While data may be the fuel powering the engine of AI, it’s good data that’s the real game changer. With good data, a company can automate processes — freeing up their people to do the most impactful work — and analyze the most important variables facing their business to create intelligent insights.

That’s where a datasphere comes in. It makes data more complete and logical by understanding the different relationships within a company’s data. And that’s what can truly bring out the best in any business today.

Having a central hub for data is more critical than ever. It allows our customers to better model their business across all ���Ĵ�ý business applications. That’s exactly why we introduced ���Ĵ�ý Datasphere last year to empower businesses with insights they need – based on the right data – in the context of their business. Since then, generative AI has disrupted and simplified even more business processes, and data capture is no different. This week we announced new generative-AI features in ���Ĵ�ý Datasphere that will transform enterprise planning through simplified data landscapes and more-intuitive data interaction.

Why is this important? Because having a unified data view that simplifies the data landscapes while retaining context and logic is what enables businesses to adapt faster to market changes and make better decisions. It’s also a more efficient way of working. Because while you’re busy pulling data together, competitors are circling your customers.

I am constantly speaking with our customers about the value of ���Ĵ�ý Datasphere. It’s a data architecture that harmonizes mission-critical data across an organization. I hear amazing outcomes they’re able to achieve: from PwC breaking down silos in the different countries where it stores sensitive data so its workforce can access it more efficiently and securely for customers, to the Lufthansa Group taking data from different parts of its operations like aircraft, HR, and procurement, to see how decisions from one could impact the other.��
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With our additional news this week, such as making our generative AI copilot Joule available in ���Ĵ�ý Analytics Cloud and expanding our partnership with Collibra to help our customers meet compliance, privacy, and regulatory requirements related to AI as they evolve, we’re making it easier to find the right data and use it to drive deeper insights, more efficiencies, faster growth, and more trust in their business.

While PwC and Lufthansa show what’s possible today with a simplified data fabric, imagine what is about to become possible when you infuse it with the power of generative AI that understands your business – and then learns from that data. This has the potential to deliver exponential value from your data.

Or think of it this way: years ago, the biggest differentiators for businesses were price, location, products, and services. Today, and especially in the years ahead, it could very well be how effectively a business is training their AI models. That’s why building the right data fabric is one of the most important investments any business can make today.

It’s been said that the best way to predict the future is to invent it. And in an era where data is being created exponentially, I believe that those businesses that can separate the signal from the noise when it comes to their data will be the ones that invent the future in an AI-first world.

Scott Russell is a member of the Executive Board of ���Ĵ�ý SE.

The speed at which the auto industry is changing is nothing short of remarkable. Just think of all the changes we’ve seen in vehicles over the past few years — from more autonomous driving capabilities to being more connected to your surroundings as you drive.

Electric vehicle demand has also surged over the past few years, which is also great news for the planet. Consumer buying habits are changing as well, with more and more people shopping for vehicles online. Last year, 65% of U.S. vehicle buyers said they shop for vehicles partially or entirely online according to S&P Global Mobility. Car companies are even building for entirely new ownership models.

is forcing even more change, particularly by automating time-consuming tasks and allowing data to be used in more intelligent ways. For the auto industry, it’s beginning to improve everything from design and forecasting to manufacturing and production, while also making the customer experience more personal.

All in all, Precedence Research projects the global market for generative AI in the auto industry to eclipse more than $2 billion by 2032. All of this is fueling a new urgency for automotive companies to transform digitally. But what exactly does that mean?

Simply put, it means incorporating digital technologies into every aspect of a business’ operations. It allows businesses to seize new growth opportunities faster than they could before and future proof their operations in new ways. By transforming digitally, businesses can plan and pivot at the same time.

There are so many stories of ���Ĵ�ý customers embarking on digital transformation journeys with important lessons to teach for industries.

Take the BMW Group for example: the company has had a longstanding partnership and collaboration with ���Ĵ�ý for more than 30 years. Last year, it entered a��new phase of its digital transformation journey��by moving to a digitized cloud architecture through ���Ĵ�ý S/4HANA for its iFactory in Oxford, UK.

