SAP Analytics Cloud annual review 2024

A new year has begun and 2024 is now behind us. It was an exciting year full of innovations and further developments in SAP Analytics Cloud. We would like to take this opportunity to look back at features that have made a lasting difference to our work and highlight the upcoming updates.

Although ‘Just Ask’ is almost a thing of the past with the introduction of Joule, it is a ground-breaking innovation that is still lacking in other comparable analytics solutions. ‘Just Ask’ offers users an intuitive method of accessing data using natural language processing (NLP). Users can visualise, sort or narrow down search results in different ways to get exactly the information they need. The only downside is that 'Just Ask' can only access SAC and Datasphere models.

In terms of user-friendliness, another wish was fulfilled in 2024. The file upload, which was previously carried out via a custom widget, was integrated as a standard function in SAP Analytics Cloud. This means that workarounds are no longer necessary. You can now create a data import request in the model management and users can use this via a data upload starter in the story. The data appears immediately in the story and can be used as a starting point for further planning.

Despite the user-friendly web interface of SAP Analytics Cloud (SAC), many users still want to use Excel as the front end. We are seeing this particularly in our work with controllers. As SAP Analysis for Office (AfO) does not support the new SAC and SAP Datasphere models, SAP Analytics Cloud, Add-in for Excel must inevitably be used. Compared to AfO, however, we were missing some functions, which we show in our article SAP Analysis for Office vs. SAP Analytics Cloud Add-In - A comparison.

Fortunately, SAP took the feedback to heart and delivered many new functions for the add-in over the course of the year. At the same time, a version for PowerPoint was also released. This enables you to embed SAC charts in your presentations. And there are also many functions on the road map for 2025 that are intended to expand Microsoft Office integration.

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In addition, the year 2025 will probably be characterised by artificial intelligence (AI). Just Ask is to be expanded with the SAP HANA Cloud Vector Engine to deliver improved response times. It will also be fully integrated into Datasphere with Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG), enabling contextualised grounding of queries. In the future, queries in German, French, Italian and Spanish will also be supported.

Of course, we are also eagerly awaiting Joule, SAP's AI-supported virtual assistant, which is designed to help users make informed decisions more quickly and optimise their work processes. In addition to natural language processing (NLP) and analyses, Joule should also be able to create dashboards independently and write JavaScript and Advanced Formula scripts. Together with Compass, which enables Monte Carlo-based simulations, Joule promises to revolutionise the way we work with analysis and planning applications.

Last but not least, embedded planning will also be a major topic in 2025. We are already diligently testing this function and will be giving a deep dive presentation on 12 February in Frankfurt titled ‘Seamless Planning with SAP Datasphere: The modern replacement for BPC Embedded’ to share our experiences with you. We would be delighted to welcome you there.

SAP Analytics Cloud annual review - Our Conclusion

It has been another eventful year for SAP Analytics Cloud, which has delivered many important functions. Overall, SAC is on a promising path and we can hope that 2025 will be a year full of exciting developments.

Do you have questions about SAP Analytics Cloud or other topics? Are you trying to build up the necessary expertise in your department or do you need support with a specific issue? Simply get in touch with us - we look forward to exchanging ideas with you!