Swarovski is following the cloud transformation in 2023 with the global go live of SAP Cloud ERP Private – and is choosing an exciting brownfield approach. With the migration, the luxury brand is laying the foundation for the use of AI – and for achieving its strategic goals by 2030.
Anyone looking for a prime example of how migration to the cloud can achieve much more than simplification and standardization should take a close look at Swarovski. The legendary manufacturer of hand-cut crystal glass, jewelry and watches – originally from Wattens in Tyrol, Austria – transformed its IT landscape from a cost factor to a strategic tool for a digital future.
Lea Sonderegger, both CDO and CIO at Swarovski, steered the change with such great success that she was honored with the special “Cloud Excellence” prize in the large company category as part of the CIO Magazine’s CIO of the Year award last October.
Among other things, the jurors found their brownfield approach worthy of the award: Swarovski employees use the SAP Cloud ERP Private platform in the cloud, but initially continue to use the usual processes and databases. Completely redesigning them parallel to the migration would have been too risky and cost-intensive. Lea Sonderegger is also convinced that this would have extended the project duration significantly.
25,000 tests with 600 participants
Especially since the brownfield approach also required a lot of time and even more resources. The preparation took two years, during which more than 600 participants carried out around 25,000 tests. Two dress rehearsals with strict governance ensured that every function and data point was ready for migration.
Lea Sonderegger and her colleagues reserved a 66-hour conversion window for the go-live on April 20, 2026. During this time, all global IT processes at Swarovski were paused. In the subsequent sensitive hypercare phase, 24/7 support ensured that any problems could be dealt with immediately. This is one of the reasons why the transition went smoothly; all processes worked again without any problems after the conversion window.
Simplification and standardization ensures consistent data
Despite the high effort, this migration was only the first step. The switch to SAP Cloud ERP Private created the technical basis, but the follow-up investments ensure additional added value. These focus on gradually reducing complexity by consolidating fragmented solutions, re-evaluating custom code and harmonizing data – always with the overall goal of creating a more coherent and manageable ERP landscape.
To achieve this, Lea Sonderegger and her team will replace user-specific applications step by step with SAP standard solutions and only retain individual developments where they offer clear advantages. “The combination of simplification and a return to standard solutions improves data consistency, ensures stable, reliable processes and ultimately makes our entire organization more agile,” says Sonderegger.
Cloud technology is not an end in itself
By integrating central functions such as finance, supply chain management, retail and e-commerce and making them usable together, SAP Cloud ERP Private ensures reliable processes and consistent data quality, while also enabling customer experiences on very different front-end solutions on this side of the ERP system.
SAP Cloud ERP Private manages a diverse product range at Swarovski across different regions and price ranges and seamlessly integrates the planning results provided by other SAP and non-SAP systems.
“For us, cloud technology never serves an end in itself, but rather it is a lever to increase efficiency, resilience and the ability to innovate” – this statement is important to Lea Sonderegger.
Everyone also sees the IT project as a business transformation
The bottom line is that Lea Sonderegger and her team managed to implement the project on time within the targeted budget because its scope was very clearly defined and strict discipline in change management prevented any bloat. In addition, the company also benefited from the experience of its implementation partner SAP Consulting and its unrestricted access to SAP know-how.
The Swarovski example proves that even a necessary, unavoidable migration can and should achieve much more than avoiding risks and reducing maintenance costs. The introduction of SAP Cloud ERP Private was imperative here because SAP ECC had reached the end of its life cycle. And it shows the luxury goods manufacturer the way into the future because from day one everyone involved saw the process not only as an IT transformation, but also and above all as a business transformation, in which hundreds of experts from different specialist areas took part – and which had the full support of management from the start.
Demand forecasts created with AI optimize inventory levels
Artificial intelligence also plays a central role in its implementation – with SAP Cloud ERP Private as the operational backbone of an AI ecosystem that delivers reliable real-time data and stable, standardized transaction processes.
Swarovski does not use artificial intelligence as a standalone technology, but rather as an integrated capability that complements business processes across functions. The company is already using AI for demand forecasts, which can be used to optimize inventory levels across regions and thus improve the customer experience.
And the AI Agent Factory initiative makes it possible to use AI agents to link data from SAP Cloud ERP Private with data from non-SAP systems – always with the aim of “automating repetitive tasks, supporting decision-making and increasing productivity along the entire value chain,” as Lea Sonderegger emphasizes.