Jointly creating the first blueprint for process digitization of automotive plants, it marks the first step to creating a digitized cloud architecture for its connected factories. The solution will simplify and unite the process of making complex changes to the IT systems of its plants in the areas of parts logistics, finance, and meeting customs requirements.

By doing so, the BMW Group intends to create a common digital language that will allow for reducing costs and increasing efficiency for its other automotive plants. And that could create a whole new standard for process efficiencies throughout the auto industry.

The BMW Group’s transformation story shows what is possible by moving to a cloud architecture. It also shows how the company is putting the pieces in place to take full advantage of generative AI as it ushers in a new wave of automation.

Despite a lot of macroeconomic uncertainty in the world, I believe the future for the auto industry could not be brighter. And it will belong to those who put digital transformation at the center of their business strategies, fueling unlimited possibilities for growth and success.

Scott Russell is a member of the Executive Board of ���Ĵ�ý SE.

In my role at ���Ĵ�ý, I speak to business leaders all the time about the value that generative AI can add to their business in ways they might not even realize, and I hear countless stories about how it is already starting to do that. One of my favorite examples is one that ���Ĵ�ý announced last week in an arena that is near and dear to me: finding and developing the next generation of star athletes.

As someone who used to play and coach basketball in Australia, I have had a lifelong appreciation of coaching but also of��scouting talent. Scouting is a discipline where art truly meets science, where experience and intuition are strengthened by the objective reality revealed by data.

While professional scouting has been around for a very long time, as more data on players becomes available, more teams are using it as��a competitive advantage. But that’s not as easy as it sounds. While the sophistication of scouting reports is impressive, the process of creating and using them effectively has never been efficient. When you consider how many potential young star athletes there are in the world, you can see how this would create an enormous amount of scouting reports to go through in a short period of time. The problem gets even more daunting when you consider that they are written in different languages and in different writing styles.��

In short, it’s��exactly the kind of challenge that generative AI for business is built to solve.

For proof of that, just look at the German professional soccer clubs FC Bayern Munich and Hertha BSC. For a long time, both clubs have employed talent scouts who travel the world watching matches and collecting reams of data about players in the hope of finding the next great star before any of their competitors do.

But to show how this could be done better, ���Ĵ�ý collaborated with FC Bayern Munich and Hertha BSC on a prototype. It uses generative AI to create automated summaries and recommendations of the reports created by their different scouts in different parts of the world and makes them available to club executives simply by asking for them in their natural language.

For example, imagine a German-speaking manager of the club being able ask for a key summary in 100 words or less of a scouting report on a young player who was scouted in Argentina and written in Spanish. That same manager can also ask it to compare two players based on their just their defensive skills or��endurance. While translation apps��can��translate��an��entire report from Spanish to German,��it takes a large language model (LLM) to create these summaries and competitive analyses on demand using natural language commands — essentially just the information that club executives really need to make informed decisions fast.

This is exactly what the prototype allowed these clubs to do. It��took��a time-consuming task and automated it in an intelligent way to make it useful. As a result, we will soon be rolling out this capability as part of our sports management suite, , which has already been helping athletes and teams get better results in their sport while also creating better experiences for their fans since 2015.

Why should business leaders care about better scouting reports? Two reasons: first, because they face many of the same challenges in their own business, needing to harness the power of their data quickly on demand for competitive advantage. And second, because generative AI is not just a specific solution for a specific problem.��Its true magic is that it is also scalable across an entire enterprise to address other business needs, from financing and supply chain management to procurement, travel, trainings, and more. For example, when generative AI is combined with ���Ĵ�ý Business Technology Platform (���Ĵ�ý BTP), businesses have the ability to write code, keeping their core clean and building generative AI extensions to further scale impact.

There is simply no doubt that data is the playbook of champions in sports. But it is also creating a new playbook of value in business. And with the era of generative AI for business only just beginning, I cannot wait to see what other amazing innovations will move from imagination to reality — and all of the value that they will create.

Scott Russell is a member of the Executive Board of ���Ĵ�ý SE.

