Chapter 21: On to New Frontiers

Gero steps back and takes a new perspective, shaping the future of transformation. Discover how stepping out of the day-to-day sparked fresh ideas and deeper connections across SAP.

www.linkedin.com/in/gerodecker/

Transcript

People started to say to me: “Gero, you are always so happy. How do you do that? I would love to be happier, too.” 

Andre Wenz officially took the reins for SAP Signavio’s Product and Engineering in January 2024. The transition was seamless, with Andre and the team hitting the ground running. I felt deeply content with how smoothly everything went - and, of course, I wasn’t disappearing. I simply had much more space in my schedule.

Simultaneously, we shifted board areas, and Jürgen (remember, the one who gave me “the call”) became my new boss. I joined the Technology & Innovation leadership team, finally putting us in a board area where I could have meaningful dialogues with my peers on how to build great products.

With the LeanIX integration gearing up, I had assumed I would have to help out more. That was part of why I expedited the delegation to Andre Wenz in the first place. But, as it turned out, Andre Christ and the LeanIX team were remarkably self-sufficient and didn’t need much input from me.

Rouven took charge of Go-To-Market for both SAP Signavio and SAP LeanIX, centering his efforts on bringing the teams closer together. Everything was running well in capable hands.

This led to the most relaxed start to a year I’ve ever experienced. Interestingly, some colleagues remarked that they saw me as a better leader, now that I worked less. Maybe it was because I focused more intently on areas where I could make a greater impact - or perhaps it was simply that I finally had more time to listen.

I hosted more Q&A sessions, dedicated time to communication, and stood by our teams in opposing corporate policies that didn’t make sense for our teams. Suddenly, I had space for small talk, unplanned encounters, and traveling to connect with colleagues in different countries. It was refreshing.

The best part of all, I began to influence other product groups across SAP. I enjoyed a lot being included in their thinking as they built out their respective areas. In a giant company like SAP, there is always change happening somewhere and now I could help as a trusted advisor to make the right choices.

Until 2019, we held Code Camps to bring the entire team together. Covid had interrupted these regular events, but in 2023 we launched To.gather as its successor. To.gather reflected the merging of Signavio and the teams that originated at SAP from before the acquisition into SAP Signavio. In 2024, 2.Ignite succeeded it, bringing SAP Signavio and SAP LeanIX teams together under the Business Transformation Management (BTM) banner. 

These events were unique, uniting the team across functions - Go-To-Market, Product and Engineering, and more - from across the globe all in the same place for the only time each year. It was about creating a special vibe of togetherness, but also about showing that everybody mattered: Working students are treated the same like senior leaders, developers the same like sellers, with no VIP zones or exclusive formats. Of course we made them fun, with great parties and costumes, creating a memorable sense of togetherness.

Unlike typical SAP events reserved for customers or top sales performers, we made this effort for everyone. Though costly, we hid the expense in the budget because the boost in morale and productivity was invaluable. These gatherings showed that everyone mattered, reinforcing the culture of the team.

I came to realize that having a startup CEO background made a real difference at SAP. In a startup, you’re forced to think end-to-end: how product decisions impact Go-To-Market and vice versa. You can’t fix a product that is positioned wrong in the market by adding more features. When you grow up in a large organization, where things tend to be more separated just because of the sheer size, you too often take decisions or dependencies for granted. And sometimes, you just need to break through them to get to a better place. I loved these fruitful discussions.

I especially enjoyed the time I spent with Michael Ameling. Triggered by a series of organizational changes, he found himself managing a humongous team and portfolio of products. He was “Mr. BTP,” the Business Technology Platform of SAP. When attending the same events, we would meet early in the morning, talking through many of the challenges that he had on his plate and I was happy to contribute ideas here or there, all while swimming laps in the hotel pool.

I made it a point to bring positivity wherever I went. I’d open every meeting with an enthusiastic “Happy Thursday!” - or whatever day it happened to be. Only my “Happy Monday minus three” for a Friday was not as popular.

Once, when introducing myself in a call and stating that one of my top priorities was to have fun, an American colleague exclaimed, “Finally, there it is: the f-word. We should absolutely practice it more here at work!”

Gradually, some peers approached me, saying, “Gero, you’re always so happy. How do you do it? Can you help me be happier too?” They often felt trapped in complexity, dependencies, and relentless busyness, overwhelmed by the daily grind. 

