Rimini Street CEO Seth Ravin proposed an “AI last” approach to ERP transformation: companies should first identify the problems they need to solve and assess expected return on investment (ROI), then decide whether to apply AI. He said deploying AI where it is not needed can create excessive costs. Rimini Street helps customers assess opportunities with templates, checklists, and an ROI analysis framework, he said, stressing that AI is not the answer to every business problem.

The strategy keeps existing ERP systems in place rather than replacing them wholesale, and adds an agentic AI layer above them to address new business needs. In Rimini Agentic UX, users handle work through one interface instead of separate application screens, while existing applications provide functions underneath. Rimini Street’s South Korea country manager, Hyung-wook Kim, said existing ERP processes remain necessary; the idea is to respond to change on top of those processes instead of upgrading or migrating every time.

The proposed tools layer uses ServiceNow, but Ravin said Palantir and Microsoft are also options. He rejected the claim that the future lies in a fully integrated platform combining every function in a single ERP. SAP itself connects separate products such as SAP SuccessFactors, SAP Ariba, and Hybris, now SAP Commerce Cloud; not every function is included in SAP S/4HANA. Ravin said many SAP customers want to retain only core financial functions such as FICO, and described SAP’s latest release as architecturally outdated.

Ravin said a large-scale move from SAP ECC 6.0 to SAP S/4HANA can cost hundreds of millions of dollars and take 3–5 years. Rimini Street calls its approach “Rimini Smart Path”: halt upgrades or migrations whose value is unclear and redirect staff, time, and money to new projects. Ravin said customized, stable systems can continue operating for another 15–20 years without wholesale replacement, freeing savings for innovation. He said executives can understand the case when shown simplified processes, where AI informs decisions, and the expected improvements; solutions can be implemented within 2 weeks in response to business teams’ requests. He added that the solutions work across ERP and transaction systems including SAP and Oracle.

Ravin advised CIOs to consider alternatives instead of automatically following familiar upgrade paths. He asked what condition a project that takes 5 years to complete would be in if it were already outdated when it began, and said adapting to technological change requires an open mind. Kim cited a Gartner report that listed uncertain ROI, lengthy transition periods, and satisfaction with current capabilities as reasons South Korean companies hesitate to change ERP systems. He said moving from SAP ECC 6.0 to SAP S/4HANA is a migration of the work environment, not a simple upgrade. Companies may struggle to be confident of improvements in revenue, profitability, and productivity, and the transition can take 2–3 years or longer.

Kim said the proposal is not to rule out any particular ERP system: companies should wait when ROI is unclear and switch when the value is established. One option, he said, is to adopt an agentic AI architecture while keeping ERP as the system of record, then move to technology such as SAP S/4HANA if its value is judged sufficient in 5 years. He said the decision should follow the customer’s timetable, not the ERP vendor’s.

Rimini Street CEO Seth Ravin proposed an “AI last” approach to ERP transformation: companies should first identify the problems they need to solve and assess expected return on investment (ROI), then decide whether to apply AI. He said deploying AI where it is not needed can create excessive costs. Rimini Street helps customers assess opportunities with templates, checklists, and an ROI analysis framework, he said, stressing that AI is not the answer to every business problem.

The strategy keeps existing ERP systems in place rather than replacing them wholesale, and adds an agentic AI layer above them to address new business needs. In Rimini Agentic UX, users handle work through one interface instead of separate application screens, while existing applications provide functions underneath. Rimini Street’s South Korea country manager, Hyung-wook Kim, said existing ERP processes remain necessary; the idea is to respond to change on top of those processes instead of upgrading or migrating every time.

The proposed tools layer uses ServiceNow, but Ravin said Palantir and Microsoft are also options. He rejected the claim that the future lies in a fully integrated platform combining every function in a single ERP. SAP itself connects separate products such as SAP SuccessFactors, SAP Ariba, and Hybris, now SAP Commerce Cloud; not every function is included in SAP S/4HANA. Ravin said many SAP customers want to retain only core financial functions such as FICO, and described SAP’s latest release as architecturally outdated.

Ravin said a large-scale move from SAP ECC 6.0 to SAP S/4HANA can cost hundreds of millions of dollars and take 3–5 years. Rimini Street calls its approach “Rimini Smart Path”: halt upgrades or migrations whose value is unclear and redirect staff, time, and money to new projects. Ravin said customized, stable systems can continue operating for another 15–20 years without wholesale replacement, freeing savings for innovation. He said executives can understand the case when shown simplified processes, where AI informs decisions, and the expected improvements; solutions can be implemented within 2 weeks in response to business teams’ requests. He added that the solutions work across ERP and transaction systems including SAP and Oracle.

Ravin advised CIOs to consider alternatives instead of automatically following familiar upgrade paths. He asked what condition a project that takes 5 years to complete would be in if it were already outdated when it began, and said adapting to technological change requires an open mind. Kim cited a Gartner report that listed uncertain ROI, lengthy transition periods, and satisfaction with current capabilities as reasons South Korean companies hesitate to change ERP systems. He said moving from SAP ECC 6.0 to SAP S/4HANA is a migration of the work environment, not a simple upgrade. Companies may struggle to be confident of improvements in revenue, profitability, and productivity, and the transition can take 2–3 years or longer.

Kim said the proposal is not to rule out any particular ERP system: companies should wait when ROI is unclear and switch when the value is established. One option, he said, is to adopt an agentic AI architecture while keeping ERP as the system of record, then move to technology such as SAP S/4HANA if its value is judged sufficient in 5 years. He said the decision should follow the customer’s timetable, not the ERP vendor’s.