Getting Started as a SAP Consultant

[Former Member]

Hi everyone,

I recently completed my bachelor studies in economics and finance.

I am very interested in becoming a SAP consultant.

Based on my education and experience i am very interested in the FI/CO and Logistics and Manufacturing modules of the software. PLM is also an option.

In that respect i wanted to ask you guys several questions:

1. Which Version:

- As there are many versions of the software, what version is most commonly used by companies now?

- Which one should i start learning?

- The SAP ECC version is it most suitable for the modules i am interested in, and if yes which ECC exactly?

2. Training and trials:

- Are there any free trials of SAP out there that can help me learn it?

- Would you recommend books, publications, news that i can read in the process?

Hope to join your community as a consultant soon.

Thanks for your time,

Martin

[Former Member]

Steve...I think you need to look forward when planning your career. Everything is moving to the cloud.

If I were in your position I'd look for a Business ByDesign partner willing to take on a recent grad.

[Former Member]

Hi Martin,

Please have a look at http://scn.sap.com/community/career-center/blog/2012/06/19/sap-career-blog-links as many of your questions are answered there. In particular, take a look at the Advice for Recent Graduates and the Learning SAP when you don't have an SAP job already series. I recommend starting with a good overview book in order to get the big picture. It's a lot cheaper than getting the big picture through an expensive class.

Long story short, though, since you were not directly recruited prior to your graduation, your path now is to focus on getting an entry level job as an SAP end user and spend a few years accumulating hands-on work experience. Check the How did you get your start in SAP blogs to get a feeling for typical approaches to starting an SAP career.

I respectfully disagree with Mr. Wickham. Yes, cloud is the most recent buzzword, but the reality is that many companies will never move to a cloud based solution and even those that do move their SAP implementation into a cloud based solution will still need folks to do the configuration and support. Cloud based ERP products will work for some, mostly smaller, companies, but they tend to be one-size-fits-all and that does not work for many larger companies.  We've been through the imminent demise of traditional ERP in the 2000's when the internet based specialty products first showed up on the scene, but as in that case, cloud computing will eventually settle into a niche while traditional ERP will go on it's merry way serving the bulk of the business community.

Hope this helps!

Best regards,

  --Tom

[Former Member]

Tom brings up an excellent point. On-Premise ERP will be around for decades to come, so there will always be demand for consultants. PeoplSoft projects, for example, still need COBOL developers

I also agree that putting in time learning at an SAP client is a good approach.

I'm quite happy having made the transition to cloud products and working in the SMB space, so it really comes down to what interests you.