Georgina had suggested this approach for me; manage from the balcony. Find a place where you have enough visibility to see what is going on. A place where people can see you and what you care about. Don’t interfere with the things that happen on the ground. Select the right colleagues to do that, empower and encourage them. Always be honest and make sure people can trust you. Provide clarity wherever needed and ensure that momentum carries on.

I had many valuable conversations with my peers. While I wouldn’t call myself a coach - there is a true craft to that - I love engaging in discussions, helping structure their thoughts, and building confidence. One colleague even dubbed me the “Chief Executive Seelsorger,” (“Seelsorger” being the pastor in German). It’s a role I cherish.

I realized that especially for senior leaders in a corporation it is hard to find peers that they can truly open up to and share their worries and needs with. Nobody wants to appear weak. Rarely ever will somebody admit that they are absolutely overwhelmed by a certain situation or have no clue about a challenge they are facing. I have the luxury that my peers actually believe me when I say I don’t have any corporate ambitions. I will not steal their teams nor responsibilities from them. Quite the opposite, I would gladly hand them some of my responsibilities. I don’t need to prove anything to anybody nor do I have any financial incentive to climb the corporate ladder. I can simply focus on what is best for the team, for the customers and for the company.

One day, breaking into all my relaxedness, I suddenly had to make an important decision. It probably looked like a small decision from the outside, but it was one that I actually thought long and hard about.

One of my colleagues had left the company, and, among other things, he had been the Managing Director (MD) for SAP Berlin. Thanks to the growing SAP Signavio team, Berlin had become the second largest location for SAP in Germany. Now, a new MD for Berlin was needed. Typically, the role goes to the most senior leader in that location, which meant I was an obvious choice. The small question, from my perspective, was whether I would take it or not.

By now you probably already know that I dislike unnecessary work and prefer to focus on tasks I truly love. Back at McKinsey, we had a mantra: “Only do what only McKinsey can do.” I still find this perspective useful for avoiding the trap of being endlessly busy without impact.

I considered who else might be an even better fit for the role and quickly identified my colleague, Iris Seute. As the COO for the Berlin location, she was already deeply familiar with the job and enthusiastic about stepping up. On the other hand, there were a couple of topics that got me excited. One of them was to reinvent how SAP should engage with the startup ecosystem. Following the big reorganization earlier in the year, several initiatives in this space had been discontinued, and we needed a fresh approach. Plus, SAP wasn’t exactly perceived as the ultimate destination for startups, and that needed to change.

A co-leadership model where Iris would take on the primary responsibilities, while I focused on a few select areas where I could make a unique impact, was the best response to the small question.

However, the bigger question, the one that gave me a headache, remained: Did I really want to commit to staying at SAP longer? Taking on another role shouldn’t just be a short-term move; people would be relying on me, and the role itself deserved a sense of continuity.

Three years into the acquisition, SAP Signavio was thriving, and I had successfully transitioned many of my duties to Andre Wenz. It was every entrepreneur’s dream realized: building a fantastic company and ensuring it would continue to excel without requiring me on a day-to-day basis.

If I wanted to stay at SAP, it needed to be for more than just swimming along, more than just being part of a great family.

The big opportunity to do exactly that already appeared on the horizon. Following our successful “shopping tour” that saw us acquire LeanIX for €1.2 billion euros the year prior, SAP was prepared to make another major investment. Rouven and I were ready to lead the charge once again.

Business Transformation Management became our strategic focus. With SAP Signavio and SAP LeanIX, we already covered two essential dimensions of business transformation: processes and IT landscapes, and together, we were close to the milestone of €500 million euros in ARR.

However, one key dimension was still missing from the equation. Effective business transformations typically revolve around four interconnected areas: process, people, systems, and data. While we offered a range of data-centric products through the business technology platform, we were lacking when it came to the people dimension - helping companies effectively change how they work and roll out those changes across their workforce.

Ron Agam had identified this area a while ago and started scanning the market for potential partners or acquisitions. Through his Israeli background, he had, of course, also stumbled over the Tel Aviv-headquartered software company WalkMe. They pioneered the category of “digital adoption platforms” and grew so much that they had become a publicly listed company on the NASDAQ along the way. Their brand was well known in the United States and around the world.

Now, with the renewed focus on adoption of SAP cloud products, WalkMe fit into our strategy in multiple dimensions. Not only did it help to complete the vision of the BTM portfolio and run alongside SAP Signavio and SAP LeanIX, but also was perceived as central to push user adoption of S/4HANA, Ariba, Successfactors and all the other applications that SAP offered.

