SAP trainee has hard time finding job

Q. I am an SAP trainee (Abap), working on in-house projects since June 2008.

Although I want to continue my carrier in Abap, I seem to have a harder time, now, looking for SAP-related employment.

What can I do to improve my employment chances in IT?


Career advice from Tay Kok Choon, country manager of JobStreet Singapore:
The employment market is definitely getting tighter than before. However, I would advise the public not to lose heart as the economy will turn around and get better in time.

It is important to progress in one's career. Move along from the basics, progressing gradually to the more complex tasks.

Expand your horizons to include applications other than SAP. For example, at the "system analyst" type of training (explained below), skills are no longer simply applications specific; rather, relevant business knowledge is more appreciated at this level.

However, while continuous training will be beneficial for career development, one should not to fall into the trap of overtraining or undertaking training that is irrelevant.

There are, broadly, three levels of SAP-related training:

1. User-type training: For people who want to use specific modules or applications, which the IT professional should be able to master within a very short period.

2. Basic system training: Relevant for entry level staff doing configuration of the application to be implemented in an organization.

3. System analyst-type training: For people who have sufficient technical depth and business knowledge so that they can advise others on how best to exploit the application to its fullest.

In our opinion, IT professionals should aim to attain item (3) within a longer period of maybe two to three years.


Source: ZDNetAsia

SAP: Days of the database are numbered

A top executive at SAP has predicted the eventual demise of the database, as solutions that allow for information to be stored and accessed directly via servers and other forms of hardware begin to mature.

Speaking on Tuesday at the SAP TechEd 2009 event in Vienna, SAP executive board member Jim Hagemann Snabe told an audience of press and analysts that as businesses move increasingly towards an "in-demand" world, there will be more demand for solutions that enable information to be accessed faster and faster.

"I can imagine a future where people don't even need a database," said Hagemann Snabe, who heads up the business solutions and technology division at SAP, one of the world's largest database developers.

In April, SAP announced a partnership with Californian data-analytics company Teradata to work on products for in-memory data management and other technology. In-memory databases eliminate disk access by storing and manipulating data in the main memory, and do not require caching.

SAP is working on similar projects with renowned Berlin-based technology think tank Handelsplatt.

Hagemann Snabe said SAP is rethinking the traditional database architecture to reflect the growth of technologies such as cloud computing and the move towards on-demand services, as well as the more collaborative approach to solutions development being demonstrated by the open-source fraternity.

SAP also announced in Vienna that it had joined a number of projects with the Apache Software Foundation, an independent group focused on open-source software initiatives. The software company said it wants to foster a more open relationship between SAP and developers.

However, Hagemann Snabe quipped that the company was not likely to be getting into the business of "free software" any time soon.

Source: ZDnetUK

SAP: Clueless Consultants From Accenture And IBM Giving Us A Bad Name (SAP)

My first job out of college was as a consultant for Accenture (ACN), still called "Andersen Consulting" in those days. And after a whirlwind six weeks of training that had nothing to do with ERP, I was designated an expert systems integrator on PeopleSoft, the ERP system later devoured by Oracle (ORCL). I learned what "ERP" meant about 36 hours before I showed up on my client's doorstep.

Over the next several years, I worked on four so-called "full life-cycle" ERP implementations. Every one was delivered late, over budget, and with more bugs than a youth hostel in Bangkok.

Did the projects fail because I (and the tens of thousands of entry-level consultants in the same position) weren't trained before our first assignments? ERP giant SAP (SAP) now thinks it's a problem, and wants the so-called "experts" certified. SAP co-CEO Leo Apotheker:

“I don’t give a s**t if it’s Accenture or IBM. I care about the customer. I find it shocking people are walking around talking to customers and have no experience on [SAP]. [Consultants] get hired of people and have no clue. It’s annoying but that’s a fact. Let’s start by certifying people,”

Obviously I have a biased perspective as a former systems integration consultant, but there's plenty of blame to go around for the problems that always come with ERP integrations. Yes, consultants who don't know what they're talking about are an issue, a problem clients can and should avoid by demanding to see resumes of integrators in any project proposal. But the underlying software is maddeningly complex and buggy (at least in the 90s, SAP had a reputation in the US for issuing error messages and critical alerts in German).

And then there's the clients. SAP software in particular "wants" its users to run their businesses the "SAP way." The core of most cost/time overruns stems from CIOs committing to ERP, but middle managers insisting after implementation is already well underway that the software be changed to accommodate legacy business processes rather than the other way around.

Ultimately, while the idea of certifications is an amusing conceit, we don't think it will happen. Leo himself admits "we are not a university" and SAP can't effectively manage a certification program.

And then there's the business problem: It's easy for Leo to talk a big game on the Internet about "not giving a shit" what IBM thinks. But SAP is hugely dependent on firms like PricewaterhouseCoopers or Ernst & Young to steer business its way. If SAP makes it difficult for its system integration partners to make money -- which they do in part by sending inexperienced people to client sites -- the firms will seamlessly redirect business towards ERP companies who will play ball, like Oracle.

More Links:

• SAP Consultant Asks Pay Question
• Is a short course on SAP good enough?
• An ABAP-trained MBA holder eyes an SAP-based job
• Move to SAP field not a bad idea
• Worth leaving accounting for a career in SAP?
• Can a Computing graduate go into SAP?

Source: BusinessInsider

Accenture RP lays off 500 workers from Inquirer Article

MANILA, Philippines – Outsourcing firm Accenture said it is laying off at least 500 workers in the country due to a "redundancy” program.

In a statement sent to INQUIRER.net, the company said it is implementing a redundancy program "to balance the skills of its workforce against the demand from its clients".

This affects approximately three percent of its total workforce in the Philippines or approximately 500 out of a total headcount of more than 16,000 employees.

Accenture, however, said the reduction applies only to certain "excess" skill sets within its outsourced technology services unit.

The company added it continues to recruit in the Philippines for other skills to meet client demand.

Accenture has been operating in the Philippines for more than two decades and has ramped up workforce in the last few years due to the outsourcing boom.

The company operates eight delivery centers locally, its most recently established site located in Cebu City.

The Philippines has the third-largest headcount in Accenture's global network, next to the US and India.

Source: Inquirer.Net

What is the future of a SAP technical/ABAP programmer?
Can a Computing graduate go into SAP?
SAP vs Oracle

This is because of recession. And it had made impact on IT demands not only in Philippines but in India and Singapore as well. I would like to hear your reactions on this news, add comments please, thanks.