There is simply no doubt that more and more companies will adopt business AI this year as a key part of their digital transformations and to future proof their operations. But to look at AI alone is to miss the bigger picture of this generational shift in enterprise technology.

While AI may get all of the attention, this is actually a moment when two transformative technologies for business are converging. On one side there is the awesome power of the cloud, which allows businesses to break down silos so their teams can access the data they need to innovate faster and in a more secure environment.��On the other side is generative AI for business, which can do everything from generating content and code to automating time-consuming tasks and discovering new insights.

But behind the hype and the headlines about generative AI lies a fundamental truth that IT professionals know very well: Any new technology only has value when it can be integrated seamlessly across systems and processes so organizations can do things they couldn’t do before.

In other words, it’s never about the new technology itself; it’s always about what the new technology can do to move businesses forward that really counts.

Increasingly, CIOs recognize what is at stake with getting generative business AI right. According to CITI’s 2Q23 CIO survey, 86% of respondents are directly funding generative AI projects. But there’s a lot of confusion about where these investments are best directed to drive growth for business and value for customers.

In my role for ���Ĵ�ý, I speak with CIOs all the time about how to make the most of their technology investments. And whether it’s the cloud or generative AI, my message to IT professionals is simple: experience within your industry and integration across your systems matter now more than ever. Working with experienced partners like ���Ĵ�ý is also the only way to unlock the power of responsible, reliable, and relevant AI for business.��

The potential of ERP systems powered by AI is huge. It could allow mundane tasks to be automated more intelligently, freeing up teams to tackle more strategic challenges. It could allow analytics to become even more predictive by using data in AI algorithms to identify trends and patterns long before they become obvious. And it could enhance customer experiences by using data on preferences coupled with real-time data on supply chains to help companies offer more personal recommendations while also making sure those products are available where and when people are ready to buy them.

���Ĵ�ý has been helping businesses use technology to solve these kinds of challenges for decades, starting with ERP and expanding across the enterprise. And while the idea of having cloud solutions augmented by AI might seem new, the reality is we have already been embedding AI into use cases. Today, more than 24,000 businesses are already using and benefiting from ���Ĵ�ý Business AI capabilities — and they are seeing impressive results.

For example, American Sugar Refining, Inc., which has been delivering sugarcane products for over 150 years, is now using AI embedded in ���Ĵ�ý Business Technology Platform to predict the cost of moving freight more accurately. Predictions that used to be a painstaking process are now being generated automatically in seconds. As a result, the company has been able to generate 2,200 forecasts for 628 trucking lanes sampled from six U.S. states with six months of data — with 95% accuracy.

Or take the example of Motor Oil Group, which need to monitor the health of its refinery equipment to minimize downtime and reduce maintenance costs. By embracing machine learning and predictive analytics from ���Ĵ�ý, the company has been able to build predictive models for abnormal events based on sensor data and feed them into user-friendly dashboards and e-mail notifications. As a result, it has been able to explain abnormal events with 77% accuracy and predict future sensor measurements with 70% accuracy.

These are just two examples of what’s already happening when AI is embedded into cloud solutions. And it is just the tip of the iceberg of what’s to come.

But to get the benefits of business AI, companies must first move to the cloud. And that raises an important question for IT professionals. What are you doing today to get ready for the coming flood of that will be available to you but also to your competitors?

This race has already started. Those who team up with partners with the right combination of experience and integration will be the ones set up to win it.

Scott Russell is head of Customer Success and a member of the Executive Board of ���Ĵ�ý SE.

It’s easy to see why. In a world where macroeconomic uncertainty has become the new normal, being future proof is no longer a “nice to have.” It’s a must have. One of the ways that many companies are getting there is by becoming smarter and more strategic about their IT planning and preparing for an AI-powered future.

I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase, “Work smarter, not harder.” The same is true when it comes to resiliency planning.

Businesses can become more resilient in many ways, from optimizing production with supply chain planning to better leveraging data to diversifying their suppliers, as well as by giving their workforce new tools and training to become future ready. While organizations always need to be able to respond quickly to operational disruptions and have a flexible contingency plan in place, true resiliency comes from being able to forecast and anticipate disruptions before they happen to avoid them altogether. 

