** LAUDERDALE, Fla. ** — SAP SE (NYSE: SAP) today announced that the global partner network implementing the SAP Hybris Cloud for Sales and SAP Hybris Cloud for Service solutions has grown by more than 570 partners within just one year – an increase of over 50 percent.

Partners include Accenture Interactive, Capgemini, Deloitte Digital and IBM, all of which are sponsors of the SAP Hybris Americas Summit event, being held in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, from October 12–14, 2016. These key partners and others continue to help drive cloud solution adoption for customers of SAP Hybris solutions.

As the lines between customer-facing departments like sales and service blur, organizations are seeking ways to share information better and deliver a streamlined approach to customer engagement. Recent research from the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Council and SAP Hybris* reveals that nearly one-quarter of global marketers estimate that only 25 percent to 50 percent of their data is being accessed in real time for actionable customer insights.

SAP has identified this growing demand for integration of sales force automation and customer service and recognized the opportunity this market provides for SAP and its partnership roster. To help partners better service customers and meet their specific requirements, SAP has enhanced its offering of training and certifications within its partner program. In 2016, the number of partner consultants whose service abilities for the SAP Hybris Cloud for Sales and SAP Hybris Cloud for Service solutions were certified by SAP increased 145 percent.

“Cloud delivery has been key to helping businesses transform their customer engagement efforts, as it provides the scalability and flexibility needed in today’s digital economy,” said Patrick Finn, senior vice president, Strategic Alliances, SAP Hybris. “SAP Hybris and our partners are collaborating to provide customers with digital transformation capabilities that help build profitable, long-term customer engagement. By connecting our partners to the SAP PartnerEdge program, we’ve built a solid sales and delivery channel that is aggressively winning market share for SAP Hybris solutions.”

The SAP Hybris Cloud for Customer solution brings together sales and service with two integrated solutions to help companies drive customer engagement across all communication channels. The portfolio includes SAP Hybris Cloud for Sales – an easy-to-use cloud sales application that goes beyond the traditional approach to customer relationship management (CRM) – and SAP Hybris Cloud for Service, a cloud-based customer service offering.

All SAP partners have an opportunity to be a part of the award-winning SAP PartnerEdge program and earn solution-specific certifications. The SAP PartnerEdge program provides partners with the tools, resources and advantages to help them build, run and grow a profitable business.