Accelerating business transformation with a next-gen SAP platform

Bell sets the stage for agility and growth with SAP S/4HANA and IBM Consulting

Illustration of communication tower sending signals to router and smartphone
Modernizing SAP environments to enable scalable transformation

Bell is Canada’s largest communications company based on total revenue and combined customer connections, operating some of the country’s most critical digital and network infrastructure. Through advanced fiber and wireless networks, enterprise services and digital media, Bell plays a central role in connecting Canadians, businesses and institutions across the country.

Bell’s extensive scale and national reach were initially supported by standardized business processes that leveraged integrated ERP flows within its SAP environment, enabling core finance, supply chain, and operational functions across its business units. Over time, the size, integration complexity and volume of historical data—spanning hundreds of interfaces and terabytes of information—meant Bell needed a more agile, future ready foundation to continue evolving at pace with its business.

Bell made the strategic decision to modernize its SAP landscape—treating the transformation as a cornerstone of its broader digital and operational strategy. The objective was not only to modernize infrastructure, but to establish a resilient, cloud enabled platform capable of supporting innovation, agility and long-term transformation across the organization.
44% reduction in data volume from 18 TB to 10 TB 25,000 custom objects successfully remediated 15,000 users on cloud-native SAP S/4HANA
The successful migration to S/4HANA represents a pivotal moment for our organization. This achievement, delivered on time and within budget with our partner IBM, provides us with a modern, scalable platform to drive innovation and achieve our strategic goals. The team’s dedication and expertise ensured minimal disruption to our core business operations.
Thierry Chaumont SVP, Controller and Tax BCE & Bell
Delivering seamless, SAP-enabled finance transformation in the cloud

To support this transformation, Bell selected IBM Consulting as a strategic delivery partner, working alongside Bell teams to implement a next generation SAP platform on budget in 16 months. Under Bell’s transformation roadmap, its SAP ERP Central Component (ECC) was migrated to SAP S/4HANA and Google Cloud, reducing data volume from 18 TB to 10 TB and improving the user experience with SAP Fiori. As part of the project, several SAP surrounding systems, including Business Objects Data Services (BODS), Taulia, Adaptive Processing Server Services (APSS) and Business Planning and Consolidation (BPC), were also migrated onto Google Cloud—modernizing core systems while preserving business continuity across critical operations.

IBM assembled the right team for success, including IBM Business Partners SNP and smartShift. SNP’s software-driven platform for selective data transformation enables rapid understanding of Bell’s complex SAP landscape and efficient migration of massive data volumes. smartShift brought AI-powered code remediation capabilities, helping modernize and future-proof over 25,000 custom Advanced Business Application Programming (ABAP) objects, de-risking the transition and helping ensure long-term maintainability.

Using IBM® Rapid Move for SAP S/4HANA, the transformation was designed and executed with continuity as a priority, ensuring Bell’s critical services—relied upon daily by employees, partners and customers across the country—remained uninterrupted throughout the migration of more than 700 interfaces. IBM application modernization services and IBM finance consulting services helped further enhance Bell’s operations—accelerating reporting, shortening close cycles and enabling quicker, more strategic data-driven decision-making.
This SAP S/4HANA upgrade at Bell wasn’t just a system refresh; it was a foundational leap. By prioritizing quality and seamless execution with IBM, we’ve transformed one of our most critical and complex platforms into a strategically vital, scalable backbone, directly underpinning our overarching Bell Transformation strategy and unlocking new possibilities.
Sergio Carriero Director, IT Delivery Corporate Technology Solutions
Building a future‑ready foundation to support Bell’s role in Canada’s digital economy

Bell now operates on a streamlined, cloud-enabled SAP S/4HANA environment that supports over 15,000 users across multiple lines of business. The new SAP platform strengthens Bell’s ability to operate at national scale—delivering faster performance, greater scalability and improved resilience, while giving teams the tools they need to support Canadians, businesses, and institutions in an increasingly digital world.

Some key outcomes include:

  • 15,000 users supported on a cloud-native SAP S/4HANA environment, enhancing scalability
  • 44% reduction in data volume, from 18 TB to 10 TB, streamlining system performance
  • 25,000 plus custom objects remediated, reducing complexity and operational risk
  • 700 plus interfaces migrated, helping ensure seamless integration across business processes
  • 143 company codes streamlined to 57

IBM continues to support Bell as a strategic partner, helping the company evolve their IT and finance capabilities.
About Bell

Bell is considered Canada’s largest communications company, leading the way in advanced fiber and wireless networks, enterprise services and digital media. By delivering next-generation technology that leverages cloud-based and AI-driven solutions, they’re keeping customers connected, informed and entertained while enabling businesses to compete on the world stage.

 Solution components IBM application modernization services IBM Consulting® IBM finance consulting services IBM Rapid Move for SAP S/4HANA IBM® SAP S/4HANA services
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Examples presented as illustrative only. Actual results will vary based on client configurations and conditions and, therefore, generally expected results cannot be provided.