
How SAP supports Mobile experience – Work Zone, SSAM, MDK explained
Introduction
The era of SAP GUI is already behind us. Unfortunately, many experienced SAP Consultants, with over 25 years of experience are unable to understand this shift. The truth is harsh – either they adapt, or it’s time to stay behind. In this blog we will see how SAP supports mobile experience and why it’s vital to consider it in our project.
What is a mobile app?
Mobile app is a type of application software designed to run on a mobile device, such as smartphone or tablet. The definition seems to be quite obvious, however – there are things which are a bit tricky here. As an example let’s take the below two examples of apps, which were launched on a mobile device (Iphone 15 Pro).

On the left we have Ebay, and on the right Google Maps. Both are launched on a mobile device, both adapted their screen to the resolution of the end device. Does it mean, they are both mobile applications? Of course not. The first one – ebay, as you see, was launched via browser, which was opened on the mobile device. Google maps however is a pure mobile application. That’s why we will correct the general definition of a mobile app, by adding some extra comment. Mobile app is a type of application software, which has to be installed* on a device, which is dedicated for specific platforms, and which can leverage mobile devices capabilities. (*there are also hybrid apps, which do not require installation, however for the sake of this definition, we keep it very simple). These are so called native mobile apps.
Let’s take an example from SAP field – below you see two SAP products. Which one of them is a pure mobile application? Or maybe they both are?

Yes, the one on the left side – Fiori Launchpad is just a web application, opened in a browser. It is not a mobile application. If we switch off the internet, we will lost the app, we won’t be able to process any data, even display it. On the right side we see a mobile application from SAP called Service and Asset Manager. This one was installed by me on my mobile, and now I can use it – even without internet. This is one of the main, crucial differences between mobile and web apps.
Are SAP Fiori Applications mobile friendly?
First let’s all make sure we know what Fiori Applications are. They are web applications, which can be accessed via so called SAP Fiori Launchpad and which are the new way of using SAP. Their goal is to replace SAP GUI transactions, at some point. Cuz honestly, it’s impossible to replace all the GUI transactions with Fiori Apps. Moreover, it does not make sense to apply this change for everything. There are transactions, which are 100% technical, and they will run smoother and better as a GUI app, not a Fiori one. Okay, so we know what a Fiori Apps are – now it’s time to answer the question – are they mobile friendly? I would love to answer – yes, however – everything depends. It depends on the requirements coming from your Client, from the Business.
Fiori Applications, like every modern web-applications, they adapt to the screen of a device, on which they run. Just have a look at the below example. We launch the same fiori App on different mobile devices, the fields, the text, everything adapts automatically. This is so called responsiveness. It aint rocket science, this is the modern web-development. The app can be easily used on both devices. Therefore, if we have a simple case – our users are regular office employees, who always have internet access on their devices and just need to do some work while moving around – the answer is definitely yes.
Fiori Applications are mobile friendly. However, this kind of approach may not be the best for other scenarios. Imagine, you have a group of highly skilled technicians in your company, who are responsible for maintenance of your machines. You want to support them by giving them a digital solution, where they will see a list of work, which has to be performed. You may think – okay, so we just give them an access to the relevant SAP Fiori Application. Not really – this is what you should also consider:
technicians often work in place, where the is no service – there are areas in most of the factories, where either it’s forbidden to use internet access or basically there is no service at all. Web-apps require internet access, mobile apps can work offline. Technicians use camera to document the progress of the work and such.
This is supported by both – web and mobile apps. However, it’s not enough anymore. Modern technicians want to use for instance LIDAR sensor, which is built in most of the new mobile devices. This and other built-in mobile features like Sound Level Meter, thermometer etc. can be leveraged by a mobile application. But not by a web app. With that being said, there is no straight answer if Fiori Applications are mobile friendly. Everything depends how you define the Friendliness, what scenarios you have in your project or company. For some personas, using Fiori Launchpad on a mobile will be more than enough. For others, it will trigger frustration and they won’t use their mobile devices at all, what can affect your business.
How SAP supports mobile experience?
First of all – let`s make it clear from the very beginning. SAP started delivering their mobile experience way too late. While other software companies where already supporting mobile devices, SAP was behind them, sticking to the GUI, WebGUI solutions. Therefore, we should not take them as the great example of mobile experience. But it is getting better. Its also a side effect of the multiple acquisitions of smaller companies, like Syclo, AppGyver and others. Lets have a look at the main SAP products, which support mobile experience as of the year 2024.