Today, businesses have a golden opportunity to do this by moving their ERP systems to the cloud. Among many other benefits, the cloud allows them to react faster to the unexpected, scale their operations without requiring massive investments in hardware, and make it easier for teams to collaborate when troubleshooting a problem. We all saw a global case study in how the cloud can support resiliency when the pandemic hit in 2020. Companies that had moved their operations to the cloud were able to pivot far faster to the new realities of having a workforce that couldn’t be together physically.

In my role at ���Ĵ�ý, every day I see plenty of examples of customers using the cloud to work smarter and make their businesses more resilient.

Take, for instance, Nestlé S.A, which has been in business for more than 150 years. The company produces some of the most beloved brands in food, beverages, and nutritional products around the world. It has been an ���Ĵ�ý customer for over 20 years and recently selected RISE with ���Ĵ�ý to transform in the cloud. As a result, they’ll be able to automate processes across operations, create innovative business models at scale, and achieve greater agility and resilience.

We’ve also worked with Watco, a leading transportation and logistics provider, to streamline its financial planning, forecasting, and reporting processes. ���Ĵ�ý Analytics Cloud helped the company get access to a profit and loss account for each of its 200 individual locations as well as a comprehensive, consolidated company view. It has connected 320 team members, allowing them to collaborate on enterprise plans with one source of information across their locations to be better prepared for the unexpected.

But this is just the beginning. While having ERP systems in the cloud is essential for making any business future proof, the benefits become even greater when AI solutions are also built right into cloud solutions. AI promises to be a force multiplier. Together with the cloud, business AI has the potential to help companies become true systems of intelligence where speed and agility meet data and insight.

Every journey is different. But there is simply no doubt that businesses that are willing to invest in the latest cloud and business AI solutions with a trusted partner like ���Ĵ�ý will be able to future proof in ways that were previously unimaginable. And this is the most important thing they can do to thrive in an uncertain world.

In 2023, we saw what is possible when generative AI for business is specifically tailored to the unique business context of the company using it. With this in mind, I’m predicting that because of the growing power of generative AI for business — especially when it is embedded in ways that are relevant, reliable, and responsible — 2024 will be a watershed year for resiliency planning.

Those who are willing to make it central to their transformation journeys will open themselves up to new models and revenue streams that will become proof of their future promise. 

Scott Russell is a member of the Executive Board of ���Ĵ�ý SE, leading Customer Success.

Key Takeaways

• ���Ĵ�ý is proud to serve as New Zealand Rugby’s technology partner, helping to drive its digital transformation
• ���Ĵ�ý is supporting NZR’s journey to become more sustainable in several ways, including through ���Ĵ�ý SuccessFactors to modernize its HR operations and through ���Ĵ�ý Analytics Cloud and ���Ĵ�ý Datasphere to help identify sustainably metrics and targets to meet
• We are also honored to be one of the recipients of a Māori-crafted bench, which is a symbol of how our collaboration is so much more than a business partnership – truly, we’re a team

As the premier rugby tournament kicked off in Paris last week, audiences worldwide are celebrating this unique and thrilling sport.

Rugby forces players to take risks, be strategic and tactical, and, above all, rely on a solid, connected team of individuals that are greater than the sum of their parts.

Those same qualities are essential to transform digitally in today’s world. So as a lifelong rugby fan, I am proud that ���Ĵ�ý is New Zealand Rugby’s (NZR) partner, helping to power its digital transformation so the organization can keep its business and the sport of rugby stronger today and into the future.

This tournament, hosted every four years, holds special significance for me. As an Aussie who has spent a lot of time in New Zealand, I am a longtime fan of the NZR All Blacks team, which is also a strategic partner of ���Ĵ�ý.

Although it’s an internationally known powerhouse brand, NZR is a small business with less than 200 employees. But NZR has capitalized on its global game to become a digital enterprise, and ���Ĵ�ý has been part of its journey in several ways. 

Harmonizing HR for a Unique Employee Base 

NZR has keen respect for the beautiful Māori culture of New Zealand, which is interwoven into its operations. For example, when creating a new core HR program, NZR looked to the Māori concept of Pātaka, traditionally a small, raised house that is used on communal meeting spaces to place food for the community.

