How to Design Technology Architecture in the SAP Era: A TOGAF® ADM Phase D Perspective
A detailed roadmap outlining SAP's technology architecture and strategic initiatives from 2024 to 2027 and beyond.
Introduction: Designing Technology Architecture in the SAP Era
SAP’s technology portfolio is rapidly shifting toward the cloud, with offerings such as SAP S/4HANA, RISE with SAP, and SAP BTP leading the transformation.
At the same time, many enterprises must operate in hybrid environments that include on-premises systems and legacy landscapes. This makes it increasingly complex to design a coherent Technology Architecture as part of Enterprise Architecture.
This article examines TOGAF® ADM Phase D (Technology Architecture) and explains its purpose, key deliverables, and required skill sets in the context of SAP implementation projects—specifically for enterprise architects.
What is TOGAF® ADM Phase D?
Positioning of Technology Architecture
In TOGAF®, Phase D focuses on developing the Technology Architecture.
This is not merely an infrastructure diagram. It is a structured representation of platform services and logical/physical components that support business, data, and application architectures.
It answers critical questions such as:
Where should systems be deployed (on-premises, cloud, SAP data centers)?
On which OS, virtualization platforms, middleware, and network layers will SAP and related systems run?
How will availability, performance, security, and operability be ensured?
From an Enterprise Architecture perspective, Technology Architecture is the layer that makes business and application architectures realistically implementable and sustainable.
Purpose of Phase D in SAP Projects
Making Architecture “Implementable”
In SAP programs, business processes and application architectures (e.g., S/4HANA, BTP, integrations) are defined in Phases B and C.
Phase D translates these into executable technical components such as infrastructure, cloud services, networks, and security.
Its objectives include:
Defining the target Technology Architecture that supports business and application goals
Identifying gaps between current and target architectures
Creating an Architecture Roadmap that defines transformation steps (e.g., cloud migration, infrastructure modernization)
In practice, this becomes the “common blueprint” aligning infrastructure, Basis, security, network, and application teams.
Phase D Process in SAP Context
Reframed for SAP projects, Phase D typically follows these steps:
Select reference models and tools
SAP Reference Architecture, cloud Well-Architected Frameworks, internal standards
Connect architecture to business outcomes (TCO, speed, standardization)
Align cross-functional stakeholders and drive consensus
Key Takeaways for Enterprise Architects
Phase D ensures SAP architectures are technically feasible and sustainable
Core deliverables include target architecture, component models, evaluated options, and roadmap
Success requires both deep technical expertise and strong stakeholder alignment
By mastering these elements, Technology Architecture evolves beyond infrastructure diagrams into a strategic capability that balances business value and risk.
TOGAF® – The Open Group (Official) (General TOGAF framework, ADM context; useful as a top-level reference) https://www.opengroup.org/togaf
Disclaimer
Parts of this article were developed with reference to generative AI suggestions and were reviewed, refined, and supplemented based on the author’s professional expertise and judgment.