We had successfully leapfrogged Celonis with our Plug & Gain offering and performed well in the market. Creating an end-to-end business transformation offering beyond our current footprint was a much bigger ambition though. By addressing the people dimension of transformations as well, we would be the first in the world to create something that had the potential to be as big as ERP and CRM had become over time.

40 years ago, companies realized that managing finances and supply chains through software is not only a nice-to-have but a must-have, which led to the meteoric rise of ERP. 20 years ago, companies realized that managing customer interactions through software is not only a nice-to-have but a must-have, which led to the rise of CRM. Now, the ability to change and transform as a company has become the make or break for any company in any industry vertical, and companies realize that Business Transformation Management software has turned from nice-to-have to must-have. All of the advancements with Generative AI makes people understand that many of the tasks that would otherwise be done by highly skilled consultants, will be at least augmented, if not replaced by software. Together with WalkMe, we would have an unbeatable offering to capture this market opportunity.

Acquiring WalkMe was a lot trickier than our previous deals with Signavio or LeanIX though. As a public company, the acquisition involved significant complexities, including managing sensitive information, preventing leaks, and adhering to market regulations. The timing was also challenging, requiring us to align SAP’s corporate calendar with WalkMe’s and manage geopolitical factors, given WalkMe’s Israeli headquarters. 

At multiple points, Rouven and I asked ourselves whether pursuing the acquisition was really a good idea. There were just too many unknowns and the complexity of integrating WalkMe would be much more difficult than Signavio and LeanIX. There was the product overlap with SAP’s existing product EnableNow and the need to bring the two together, there was the dependency on all the different SAP cloud applications and their willingness to integrate WalkMe, and there was the need to build WalkMe content for a wide range of SAP offerings in lightning speed. Pursuing the WalkMe acquisition felt a lot like jumping into cold water, not really knowing what to expect.

Despite multiple points where the deal almost fell apart, we managed to close the acquisition just in time for the final day of Sapphire. We paid $1.5 billion dollars, making it once again one of the big tech acquisitions of the year and the largest news item of the event. The media buzzed with headlines about Business Transformation Management, labeling it as Christian Klein’s new favored concept.

Our transformation narrative was all over Sapphire. And while a colleague jokingly suggested I take a shot every time Signavio was mentioned in a keynote, I wisely declined, knowing I’d be wasted well before 10am. The announcement of the WalkMe acquisition only amplified the excitement.

Analysts responded positively, and SAP’s stock price even saw a boost. Now, the real work of closing the transaction and integrating WalkMe into SAP began.

Dan Adika, founder and CEO of WalkMe, and I finally met in person the following week. We introduced him to our entire executive board and gave him a grand stage to mark the moment. Seeing thousands of seats in the arena with the WalkMe logo displayed on massive screens made him visibly emotional - it symbolized a new chapter for his team and the future of their products.

Meeting Dan felt like reuniting with a long-lost brother. He’s an incredibly likable, inspiring leader, and I have great admiration for what he’s achieved with WalkMe. One of the first questions he asked me was: “Will I see you at Burning Man?” And indeed, I absolutely love electronic music. The man even kicks off every All Hands call with a DJ set - how cool is that?

His team is equally impressive. There’s something truly special about their crew, and when I visited their Tel Aviv headquarters for the first time, they welcomed me with open arms, creating a real connection.

Customers and colleagues embraced WalkMe with absolute excitement. Many people told me: “The transformation management portfolio that you are building just makes so much sense. We can’t wait to go live with it.” Similar to how we were welcomed, when Signavio joined SAP, WalkMe enjoys a lot of positive momentum as they enter the world of SAP.

Also the EnableNow team, which provided SAP’s digital adoption and learning platform up until this point, is fired up to work with the amazing WalkMe team and invent the future of user enablement and learning together.

Together, we’ve assembled an extraordinary team to help SAP achieve its vision. A generation of founders - Andre Christ, Dan Adika, and myself - now united under one roof, with Rouven as our relentless Go-To-Market leader, to bring a bold new chapter for SAP to life.

Business Transformation Management is set to become SAP’s future, and I’m honored to be part of the team determined to make it happen!

All together, we now have a team of more than 3,000 of the most motivated and talented individuals you can imagine and shoot for €1 billion euros in ARR as our next target.

There is a name for startups that reach one billion dollars in valuation: the unicorn. There is a name for startups that reach €100 million euros in ARR: the centaur. But there is no name for software companies that make it past €1 billion euros in ARR. 

It will have to be invented for us.