Microsoft and SAP Expand RISE with SAP on Microsoft Azure Initiative
Microsoft and SAP have announced an expansion of the global RISE with SAP on Microsoft Azure initiative, a joint program aimed at supporting organisations migrating SAP environments to the cloud on Microsoft Azure.
Originally announced in January 2025, the initiative combines technical resources and support teams from both companies to assist customers during migration, onboarding and operational phases of RISE with SAP deployments on Azure.
According to the companies, the number of organisations eligible to participate in the program will more than double in 2026. Existing customers using RISE with SAP on Azure include Nestlé, Migros and Samsung.
The initiative provides participating customers with access to technical specialists from both SAP and Microsoft, including cloud solution architects, product engineers and support teams focused on SAP workloads running on Azure infrastructure.
Services within the program include architecture guidance, migration support, health checks, escalation management and access to Microsoft’s Cloud Accelerate Factory, which provides hands-on assistance for Azure modernisation projects.
“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,” said Christian Klein, CEO of SAP SE. “Together, we’re helping organisations 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 modernise 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.”
The companies said the initiative is intended to help organisations reduce migration complexity and improve operational readiness during SAP cloud transformation projects.
Key areas of focus include minimising downtime during go-live periods, providing proactive technical reviews and creating more direct coordination channels between SAP and Microsoft support teams.
The expanded initiative reflects ongoing collaboration between enterprise software vendors and hyperscale cloud providers as organisations continue transitioning core ERP environments to cloud-based infrastructure and services.