BY LOURDES ROSALES, Global Corporate Affairs Youth Campaign Lead
It all started a few months ago when we at SAP had an idea to engage customers and partners at a media event that showcased the latest technological advances in the areas of Sports and Healthcare, while also sharing these insights with Young talents and business entrepreneurs.
We wanted to reach three types of young talent: those already in our network who needed a reminder of how SAP helps the world run better and improve people’s lives, those simply considering a career at a global software company like SAP, and those who were for the first time learning about what companies like SAP have to offer their generation.
The spotlight came to live in New York City this past December 8th. The short but rich networking event was moderated by Alexis Glick, CEO GenYouth Foundation and a special SAP partner. As I lead our efforts from Global Corporate Affairs towards young talents, I was personally happy to have about twenty young talents between the ages of 16 and as old as 24 in attendance.
We took a close look on how the Internet of Things (IoT) and Big Data have enabled technological advances that are transforming the way athletes train, perform, and live healthier, and even predict and prevent injury - from high school to college to the pros. We also launched a new product for personalized medicine that is truly going to change the world of healthcare. Although the primary audience was media and journalists from NYC and Northeast US, our young talents went through real-world learning experiences as they heard from industry thought leaders, executives and customers.
This is a blog that Nicole, from the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE), wrote about the event (Ps: No edits were made to Nicole's piece)
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Name: Nicole Oliveira
Age: 18
High School: The Academy of Finance and Enterprise
My first encounter with SAP was last month, when the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE) introduced me to my new mentor Sarah Harvey, who works at SAP. I remember asking her about what it was like working at the company and what she did on a day to day basis. Her responses intrigued me and although I did not completely understand what SAP was, I was very excited to attend the SAP Spotlight event this past Tuesday.
At the event, I was finally able to understand what Sarah meant when she said that SAP collected data. I learned that "data" can mean a lot of different things but, that SAP primarily works with the sports and healthcare industry. For instance, one of my favorite presentations was about SAP Hana because it is much more than a vault for all sorts of data; it goes beyond that. What I loved about the event and SAP as a whole is that it is a company that strives to make a difference because it interprets the data it collects and puts it to use in the real world such as, with Cancer LinQ.
In addition, while I was at the event I could not help but hear my AP Statistics teacher's voice saying "You will need this one day!" as I recognized the real world applications of a subject I genuinely enjoy. I myself, plan on studying sociology and statistics and if I do not end up starting my own business, perhaps pursue a career in marketing. However, whether I change my mind or not, SAP really did open up my eyes and gave me new perspectives on different jobs, research, and the how the world is today.
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And talents like Alex Torres, also from NFTE, shared his vision and contributed to our event recap video. I tweeted about it @Rosalesluly: Great insight from @NFTENYMetro student entrepreneurs at #SAPSpotlight! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0yLikI5aII #sapyouth
Other partners like GenYouth, QCC, BTECH, colleagues from our SAP Academy program attended as well as special guests from TEDxTeen.
The message is clear:
Young people today are creating the world they want to live in – and as the future leaders of companies like SAP, they need to understand our most transformational innovations so we can drive change together.
