Summary

As a design strategist and innovation leader, I drive scalable, user-centered solutions that enable organizations to embed innovation into their culture and operations. In this project, I worked with SAP AppHaus to redefine how 400,000 SAP customers and thousands of partners approach innovation—transitioning from high-touch, consultant-driven engagements to a scalable, self-service model.

I led the design, framework development, and platform strategy for the SAP Innovation Toolkit, a comprehensive design thinking and technical enablement platform. By blending human-centered design with enterprise technology, I helped SAP create a structured, repeatable approach for organizations to adopt, sustain, and scale innovation independently.

This case highlights my ability to craft frameworks, scale design-led innovation, and bridge user needs with business strategy.

Project Overview

SAP serves a vast global ecosystem of 400,000 customers and thousands of partners, each with unique business models, technical infrastructures, and innovation goals. Over seven years, SAP AppHaus successfully guided select customers through high-touch, facilitated design engagements—but this approach was not scalable.

The challenge was clear: how could SAP equip more organizations to drive innovation autonomously? Companies needed practical, structured guidance to move from ideation to execution without relying on SAP consultants.

To address this, I collaborated with SAP’s innovation team to develop the SAP Innovation Toolkit—a self-service platform offering curated frameworks, practical tools, and technical guidance. By designing a scalable innovation model, I helped SAP democratize human-centered design and enterprise transformation across its ecosystem.

Key Challenges

Despite widespread enthusiasm for innovation, SAP customers and partners faced persistent barriers to launching and sustaining meaningful change:

• Lack of Clear Guidance – Many companies, particularly CTOs like Ted (a key persona we designed for), recognized the importance of in-house innovation capabilities but had no structured approach to build them. Without a framework, efforts were often ad-hoc and unsustainable.
• Scalability Limitations – SAP’s high-touch engagements were impactful, but they could only reach a fraction of the 400,000 customers in the ecosystem. A scalable, self-service approach was needed to expand innovation across diverse industries and organizational sizes.
• Fragmented and Incomplete Resources – Existing innovation guides were dispersed, inconsistent, and incomplete, missing essential leadership, technology, and process enablers. Customers struggled to align innovation efforts with business strategy and existing SAP infrastructures.
• Lack of Adoption Frameworks – Many organizations started innovation initiatives but failed to integrate them into their organizational culture and operational models, leading to short-lived, siloed projects instead of sustained transformation.

These challenges underscored the need for a holistic, structured approach that organizations could adopt independently and at scale.

Approach & Solution

To transform how SAP customers and partners approach innovation, I led the design and strategy of the SAP Innovation Toolkit—a self-service platform that provides:

• A structured framework for building an innovation culture
• A comprehensive, persona-driven library of design methods and technical enablement tools
• A user-friendly digital platform that empowers teams to drive innovation without external consultants

I structured the Innovation Toolkit around five critical enablers of successful, scalable innovation:

1. Leadership Commitment – Ensuring executive buy-in and alignment with business goals.
2. People & Collaboration – Building cross-functional teams that drive and sustain innovation.
3. Process & Methodology – Embedding design thinking and iterative development into workflows.
4. Place & Culture – Creating spaces, rituals, and mindsets that foster continuous innovation.
5. Technology & Foundations – Aligning innovation efforts with enterprise technology architectures.

To bring this vision to life, I played a key leadership role in:

• Refining the Innovation Culture Framework – I expanded SAP’s existing models with new research-backed insights and ensured they addressed real-world organizational challenges.
• Curating and Structuring the Toolkit – I led the development of a comprehensive resource library with both interactive and static tools tailored for different types of organizations.
• Persona-Driven Design – By designing the toolkit around specific user personas (e.g., CTOs, design strategists, and IT leaders), I ensured practical relevance and direct usability.
• Developing the Digital Platform – I worked with cross-functional teams to design a scalable, intuitive online experience, now available at SAP Innovation Toolkit.

This approach transformed SAP’s innovation enablement model from a consultant-driven service into a scalable, widely accessible product.

Impact & Business Value

The SAP Innovation Toolkit has fundamentally shifted how organizations approach innovation—moving from reliance on SAP consultants to self-directed, structured innovation initiatives. Key outcomes include:

• Scalability & Reach – The self-service model has dramatically expanded SAP’s ability to support global customers, enabling companies of all sizes to adopt and sustain innovation efforts independently.
• Empowered Innovation Leaders – Customers now have clear, structured pathways for launching design-driven transformation efforts, eliminating the previous ambiguity and fragmentation.
• Cultural Transformation – Organizations leveraging the toolkit report stronger executive buy-in, better cross-functional collaboration, and long-term innovation mindset shifts.
• Direct Customer Adoption & Feedback – Early adopters have praised the toolkit for its practicality, accessibility, and direct relevance to real-world business challenges.

This transformation represents a critical shift in enterprise innovation enablement, making SAP’s design and technical expertise accessible at scale.

Key Learnings & Strategic Insights

Through the design and deployment of the SAP Innovation Toolkit, I uncovered critical insights applicable to broader enterprise innovation challenges:

• Leadership & Technology Are Essential to Scalable Innovation – Successful transformation efforts require executive commitment and a clear technological foundation. A design-driven approach alone is not enough—it must be embedded into business and IT strategies.
• Persona-Driven Design Ensures Adoption – By building tools around real-world user needs, we eliminated adoption barriers and ensured that teams could immediately apply what they learned. Future iterations should continue refining personas to address emerging user needs.
• Scalable Models Must Balance Flexibility & Structure – The key to widespread adoption was creating a framework that was structured enough to provide direction yet flexible enough to be adapted to different industries, company sizes, and business contexts.
• Iterative Development Is Key – By continuously incorporating user feedback, we ensured that the toolkit evolved in direct response to customer needs, strengthening its long-term impact and relevance.

These learnings reinforce the importance of scalable, structured innovation enablement—a key priority for any large enterprise, cloud platform, or AI-driven technology company.

Takeaways

This project highlights my expertise in scaling design-led innovation, developing structured UX and business frameworks, and translating research into enterprise-wide impact.

• I design frameworks that scale – I create repeatable, structured innovation models that enable long-term adoption at enterprise scale.
• I integrate design with business strategy – I ensure that human-centered design aligns with executive priorities, technology roadmaps, and organizational realities.
• I create digital tools that drive transformation – I lead cross-functional teams to build scalable platforms, ensuring design expertise is accessible and actionable for enterprise users.