We start with a new application called SAP Mobile Start, available for iOS and Android. We could explain it really quick – it is the Fiori Launchpad, but in a native mobile app, not web-browser. However, it is not like this, it is something more. SAP Mobile Start is a part of the new offering from SAP, where so called SAP Build Work Zone kicks in. We wont dive deep into understanding of this one. What we gotta know is, SAP Mobile Start is part of it, it allows mobile users to access various SAP Fiori Applications and third party solutions. Everything depends on the configuration performed during implementation project.
The Fiori apps itself are then opened on a mobile device in a browser. Mobile Start can be integrated with smartwatches, it can send push notifications and more. So, at some point, SAP Mobile Start is the new Fiori Launchpad client for mobile devices, however it is list of capabilities is way broader than it. As we all know, SAP does not provide an iOS/Android FLP Client. So either we develop/use third party entry point or yeah – switch to Mobile Start. Have a look below, how it works:

The next two examples are pretty much the same – MDK Applications and SSAM – SAP Service and Asset Manager. MDK stands for Mobile Development Kit and its a framework, built and developed by SAP, which they use for their mobile applications, like for instance SSAM. We wont focus on technical aspects here, what we gotta know is the fact, we can develop our own, custom MDK-based apps. This can be done by experienced developers, or by normal business users with so called lo-code, no-code approach.
Of course, everything depends on the business scenario. The more complex it gets – the less relevant is the no-code approach. What you see below are two things – the MDK framework itself, which you can check under this link. Then, you see how it works in action. It is possible to leverage the drag and drop method, to build your first MDK application. Personally, I recommend checking out the following training from SAP – I finished it and I must say, I really liked it.


I have already mentioned something about SAP Service and Asset Manager. This is an MDK-based, standard mobile application from SAP. It supports maintenance technicians, service technicians, inventory clerks and other people in their daily work. Of course, it is separately licensed, like everything from SAP. I recommend you two things – if you want to experience it yourself, how the app works, go to the Appstore or Google Play store and download the demo, with dummy data from SAP. It is completely free. If you want to dig deep into functionalities, solution architecture, how the configuration is done – check out my below video on Youtube, which I recorded specifically for SAP Service and Asset Manager. It will give you a nice end to end overview about this application.
Mobile app or web app?
Before we end this post, lets answer the above question – Mobile App or web app? Which one should we consider? Of course, there is no one, straight answer. In many cases, web app would be more than enough. On the other hand, if our Business runs in specific environment, for instance with unstable internet connection – mobile app is the way to go. From technical perspective, mobile app development requires experts with specific skills – so not only JavaScript and such, but also MDK framework. Of course, we dont have to limit ourselves to this technology. We can also build a React Native App etc. Lets have a look at the below table with the key differences and decision factors.
Criteria |
Web Apps |
Mobile Native Apps |
---|---|---|
Development | Developed using web technologies (HTML, CSS, JavaScript) | Developed using platform-specific languages (MDK, Swift for iOS, Kotlin/Java for Android) |
Accessibility | Accessible via web browsers on any device | Installed via app stores; requires specific OS compatibility |
Performance | Generally slower due to reliance on the browser | High performance; can fully utilize device hardware |
Offline Access | Limited offline functionality | Full offline access, depending on the app |
Updates | Updates are made on the server side; no need for user intervention | Users need to accept the update once available in the app |
Installation | No installation required; accessed via URL | Requires download and installation from an app store |
Native Device features | Limited access to device features like camera, GPS, etc. | Full access to device features (camera, GPS, sensors, etc.) |
As I already mentioned at the beginning of this post – app development does not have to be painful and complex. The IT sector is now experiencing many changes when it comes to programming. One of these is building so called no-code/low-code solutions. Those can be created by business users, not technical folks, without a single line of code. One of the main companies offering this approach is Neptune Software – leader at low-code, SAP-native, enterprise app development platforms. It doesn’t make sense to be really descriptive here – check out their website or just have a look at some example, available on their Youtube channel.
That was it. Let me know, if you learned something new thanks to this post. Personally, one of my goals is to get really deep into mobile world, which connects old, not user-friendly, often annoying SAP world with the new, simple and easy interfaces, mobile solutions and basically the new way of handling business. Check out my YouTube channel, where I regularly upload various videos from SAP world. If you are more into text content – I also post some stuff at LinkedIn.
See you,
Dan