1. Gerald – I’m not sure I can venture a guess right now as far as what will happen with the integration of the BO and BI code base and how it will impact features like the BeX Analyzer. I think SAP will eventually announce their plans in this area so I’ll keep an eye on it and report back. My gut tells me that SAP will go with the best user interface possible, so if BO provides that, we may see something like BO replacing the BeX Analyzer – but hard to say. It’s also possible that SAP would support two similar environments, at least for a transition period. I think you are taking the right approach by getting a handle on the BO and the BI tools in reporting and other areas.

2. “Lost in Dallas” – Well, I can’t speak for Naeem on this, but if you read my career column in the “Ask the Expert” section of this web site, you’ll see that I don’t place a lot of stock in SAP training when it comes to making a resume look better. I think training can be a good investment in terms of making some additional contacts and also integrating that knowledge into your project work. But I’m not a huge course fan in terms of making a resume stand out. I would personally suggest focusing more on self-education: spend time on this site and especially SDN, where you can pick up a lot of eSOA know-how without spending a dime. I’m not in the business of recommending SAP classes but SAP does have some eSOA classes you can consider via their “education” section of their web site.

3. JP – You may be right that the Business Objects acquisition will create some of the pitfalls Oracle has faced during the Fusion process, which is, of course, ongoing. On the other hand, Oracle has been surprisingly successful in this marketplace given they are years away from an integrated Fusion product. I think SAP realized that these kinds of acquisitions give you access to a whole new customer base. That’s why I believe this purchase, more than anything, was about SAP’s midmarket sales push and getting access to the BO customer base. I may be wrong. But if I’m right, then SAP can save themselves a lot of hassles by not even trying to do a “fusion” between their BI product and BO. Perhaps they can just incorporate some best-of-breed ideas from BO into BI. We’ll have to see how it plays out. Your skepticism is understandable, however, I think SAP will be fine unless they try to buy a number of large software providers. Hopefully they won’t go that route. As far as the worst case scenarios for BI, the worst case scenario I see is simply a slow-down of projects as customers wait for more on how SAP will use the BO product. But, I stand by my assessment that the BO acquisition, in the long run, is fairly good news for the BI professional, indicating the strategic importance of this aspect of SAP going forward. No one has a crystal ball, so I guess we’ll have to stay tuned.

M.Bolag