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Tech giants Microsoft and SAP have announced a partnership enabling in-memory database platform SAP HANA to run on the Microsoft Azure cloud, as well as other integrations with SAP’s cloud and Office 365.

The announcement, made at SAP’s SAPPHIRE NOW conference with SAP CEO Bill McDermott and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella onstage together, also includes management and security of custom SAP Fiori apps. Developing custom mobile hybrid apps on SAP HANA will also include support with Microsoft Intune, part of Redmond’s enterprise mobility package.

“This is a partnership that has gone on now for years and years between two global juggernauts in their individual spaces,” said McDermott. “We have a very high trust between the companies, we have a belief in the customer and the idea that together we can give the customer more.

“I really do think the combination of Microsoft and SAP has always been extraordinarily special,” he added. “When you think about the work in the enterprise, and you think about the work the knowledge worker does, and bringing those things together in an interdependent way, to drive unique value…to me is very special.”

“Our identity has always been a platform identity, and an ecosystem identity – how do we bring the best out of each partner so we can serve our customers,” said Nadella. “And that’s really what it’s all about. Partnerships are absolutely necessary…if we are to meet our customers’ realities.”

This chimes in with McDermott’s belief that partnerships drive the tech industry more than competition right now. You can find out more about the partnership in this Microsoft Azure company blog post.