New expanded board including Chief Technology Officer (CTO) and Chief Revenue Officers (CROs) is intended to further increase efficiency and accelerate transformation.
SAP SE announced today that Sebastian Steinhäuser (39) will be joining the SAP Board of Directors. In the future, he will head the newly created Strategy & Operations board area in order to further advance the implementation of the SAP strategy and simplify company processes. SAP's supervisory board also extended the contract of board member Thomas Saueressig, head of Customer Services & Delivery, for another three years until 2028.
SAP also announced the formation of an expanded Board* of company executives, including the newly appointed CTO, co-CROs and Chief Marketing Officer (CMO). SAP's new expanded Board of Directors will act as a strategic advisory body to advance the company's AI first, Suite first strategy. The aim is to align important initiatives at a global level and ensure their smooth implementation throughout the company. The SAP Board of Directors remains the highest management body of SAP SE.
New board area for faster strategy implementation and simplified processes
The new Strategy & Operations board area will drive SAP's transformation goals and strategy internally and externally and simplify company processes. The integration of Strategy & Operations with Global Marketing – led by newly appointed CMO Ada Agrait – aims to improve collaboration and strengthen the digital experience for customers and partners.
“Since 2020, Sebastian Steinhäuser has played a key role in SAP's corporate strategy. We see him as an important leader and architect of SAP's future. We congratulate him and wish him much success in his new role,” says Pekka Ala-Pietilä, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of SAP SE. “We would also like to extend our best wishes to Thomas Saueressig for his upcoming term on the SAP Board of Directors. His contributions were and are crucial to ensuring that more and more SAP customers choose the path to the cloud. We look forward to his continued success.”
Steinhäuser joined SAP in 2020 and has since held various roles, including Chief Strategy Officer. In this role, he also managed the growth areas of Business Transformation Management, Business Network and Sustainability. In 2024, he was appointed Chief Strategy & Operations Officer. His area of responsibility expanded to include business operations, processes and IT as well as partner network and commercial functions. Before joining SAP, Steinhäuser worked at Boston Consulting Group, where he supported clients with their enterprise and digital transformation projects.
Further organizational innovations
SAP is also introducing a new Chief Technology Officer and two new Chief Revenue Officers. Philipp Herzig will take on the role of global CTO at SAP, in addition to his current position as Chief AI Officer. In this role, he will oversee SAP's technology strategy, innovation, research and business development and ensure the continued success of SAP's Business AI and sustainability units while continuing to drive innovation for SAP customers and partners.
Jan Gilg and Emmanuel (Manos) Raptopoulos will jointly lead the SAP Customer Success organization as Chief Revenue Officers. Gilg, currently president and chief product officer of Cloud ERP, will then take over SAP Americas and the global SAP Business Suite. Raptopoulos, currently regional president of SAP EMEA, will also lead the SAP MEE and SAP APAC regions. An expanded sales leadership team that combines extensive product and business experience with strong sales experience will ensure customer solutions are developed for sustainable success. Herzig, Gilg and Raptopoulos report to SAP CEO Christian Klein and will in future be members of SAP's extended board.
All changes will come into effect on February 1, 2025.
* Members of the extended board:
Ada Agrait (Chief Marketing Officer), Michael Ameling (General Manager, Business Technology Platform), Sebastian Behrendt (Head of Global Finance), Jan Gilg (Chief Revenue Officer Americas & Global Business Suite), Philipp Herzig (Chief Technology Officer), Thomas Pfiester (Head of Global Customer Engagement), Emmanuel Raptopoulos (Chief Revenue Officer, APAC/EMEA/MEE), TBA (General Manager, Business Suite), Monika Schaller (Chief Communications Officer)
You can find this press release in English here.
Further press information can be found in the SAP News Center. Follow SAP at @SAP.
Information about SAP
As the world's leading provider of enterprise applications and business AI, SAP (NYSE:SAP) stands at the intersection of business and technology. For over 50 years, companies have trusted SAP to realize their full potential by unifying business-critical operations such as finance, procurement, human resources, supply chain and customer experience. For more information, see www.sap.com.
Note to editors
For press photos and television material in high resolution, please visit our platform www.sap.com/photos. There you will find current broadcast-ready TV footage material as well as images on SAP topics for direct download.
Contact person for the press:
Joellen Perry, +1 626 265 0370, joellen.perry@sap.com, PT
Marcus Winkler, +49 6227 767 497, marcus.winkler@sap.com, CET
SAP press area; press@sap.com
This document contains forward-looking statements, that is, predictions, forecasts or other statements about future events. These statements are based on current expectations, projections and assumptions that are subject to risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially. Additional information regarding these risks and uncertainties can be found in our filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including, but not limited to, the risk factors section of SAP's 2023 Annual Report on Form 20-F.
© 2024 SAP SE. All rights reserved.
SAP and other SAP products and services mentioned in this document as well as the associated logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of SAP SE in Germany and other countries. Additional brand information and endorsements can be found on the page http://www.sap.de/copyright.
