Microsoft and SAP Announce Expansion

Expanding the Global RISE with SAP on Microsoft Azure Initiative: Elevating Customer Success with Microsoft and SAP

Microsoft and SAP announced the expansion of the global RISE with SAP on Microsoft Azure initiative, a joint program between Microsoft and SAP designed to deliver technical expertise, support, and innovation for RISE with SAP on Microsoft Azure customers.

In 2026, we will more than double the number of customers allowed into the program, marking an important milestone in our mission to provide RISE with SAP on Azure customers extraordinary support and expertise throughout their experience. Thousands of enterprise customers are already transforming their businesses with RISE with SAP on Azure, including Nestle, Migros, and Samsung

First publicly announced in January 2025, this initiative brings together the best technical teams from SAP and Microsoft to enable a more seamless, high-touch migration and onboarding experience for the customer with no additional cost for an accelerated path to business transformation and faster cloud innovation.

A collaborative approach to success

The program is a joint customer experience that complements and enhances the RISE with SAP customer journey, providing

Designated resources: Access to a global team of SAP-skilled Microsoft product engineers, cloud solution architects, and support experts
Proactive services: Recommendations based on proven best practices from years of close cooperation between Microsoft and SAP engineering teams, delivered via Microsoft Engineering and Customer Success subject matter experts
Access to Cloud Accelerate Factory: For all customers in the program, access to Microsoft Cloud Accelerate Factory, which delivers hands-on support to help customers streamline modernization on Azure
Enhanced support: Streamlined escalation paths across SAP and Microsoft to ensure aligned oversight and guidance at every step
Zero cost: Program offered free of charge to approved customers

“RISE with SAP on Microsoft Azure ensures customers experience the best of both worlds: SAP’s business process leadership and Microsoft’s trusted cloud platform,” SAP Chief Partner Officer Karl Fahrbach said. “Together, we’re helping organizations move faster, reduce risk, and innovate with confidence as they embrace the future of the intelligent enterprise.”

“This program reflects our deep commitment to helping customers modernize mission-critical SAP workloads on Azure with confidence,” said Sandy Gupta, vice president of Global ISV Ecosystem at Microsoft. “By combining Microsoft’s cloud innovation with SAP’s business expertise, we’re delivering a secure, predictable, and AI-ready journey that accelerates time to value and unlocks new opportunities for transformation.”

Joint value: Why this matters for customers

The RISE with SAP on Microsoft Azure initiative is more than just a technical offering; it’s a strategic investment in customer success, delivered jointly by Microsoft and SAP.

Key benefits of the initiative for customers include:

Frictionless go-lives: The program helps reduce technical downtime, risk, and post-processing cutover delays
Enhanced reliability: Proactive health checks, architecture reviews (Azure environment), and direct communications paths to Microsoft Customer Success and Engineering
Go-live readiness support: Azure health checks and engagement at key project milestones

Accelerating your digital transformation

Whether your organization is just beginning its RISE with SAP journey or looking to accelerate an ongoing migration, this program ensures you have the expertise, visibility, and partnership needed to succeed.

To learn more or nominate your organization, contact your SAP or Microsoft account representative.

Source: Microsoft and SAP media announcement

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