Applying this idea of a safe and sacred space to centralize people management, NZR worked with ���Ĵ�ý to develop its own Pātaka, an HR program built on ���Ĵ�ý SuccessFactors.

Pātaka will ensure the safe storage of NZR’s personal and organizational people data, modernize the way the organization recruits, provide candidate support, transform onboarding and offboarding processes, and will integrate with the payroll system. ���Ĵ�ý SuccessFactors features that will enhance the NZR people experiences include: 

• Leave Management: With Pātaka, NZR employees will continue to manage leave requests directly through a platform, but with an added benefit of this being available on mobile devices. 
• Talent Acquisition: Pātaka’s robust recruitment tools will make it easier for NZR’s People Leaders to attract and hire top talent. From posting job advertisements to applicant tracking and interviews, the entire process will be more efficient and user-friendly. 
• User Experience: Pātaka will provide NZR with a sleek and intuitive interface, offering a more modern and streamlined approach to supporting its people processes. 

Embracing Sustainability Across Operations 

New Zealand has an innate relationship with its land, air, and sea, and protecting that environment is part of NZR’s legacy. The organization as a whole recognizes its role to minimize impact on the environment and help influence others to do the same.

To strategically operate as a conscious, sustainable organization, NZR has identified themes in climate change, circular economy, and biodiversity to manage its efforts. But as the saying goes, you can’t manage what you don’t measure. That’s where ���Ĵ�ý has come in.

We have provided NZR with a technology solution to understand, visualize, and interpret many data points of its footprint. This is proving invaluable to enabling an understanding of where the organization can make changes at both a macro- and micro-level of policy and individual choices.

For example, ���Ĵ�ý and NZR have created a custom dashboard, powered by ���Ĵ�ý Analytics Cloud and ���Ĵ�ý Datasphere, which measures and displays carbon emissions by air travel class, aircraft type, business unit, destination, and other considerations. NZR now has more information to make more informed decisions to reduce air travel and, as a result, its carbon footprint in the world.

Connecting Community with a Bench for All

NZR and the All Blacks are famous for saying the team is only as good as its bench, meaning the 15 players on the field are only as successful as the eight players who are sitting on the bench. That’s because the eight on the bench may be called up to play at any moment — in the event of injury, they must jump in at a moment’s notice.

NZR extends the concept of the bench to the community that offers help off the field as well. It is the bench who are the team’s ultimate support network and who are ready to step up for their team at any moment. The bench is a symbol of connection, courage, camaraderie, and compassion.

The bench is as literal as it is conceptual, with physical benches serving an important role in Māori society to connect people and facilitate meetings that take place side by side, in a safe space.

At the premier rugby tournament now underway, the All Blacks are gifting benches crafted by the New Zealand Māori Arts & Crafts Institute to 26 communities across New Zealand, to host country France, and to ���Ĵ�ý, recognizing our organization as one of its many supporters.

We at ���Ĵ�ý are humbled to be the recipients of a Māori-crafted bench and see our collaboration with NZR as so much more than a business partnership. Truly, we are a team.

I wish all of the competitors the best of luck in Paris, but my heart will especially go out to the All Blacks, who are leading their organization while honoring their distinctive culture to a very exciting future.

Scott Russell is a member of the Executive Board of ���Ĵ�ý SE, leading Customer Success.

Coaching, playing, and watching one’s favorite players and sports teams brings forth emotion, passion, loyalty, and drive. It’s a feeling of association and experience that is unlike anything else. Sports are a great unifier.

���Ĵ�ý has a long history of working with sports franchises through technology enablement, sponsorships, and community impact. Earlier this week, for our commitment to sports for good and named as one of the world’s most impactful brands in the second annual , a list of companies using sport to drive social change.

Our sports sponsorships and advocacy of sports for good relate directly to our purpose, vision, and values.

���Ĵ�ý’s Purpose

���Ĵ�ý’s purpose is to help the world run better and improve people’s lives with sustainability at the core. That means aspiring to a world with zero emissions, zero waste, and zero inequality. In line with our purpose, ���Ĵ�ý’s objective is to create positive economic, environmental, and social impact.

