SAP acquires SaaS-champion SuccessFactors
December 05, 2011 | Author: Adam Levine
(SuccessFactors CEO Lars Dalgaard)
SAP (aka the world largest developer of business software) has won the reputation of the SaaS-snail. Not because SAP wasn't trying to build SaaS solutions. It launched StreamWork, CRM On-demand, Business ByDesign. But all these projects were implemented without much desire, so none of them caught the wave. And it's quite understandable. SAP really doesn't need these miserable $50/month per user, when it makes millions just for one-time sale of its monster systems and projects. But with these earned money, SAP can easily buy the title of SaaS-champion. SAP Ventures has long been sponsoring many SaaS-startups. For example, SAP stands behind such projects as SocialText, Box.net, Alfresco. And now, SAP has decided to play a big game and acquired (perhaps the second company on the SaaS market) SuccessFactors for $3.4 billion.
SuccessFactors - is a SaaS talent management system (on SAP's language it sounds HRM = Human Resources Management). It's not like SAP. Rather, it wants to be like Facebook. SuccessFactors is the champion in SaaS project size competition (see the Top 5 largest SaaS implementations). And in 2009, it was SuccessFactors that stolen one of SAP's largest customers - Siemens.
SAP (aka the world largest developer of business software) has won the reputation of the SaaS-snail. Not because SAP wasn't trying to build SaaS solutions. It launched StreamWork, CRM On-demand, Business ByDesign. But all these projects were implemented without much desire, so none of them caught the wave. And it's quite understandable. SAP really doesn't need these miserable $50/month per user, when it makes millions just for one-time sale of its monster systems and projects. But with these earned money, SAP can easily buy the title of SaaS-champion. SAP Ventures has long been sponsoring many SaaS-startups. For example, SAP stands behind such projects as SocialText, Box.net, Alfresco. And now, SAP has decided to play a big game and acquired (perhaps the second company on the SaaS market) SuccessFactors for $3.4 billion.
SuccessFactors - is a SaaS talent management system (on SAP's language it sounds HRM = Human Resources Management). It's not like SAP. Rather, it wants to be like Facebook. SuccessFactors is the champion in SaaS project size competition (see the Top 5 largest SaaS implementations). And in 2009, it was SuccessFactors that stolen one of SAP's largest customers - Siemens.
See also: Top 10 Talent Management Systems