Episode 146 – Customer Council Series #6: Clean core, BTP integration, and successful go-live with KWD Automotive
KWD Automotive, a top-tier supplier for Volkswagen Group, achieved a successful go-live with SAP S/4HANA Cloud in January 2026 after a strategic 'Move to HANA' transformation. The company faced significant challenges in standardizing processes across five European sites, where legacy systems and fragmented data had created operational inefficiencies. Their solution? A 'clean core' implementation with zero user exits, enforced through strict governance and a centralized system architecture. The project's success hinged on a six-to-eight-month process definition phase, rigorous user acceptance testing led by both local and global process owners, and seamless integration with their EMEA system via SAP’s Business Technology Platform (BTP), which enabled third-party system connectivity without custom code. Despite delays in master data migration—identified as a major bottleneck—the team delivered a fully standardized, scalable ERP environment that now serves as a foundation for future innovation. The episode reveals that true digital transformation isn't just about system migration, but about cultural alignment, process discipline, and resisting the temptation to customize—especially when the platform itself is designed to be the standard. The most striking insight is that KWD’s success wasn’t due to technical wizardry, but to organizational rigor: they chose to pay a premium to maintain a standardized template, even when exceptions were tempting.
Enforce a 'clean core' by banning user exits and requiring formal change requests to maintain system integrity.
Dedicate 6–8 months to defining standardized business processes before system activation to avoid costly rework.
Use SAP BTP to integrate third-party systems without custom code, enabling scalable, future-proof connectivity.
Master data migration is often the biggest delay in S/4HANA Cloud projects—plan for it as a critical path item.
Implement user acceptance testing with both local process owners and global template owners for end-to-end validation.
…and 3 more takeaways available in PodZeus
Welcome to the Customer Council Berlin Series
Greg Hutchin introduces the podcast and the live recording from the SAP Customer Council event in Berlin, setting the stage for real-world insights on SAP S/4HANA Cloud implementation.
Introducing Dr. Abed Goda and KWD Automotive
Dr. Abed Goda, Head of Group IT and Digitization at KWD Automotive, shares his background and introduces the company’s role as a first-tier supplier to Volkswagen Group, operating across five European locations.
The Strategic Vision Behind 'Move to HANA'
“We must have such things in the future. Together with the management, we are targeting to have centralized systems and without any implementing or user exits or something like that, we are targeting the clean core and avoid any changes without a change request.”
Core Objectives: Clean Core and BTP Integration
“The best thing which SAP developed in this environment is BTP, Business Technology Platform. So it's my favorite really because our other business technology platform and the connector and the EPIs.”
Implementation Phases and Pilot Testing
The team invested six to eight months in process standardization, followed by a structured S/4HANA activation methodology, with rigorous UAT involving both local and global process owners.
“We must have such things in the future. Together with the management, we are targeting to have centralized systems and without any implementing or user exits or something like that, we are targeting the clean core and avoid any changes without a change request.”
“So we are together with our management on the way to keep this template and only really only in case of emergency. So we'll move away from this template. And that is our goal.”
“So, and from my point of view, the best thing which SAP developed in this environment is BTP, Business Technology Platform. So it's my favorite really because our other business technology platform and the connector and the EPIs.”
Host
Guest
SAP S/4HANA Cloud
product
KWD Automotive AG
organization
Dr. Abed Goda
person
Greg Hutchin
person
Volkswagen Group
organization
Business Technology Platform
product
EMEA system
other
Customer Council Berlin series
other
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