Our purpose extends to working in collaboration with iconic sports brands worldwide. By partnering with ���Ĵ�ý, sports leagues, teams, and players work with us to make a difference in their organizations’ operations, in the performance of athletes, and in the communities they touch by using ���Ĵ�ý technology to advance social, economic, and environmental mandates.

Tapping into this excitement and exploring purposeful and impactful activations with sports brands helps ���Ĵ�ý humanize our company, reach more people, and demonstrate in a real way how we make the world run better and improve people’s lives.

Sports for Good

Helping people, communities, and society is core to ���Ĵ�ý’s promise and how we exemplify our brand.

I am proud of the work we do to advance science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics (STEAM) and education with the , how we support the , , and in their endeavors to create the best possible experience for fans, players, and employees. And our collaboration in golf with the Cameron Champ Foundation and aids and drives positive change.

Through the use of ���Ĵ�ý solutions and technology, sports brands can make informed, sustainable choices for people and performance. We have the technology to help sports venues better understand their carbon footprint to ultimately reduce their impact on the planet by consolidating and .

As someone whose life has been influenced by my experiences as a player and a coach, I am excited by ���Ĵ�ý’s drive to deliver positive social and environmental impact through sport, demonstrating the potential of technology to help sports organizations become both more successful and sustainable.

To this day, I believe that there is no better feeling than coming together and succeeding as a team. Partnering together to help sports scale impact requires us to bring our strongest team spirit to the table — and I’m here for it.

Scott Russell is a member of the Executive Board of ���Ĵ�ý SE.

The next time you’re listening to your favorite Apple Music playlist, consider the technology that is making it possible for you to listen to whatever you want, wherever you want. It’s thanks to cloud computing that we can access vast libraries of digitized music through a system that connects a global network of remote servers, which in turn host huge amounts of data.

In fact, “huge? is an understatement: by 2025, there will be . That’s a billion terabytes or a trillion gigabytes. And if you find it hard to wrap your head around the sheer vastness of that number, you are not alone.

Welcome to the Future

There is no doubt that cloud computing is one of the most profound technological innovations of our time. In the past, companies managed their hardware and software in a physical data center, but the virtual nature of the cloud offers a much more efficient alternative.

What’s more, the cloud creates the capacity for real-time updates and the ability to operate subscription models — like Apple Music, thanks to all the data hosted in the cloud’s remote network of servers.

At ���Ĵ�ý, we have more than 230 million cloud customers and counting. We’ve been producing software for businesses since 1972, and for us it’s about hitting that sweet spot where we can combine our wealth of business expertise with cutting-edge cloud technology.

Take, for example, RISE with ���Ĵ�ý. This comprehensive solution is designed for customers looking to migrate their businesses to the cloud and supports them wherever they are on the journey.

Pivot, Scale, and Engage

Cirque du Soleil is one of the world’s most impressive entertainment companies, not least due to its gravity-defying performances. When the pandemic hit and live events were abruptly cancelled, the company used the time to explore moving its business to the cloud so it could guard against future disruptions.

Philippe Lalumière, the company’s vice president of Information Technology, says: “Having the ability to quickly pivot, scale, and create new, engaging fan experiences has never been more important given the impact the global pandemic has had on the entertainment industry.”

For Elodie Bonniard, ���Ĵ�ý Platform team lead with Cirque du Soleil, the company’s infrastructure needed to better reflect its agility. “Cirque has a cloud mindset,” she says. “The way we built the system 20 years ago does not reflect the company now. We needed to move to a system with less limitations.”

She makes the point that moving to the cloud was about business transformation, rather than it being an IT project — and a move designed to support the company as it grows.

Being in the cloud means Cirque du Soleil can more efficiently manage finance, procurement, merchandising, and costume production thanks to operations being automated, analytics-driven, and integrated. To put this into context, in 2019, before the pandemic hit, the costume workshop produced more than 15,000 costumes, each with an average lifespan of three months. That’s a lot of costume changes to manage. With the cloud, each item can be tracked in real-time, enabling far more efficient inventory management.

