SAP Acquires Signavio: Business Process Automation News

Reports circulating throughout the week suggested that SAP was planning to acquire Berlin-based business process automation company Signavio, and today the confirmation arrived. The financial details of the acquisition were not disclosed by either company; however, Bloomberg previously indicated a potential deal value of $1.2 billion.

This acquisition provides SAP with a business process management tool built natively for the cloud. SAP’s Chief Financial Officer, Luka Mucic, emphasizes the growing significance of comprehending and automating business processes as central to a company’s digital transformation journey.

“The ability for organizations to design, evaluate, refine, and reshape business processes throughout the entire enterprise is critically important for supporting innovative capabilities and business models,” Mucic stated.

While established enterprise business process automation solutions have been available for some time, a cloud-native tool offers SAP a more contemporary approach to addressing this challenge. The ability to automate processes through the cloud has become increasingly vital, particularly with the rise of remote work arrangements during the recent pandemic.

SAP views Signavio as a crucial addition to its business process intelligence division. “Integrating SAP’s business process intelligence with Signavio’s capabilities will establish a leading, comprehensive suite for business process transformation, empowering our clients to achieve a competitive advantage,” Mucic explained.

SAP has recently been expanding its presence in the process automation sector. The company unveiled SAP Intelligent Robotic Process Automation at SAP TechEd in December, marking its entry into the RPA market. This new offering is expected to complement Signavio’s technology effectively.

Dr. Gero Decker, co-founder and CEO of Signavio, believes that SAP’s resources will enable the company to achieve greater success than it could independently. “Given SAP’s market position, global reach, and financial strength, SAP represents the optimal platform for delivering process intelligence to organizations of all sizes,” he said.

The argument regarding increased resources and market access is a common theme among CEOs of acquired companies. However, integration into a company as large as SAP can present both opportunities and challenges. Successfully navigating the transition from a startup to a component within a major corporation will be a key factor in determining the long-term success of this acquisition.

Founded in Berlin in 2009, Signavio has secured approximately $230 million in funding, as per Crunchbase data. Investors include Apax Digital and Summit Partners. The company’s latest funding round, a Series C in July 2019, totaled $177 million and resulted in a valuation of $400 million.

Signavio’s customer base includes prominent companies such as Comcast, Bosch, Liberty Mutual, and notably, SAP itself. It is possible that SAP will now benefit from preferential pricing.