keep poking SAP. JP
Stealthy Nerds, Or Vanishing Nerds?
A slide from ASUG Tech Connect floated through my LinkedIn feed the other day. The claim: there are 5 million ABAP developers in the world. You'll excuse me for asking it this way: if that's even remotely true, where in the hell are they?
I don't think the tech gatherings are primarily composed of developers. The user group meetings have very few. The biggest number I can find for the SAP developers survey is 2600ish respondents, and fewer in recent years.
So I take that 5 million number with a heaping helping of salt. Jelena suggested that it is arrived at by counting developer keys (I don't know how else you'd do it), an approach which is obviously flawed. Think about the number of people floating around who've gotten many keys in separate installations and clients.
I agree that ABAP is not dead. But something in here smells like death. Is the SAP community now so fractured and broken that it can't be quantified? Is the number of active ABAP people in decline? I’m struggling to reconcile the big number with what seems like shrinking global interest. Someone, anyone - please help me put it together. PM
The Patented Complaining System
The worst IT nightmare is receiving a ticket that says something “doesn’t work.” Uh… This can mean millions of different things.
Occasionally being somewhat of a user myself, I can empathize with frustration. But if the goal is not just venting but actually making something “work,” we need to communicate better.
Grab your pens, folks, because I’m about to share The Patented Complaining System that could save millions of IT dollars and immeasurable human suffering. The next time you need to report a bug or complain about an issue, use this simple structure:
What did you do.
What happened.
What did you expect to happen.
(Bonus) Why did you expect it to happen and/or any details that you think might help solve the issue.
You might be surprised, but most IT people aren’t evil goblins who feed on the tears of users. We want to resolve your issue as quickly as possible. To do that, we need you to work with us, not against us.
Use The System. Like all the best things in life, it’s free. JP
Giving Nerd Thanks
In the United States, the Thanksgiving holiday is November 28th. As the time-honored traditions demand, we sing Thanksgiving carols, have pumpkin fights, and dress like zombie turkeys to ward off evil spirits.
OK, maybe not. But one thing that does happen is people sit around the dinner table and say what they're thankful for. In that spirit, I offer my Boring Enterprise Thanksgiving Gratitude List, 2024 Edition. I'm thankful for:
Tool makers who give away awesome things. They're thankless project maintainers, whose work makes all our nerd lives better. Prime example: UI5 project generator.
Knowledge sharers who expect nothing in return except the joy of helping others learn. Prime example: Simon Willison.
Working from home still being a thing. For most professional people, on most days, if you're not feeling it or you need to be home when your child gets off the bus, you can still do that.
My kind, ferocious, fearless, and funny partner in crime Jelena Perfiljeva.
I am terminally online, but when I look up from the monitor and take a deep breath, I'm most thankful that the world is better than it seems online. Most people are kind most of the time. Everyone wants connection, meaning, and joy - and we can help each other have those things. PM
Are you joining the X-odus from Twitter to BlueSky? We were there before it was cool! Join our followers at boringnerds.bsky.social
Take a listen to the ASUG Tech Connect Review podcast episode with Jelena and Jon Reed of diginomica fame. Get all the juicy, not safe for publication details!
Pumpkin Spice everything is back! Support the nerds by buying us a cup or two of coffee. Thank you for your continuous readership and support!
Thank "Yall" for this - the content, reflections, and ending reminder of a lot of good people in the world and things to be thankful for.