It is time for me to say goodbye to the SAP community… But hopefully this is not an "adieu" (in French, the word means "goodbye knowing you'll never see someone again" - quite dramatic!).
Leaving SAP
I have decided to pursue opportunities outside SAP, and my last day at the company is July 3, 2014. Today I look back at my 9 years with SAP: In 2005 I started at the headquarters in Walldorf with the partner organization, and then moved to California in early 2008. I enjoyed working for SAP all these nine years. During this time I had the chance to meet amazing and inspiring people. In the past 4.5 years as I worked in the SCN Team I discovered a vibrant community that is passionate, vocal, collaborative, generous, and much more. It has been a pleasure getting to know people in the community, listening to their story and serving them as best as I could.
Thank You Community
The SAP Community has been like an extended family for me. We had good times, I cracked up many times reading some of you. We had differences of opinion but these were always expressed in a respectful manner, even when there was criticism towards the point system 😉 It always came down to the passion that SCN members have for their community, and for SAP.
I thank you all from the bottom of my heart for welcoming me, showing me the ropes, teaching me about community management and many other things. I learned a lot and this was the best job of all my 9 years in the company. I will not name anyone because the list would be very long and still I would be scared to miss anyone important to me. You have all been important to me, thank you for enriching my life.
I want to extend special thanks to all the SCN Members of the Month. Interviewing you every month kept me connected to the community. I enjoyed the sharing of information - sometimes personal - and am very proud when I see you blossom in the community (become SAP Mentors, etc.)
Thank you to the SAP Mentors I engaged with in the past years. You are an exceptional group and SAP is lucky to have you, and lucky to have mark.finnern leading this program.
Thank You Colleagues
jeanne.carboni was my manager for almost 4 years. She empowered me and supported me all along, she provided guidance whenever necessary and we had good times together. Thank you so much Jeanne.
oddss and I started working closely together as we prepared to launch SCN gamification. It was a rollercoaster ride, a bit scary at times but always fun. We've been through thick and thin together, thank you Audrey for the very fruitful collaboration. I learned a lot with you (including the difference between hyphen and dash!).
sean.yang15 was an intern for a year and I couldn't have launched gamification without his help, dedication and hard work. Sean recently finished his studies in Indiana and I am very excited for him as he embarks on his professional journey.
sofie.graham2 recently joined the SCN gamification team and I hope she will have a great time discovering gamification (serious games!) with the perspective of a game designer. Thanks Sofie for the support and please continue to rock!
Many thanks to my "peeps" in the Collaboration team: marilyn.pratt, gali.klingschneider, oxananoa.zubarev, jason.cao, moshe.naveh2, krysten.bradley2, adi.krysler. You are great and I will miss you too, I hope we stay in touch and I really want to go to Israel one day!
Beyond the SCN Collaboration team, I had the chance to work with many other talented individuals such as christine.merten,brianbernard,oliver, scott.lawley, chip.rodgers… The list is long as well and I cannot name everyone. I hope we can keep in touch.
Next
I will always keep an eye on the SAP Community Network, a beautiful example of successful community management led by a company that is open to feedback, whether it is positive or negative. I will keep a profile with a P-user on SCN and start with 0 points (argh! I was hoping to reach Diamond before I leave but it's not going to happen!) and I look forward to seeing where the community is headed. I hope that I managed to advocate for a solid reputation system as I believe this is the next step for SCN as far as the reputation program is concerned.
In this digital age I will not tell you how to keep in touch with me, you know where to find me 🙂
A few pictures to remember good times:
The SCN Team:
TechEd friends:
TechEd fun:
SCN 10th anniversary celebration at TechEd 2013: