< Back to Blogs
play-button-podcast
Share:

SAP’s David Vallejo on the New Era of Planning: From Algorithms to Data-Driven Confidence

In a rapidly evolving global supply chain landscape, SAP’s David Vallejo believes the most exciting innovations are happening in planning—and that the industry is entering a fundamentally new era. At the Gartner Supply Chain Planning Summit 2025 in Denver, Vallejo, who leads global product marketing for SAP’s supply chain portfolio, joined Scott Luton to discuss how planning is transforming, why data now sits at the center of competitiveness, and what SAP is doing to help organizations make faster, more confident decisions.

 

A Shift From ERP-Centric to Data-Centric

Vallejo described his team’s role as one that constantly scans the market—identifying trends, customer expectations, and the problems companies will need to solve next. Those insights help shape new innovations across the SAP ecosystem.

He noted that SAP has moved decisively from an ERP-centric worldview to a data-centric one. This shift is essential, he argued, because the biggest advantage in modern planning lies in having the right data—clean, connected, contextualized, and ready to drive decisions.

As Vallejo put it, “It’s all about the data that I need to make better planning decisions.”

 

Planning Models Are No Longer Static

Reflecting on how planning has evolved since he entered the field two decades ago, Vallejo described a dramatic shift. Historically, organizations built a static model of their supply chain—suppliers, stocking locations, customers—and ran algorithms to generate a plan.

Today’s world no longer allows for static assumptions. Trade uncertainty, shifting supplier networks, evolving consumer expectations, and generational changes in the workforce mean the “model” itself changes constantly.

Modern software, he explained, must reflect a world that evolves daily. That requires flexibility, agility, and a new level of responsiveness far beyond what traditional optimization engines were built for.

 

The New Competition: Confidence Through Data

For years, software vendors differentiated themselves through algorithmic capabilities, then through dashboards and user experience. According to Vallejo, the next competitive frontier is something deeper: empowering planners with the confidence needed to make decisions outside traditional norms.

To achieve that, organizations must integrate not only their operational data, but also financial, environmental, economic, and geopolitical signals—together forming a centralized data foundation.

With this foundation in place, companies can finally unlock AI in a meaningful way.

Vallejo emphasized that this isn’t about replacing humans; it’s about augmenting them. Grounded AI can analyze vast and diverse data streams, surface insights, and act as an intelligent assistant that guides users to stronger, faster, more informed decisions.

 

Meeting the Expectations of the Next-Gen Workforce

Vallejo also highlighted an important cultural shift: the growing expectations of younger workers. They want technology that guides them, teaches them, and accelerates their success. Intelligent assistants and AI agents are no longer “nice to have”—they’re what the next generation expects from modern enterprise systems.

SAP, he said, is positioning itself to deliver agents that not only support planning, but draw insights across logistics, manufacturing, and customer operations. The goal: a true, orchestrated supply chain.

 

Where to Learn More

Vallejo encourages leaders to explore SAP’s latest innovations at sap.com/scm and to connect with him directly on LinkedIn, where he regularly engages on supply chain transformation topics. Check out recent Supply Chain Now webinars featuring SAP leaders speaking on topics such as logistics optimization and supply chain orchestration.

We also invite you to listen to the full audio version of this interview with Scott W. Luton and David Vallejo: click here.

More Blogs

supply chain analytics
Blogs
September 8, 2026

Giving Time Back: How Smarter Procurement Can Support Education’s Mission

In schools and childcare centers, every dollar counts. But there’s another resource that may be just as precious: time. In a recent conversation with Scott Luton, Ashley Hubka, SVP & GM of Walmart Business, explored the often-overlooked role procurement plays in education. From preparing for the back-to-school rush to managing staff shortages and embracing AI, Hubka’s message was consistent: Simplifying routine purchasing can give educators and administrators more time to focus on the people they serve. And that opportunity may be substantial: according to a recent survey of more than 500 decision-makers at businesses with 10–500 employees, 37% of business leaders spend 4–7 hours each week on routine purchasing. Different Organizations, Similar Challenges A school district serving 30,000 students and a childcare center supporting 500 children may operate at vastly different scales, but Hubka says their procurement challenges often look surprisingly similar. Both organizations must stretch budgets, stay stocked, support multiple users and locations, and respond quickly when needs change. When purchasing is fragmented across suppliers and systems, they face increased complexity and reduced visibility. The back-to-school season magnifies those challenges. “Back-to-school condenses months of planning and purchasing into a very short window,” Hubka explained. At the same time organizations…
automation
Blogs
April 27, 2026

Chaos, Capacity, and the Case for Automation: Pete Blair with Pickle Robot

At MODEX 2026 in Atlanta, the energy was unmistakable. With thousands of supply chain professionals gathered, one theme echoed across conversations: uncertainty is no longer episodic. It’s constant and seemingly endless. In a candid discussion with Scott Luton, Pete Blair, VP of Product & Marketing at Pickle Robot, unpacked how organizations are navigating volatility, workforce challenges, and the growing role of automation in keeping operations moving.   Navigating Tariffs and a Moving Target If there’s one word defining today’s global supply chain environment, it’s unpredictability. Blair points to tariffs as a prime example; and not just their presence, but their volatility. “The biggest thing we see… is the chaos of tariffs. It’s not so much that customers have to pay tariffs or not pay tariffs, it’s that they don’t know how to plan,” Blair explains. That lack of predictability is forcing organizations to rethink their networks in real time. Companies are shifting sourcing strategies, standing up temporary distribution centers in new geographies, and even making drastic decisions about whether importing goods makes financial sense at all. What’s particularly challenging isn’t the cost itself. But rather, it’s the inability to forecast. Supply chains, while resilient, aren’t designed for abrupt swings like…