Find the Right Moment

In another example, Tate & Lyle, the global food and beverage business, used RISE with ���Ĵ�ý to enable a key step in its ongoing transformation — a major project to split its operations into two to prepare for the sale of a part of its business, which will leave Tate & Lyle focused on food and beverage specialty solutions in the sugar reduction and sweeteners, mouthfeel, and fortification space.

In fact, Tate & Lyle’s group CIO Sanjay Patel had been looking for an opportunity to complete the company’s journey to the cloud for a couple of years, and this separation presented the perfect opportunity.

“The most critical advice I can give is what I spent two years doing: find the right strategic trigger point to go on the journey,” says Patel.

Once Tate & Lyle began its journey to move ERP into the cloud, other improvements presented themselves. “When the separation came along and we were moving the ERP infrastructure to the cloud, it made sense to build the case for business process simplification��too,” Patel explains. “The long-term financials and business continuity risk made more sense with RISE.”

As cloud technology evolves, we evolve. At ���Ĵ�ý, we will continue to power and help guide the development of these innovations for both businesses and consumers. Thanks to the cloud, our lives will never look the same again — in the best way possible.

Scott Russell is a member of the Executive Board of ���Ĵ�ý SE and head of Customer Success.
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The��fashion industry��is one of the most significant contributors to the climate��crisis��today.��Between��excess��water,��dangerous��chemicals, carbon emissions, and��huge amounts of��waste, the fashion industry faces a critical��juncture. Will the industry seize the opportunity��to change its course��and positively impact the planet?��Despite the��huge task at hand,��creative and innovative entrepreneurs��provide hope for��a more sustainable future for fashion.

I had the privilege to��sit down and��speak with��one such entrepreneur, Stephanie Benedetto, to learn more about how she is changing the textile industry and the world while encouraging others to have courage in their convictions and act on their beliefs. and read more about her story below.

From Rags to Circular Riches

In 1896, an Austrian man arrived on a boat on Ellis Island. As an immigrant chasing the “American dream” in the Lower East Side of New York, he started a business, one that generated profit while doing good for the planet. He repurposed old fabrics and furs brought over by other immigrants and transformed them into beautiful fashion garments.

One hundred years later, this profitable clothing business with humble beginnings would inspire the Austrian immigrant’s great granddaughter, Benedetto, to leave her job as a corporate attorney and become a fashion tech and sustainability entrepreneur. Benedetto returned to her roots and sparked disruption with the goal of building a business to change the world, scaling her grandfather’s efforts for even greater impact.

Meet the Queen of Raw

Stephanie Benedetto, CEO and founder of ,��is a��visionary entrepreneur, creating opportunity out of��the��seemingly insurmountable challenges facing the fashion industry.��Today,�� sits in warehouses and used for clothing ends up burned or in landfills.

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Benedetto��wanted to��eliminate the��excess water, waste, and emissions that had become an��inherent��part of the��value chain��for clothing��production. She sought to��turn pollution into profit through��the creation of��a��global marketplace��that allowed��users��to��list, sell, and buy��deadstock fabric.��This led to Queen of Raw, which��offers��new life to sustainable materials, including��organic cotton, peace silk, faux leather and fur, and quality luxury deadstock fabrics.

Technology��to Scale for Impact

Using supply chain software, powered by artificial intelligence (AI), Queen of Raw alters the linear economic model typical of the fashion industry and transforms it into a circular economic model, protecting the environment while driving value financially. At its core, Queen of Raw uses technology to drive sustainability at scale, repurposing textile waste so it can be turned into something beautiful.

But��Queen of Raw��seeks to��go beyond creating a marketplace for deadstock fabric.

“A marketplace to sell waste is great,” said Benedetto. “It’s powerful, but it’s kind of just slapping a band aid on the problem.”

So how do you get to the root of the problem to figure out��how to minimize waste?

“That’s where we leverage our incredible partnership with ���Ĵ�ý, helping businesses capture data through machine learning, AI, and blockchain so they can act on the waste — and water — challenge at hand,” said Benedetto.

Data insights and transparency provide��a key��piece of the puzzle when it comes to enabling more sustainable business practices globally.��Technology, collaboration, and innovation make��widespread��change possible, and Queen of Raw provides��an encouraging, real-life example of how��business leaders can bring��these elements��together to marry��people,��planet,��and profit��at scale.

Reimagining Fashion, Textiles and Supply Chains

Benedetto demonstrates��firsthand the incredible potential of��technology��to reimagine��fashion, textiles, and��value��chains.��Her��optimism and creativity��in the face of a water crisis and��a��waste problem��provides hope for a better future.��And she has strong reason to believe that her business and the commitment of other purpose-driven entrepreneurs can make a difference.

Since it began��in 2018, Queen of Raw has already saved 1 billion gallons of water.��By��democratizing access to the resale technologies, Benedetto is��empowering��groups��across industries��to participate in the circular economy.

Together,��through creative solutions like Queen of Raw,��we can��help��foster��a��more sustainable world, one��we can be proud of��leaving��behind for the next generation��– with fresh water to drink��and��clean air to breathe.

Scott Russell is a member of the Executive Board of ���Ĵ�ý SE.
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Now in its ninth year, the ���Ĵ�ý Innovation Awards 2022 commemorate the achievements of companies and organizations that have utilized ���Ĵ�ý products and technologies to set new standards for creating value, disrupting industries, and improving lives. The competition is an opportunity to highlight successes and innovation leadership while gaining recognition and acclaim — and having a bit of fun while helping the world run better.

Celebratory Event Has Become the New Industry New Standard

Since its formation in 2014, the ���Ĵ�ý Innovation Awards have attracted growing interest from all corners of the business world, with a year-over-year growth in the number of submissions by 44% percent. Unlike the “rinse and repeat” cycle of other award presentations, there is no set formula for earning one of our prestigious prizes. The innovations reflect fresh thinking and originality, and the diversity among the 2021 winners was noteworthy, as you will see.

The 2022 entrants hope to do their predecessors one better and demonstrate how they’ve expanded on these advances, in keeping with the overall theme of making society more productive and humane, and bringing both relief and a sense of appeal to the workspace.

Setting New Precedents

As COVID-19 impacted much of the planet, the 2021 winners embodied the adage that adversity can inspire innovation. Among the memorable selections:

• responded to the crisis by introducing a new command center to improve patient care
• introduced a remote learning network within days that addressed both the physical and mental health needs of students and staff
• created a solution leading to the rental of sustainable and recyclable fashions
• launched a ground-breaking application with unlimited scale, enabling the company to manage greater transaction volumes with higher levels of sophistication
• compensated for cancelled equestrian events with live simulations and a fan experience app that engaged supporters and attracted major brands

And these are only a few examples. You can check out .

Part of a Greater Good

In total, the 2022 ���Ĵ�ý Innovation Awards will recognize up to 25 winners across eight categories:

• 50th Anniversary Legend
• Social Catalyst
• Industry Leader
• Transformation Champion
• Business Innovator
• Adoption Superhero
• Partner Paragon
• Cutting-Edge Genius

Selections will be judged based on how ���Ĵ�ý products have been used to break new technological ground and enhance the “greater good” – not about generating more profit.

In tribute to all participants, ���Ĵ�ý has pledged to donate up to $20,000 to , a global children’s charity committed to ending the global education crisis by focusing on quality preschool care and more. Additionally, the 25 winners will each receive a $1,000 voucher that can be donated to a high-impact project of their choice. Winners will also have brand amplification opportunities such as a feature mention in a Forbes.com blog, potential media interviews and keynote presentations, and indisputable recognition as an industry leader.

So the question is: Are you ready to be a part of the ���Ĵ�ý Innovation Awards?

Don’t Miss the Submission Deadline

This year’s entry submission period started on August 2 and continues until January 31, 2022. ���Ĵ�ý will announce its list of finalists on March 16, 2022.�� Winners will be announced on April 14, 2022.

To learn more and begin filling out your entry form to submit, visit the .

Scott Russell is a member of the Executive Board of ���Ĵ�ý SE and head of the Customer Success organization.