To-be or Not-to-be a SAP Consultant - beginner's dilemma
The Introductory stuff. Can sip this !
Everyone wants big pay packet. Particularly, if you are in Computer field, your ambition is justified because of developments in the technology. You are bound to upgrade yourself, else you will soon find yourself out of market.
If you are a non-computer professional and would like to make big bucks, find whether you have talent and inclination for computers. Also make sure that, you are good at thinking logically, ready to accept change at regular intervals and creative to make use of the features of the software you are trying to master.
The Computer professionals have fewer problems in deciding their route to success. Once you talk to yourself and decide the ‘Hardware’ or ‘Software’ route, it is easier for you to pursue further. Hardware can be the real design of Integrated Circuit (IC) or Chips, Computer peripherals, Networking Products or the Networking itself. Software has a greater scope and let us discuss in detail.
Software has come a long way from BASIC, Fortran, Pascal and COBOL. Operating Systems (OS) were pursued by very few and the Engineers loved (and still love) Unix. You can differentiate Software as following:
OS - Operating Systems
System Software
Application Software
The traditional Database Management systems (DBMS) offered enough flexibility to design good applications and to manage them well. However, the problems of security and integrity have limited their usage. The revolution has really come with ‘Windows’ and the concept of Relational DataBase Management System (RDBMS). Now the RDBMS is the heart of most applications as they offer high level of security and data integrity.
The industry saw Material Requirement Planning (MRP) and Manufacturing Resource Planning (MRP II). These have captured the imagination of the manufacturing industry.
Then, the Software industry offered Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP). And the leader is undoubtedly – SAP. Others in the competition are BAAN, Oracle, Mfgpro, Solomon and others.
We will now go straight into SAP.
Let us briefly answer some questions on SAP.
Can I get a good Job with SAP knowledge and why?
Yes. Today, the SAP professional gets highly paid as he brings in his practical experience along with the rich features of SAP. The functionality offered by SAP is enormous and limited only by your imagination and creativity. The software is very expensive and the companies willing to implement SAP are investing huge money on the same. Hence they do not mind paying good money for consultants for customizing and implementing SAP efficiently and effectively.
What kinds of Jobs are there in SAP and what they are expected to do?
The jobs in SAP can be differentiated as follows:
If you are a good programmer, you are expected to master SAP’s own fourth generation language called ABAP/4. These people help functional specialists in creating user friendly reports, screen layout and required programs (which may not be in SAP library). Once you are good at ABAP/4, you can become a system administrator or in other words BASIS specialist. Both ABAPer and BASIS specialists may or may not have knowledge of functional modules. If they know a module the communication is more effective.
If you have good practical experience in any field, you can opt for the relevant module in SAP i.e., Sales & Distribution (SD), Materials Management (MM), Production Planning (PP), Finance (FI) etc. These persons are called functional consultants. Functional consultants need not know the programming. However, if they learn ABAP/4, it is extremely useful for them to communicate well with programmers and the output program required can be achieved more efficiently.
Can A fresh graduate enter SAP?
SAP is functionally rich software. A fresh graduate without industry experience may find it difficult to understand a lot of features. However if he/she has some software knowledge of Oracle, C++, Visual Basic etc can do well in adapting himself to ABAP/4. Hands on experience is a must for Sap and a problem can be solved many ways. ABAP programmers shall have sound knowledge of building up logic.
Do you need to know RDBMS?
SAP depends on RDBMS. However, SAP seamlessly integrates RDBMS with ABAP/4 that you will never know what RDBMS is being used on back end. As the rule goes, if you know the RDBMS, it is good. Else, you need not bother to learn RDBMS for the sake of learning SAP. BASIS experts shall have sound knowledge of RDBMS.
Can I work without remuneration in a company having SAP to get experience?
There is a very remote chance for this option. Any company going for SAP is investing heavily and would like professionals to handle the job. They don’t look for people without experience even if they are good in non-SAP area and don’t charge salary.
Can SAP be loaded on a PC?
No. SAP requires a good Server and the software cannot be loaded on a desktop PC. SAP recommends a list of Hardware suppliers for this purpose.
Can SAP be pirated and who are pirating?
Yes and no. Every SAP installation (called an ‘Instance’) requires a Key from SAP, AG. Only the authorized licensee of SAP can have the ‘key’. Piracy is possible if this licensee indulges in piracy. However the purchaser of ‘pirated’ copy shall have to procure a good server. The cost of the SAP license is more than the hardware. Hence piracy is still possible. This is done mainly by the training institutes to make quick money.
How to get trained in SAP?
SAP as a policy trains only it’s customers. All the partners of SAP have the facilities to train their customers. If your company buys a license of SAP, training at various levels is provided by the consulting company. If your company does not has SAP, then it is difficult to get trained in SAP. It is here, innumerous training institutes have taken advantage of the situation. These training institutes charge phenomenal money (US $ 5000 per course) for a training period of around 10 weeks. You are treated as employee during the training and your services are terminated at the end of training. (So you are the employee for 10 weeks only!). Hence they don't violate they SAP norm of training only the employees!
Is the training provided by these institutes sufficient?
No. In 10 weeks, it is impossible to know SAP fully. You will come to know what is SAP and how to start facing SAP. You may become aware of the features of SAP. In most of the institutes, the trainees are asked to take up a dummy project as an exercise. It is not possible for any company to give a project in SAP for a set of trainees as a lot of money is involved and no company allows trainees to handle their systems. Without real project, the urge to think creatively, challenge and commitment are generally limited.
Can I get job immediately after the training at these institutes?
No. Many institutes charge the fees differently. Some institutes charge only for training and some others charge extra money for getting a job. All they do is project you as a SAP experienced candidate to other consultants and try to get a job. If you notice, there are very few openings for entry level. It is a tricky situation out there. Egg or Chick? which is first. You don’t get experience without getting first break in SAP. And you don’t get a job without experience.
How to find whether a training Institute is genuine or not?
Contact the institute and ask for a list of previous students. Cross check with them about the credibility of the institute and how they got their first break. This feedback will be of tremendous value to you to decide before joining the institute. You may be in touch with User forums at SAPFANS.COM and you are likely to get immediate response on training institutes.
How to find whether a training Institute has original software?
This is the most difficult situation. Some companies give you a letter of appointment to join the course. You write to SAP to find out whether this company bought the license. Some companies do not indicate clearly that you will be trained in SAP (they may say that you will be trained in ERP or Y2K). This clearly shows that the software is pirated.
Do you have any disadvantage in learning on Pirated software?
Yes. The pirated software may not be complete in all respects. Sometimes you get worried as you will not know whether the problem is due to you or due to the software. If you have original software, the company will have access to Online System Support (OSS) of SAP and ‘patch’ is generally available for known problems. You can download the ‘patch’, apply to the system and the problem could have been removed.
What about resume?
You shall be very careful with your resume. If you pass on your resume to a body shopper, they may distribute it to several companies wherever they have contacts. Similarly, the Training institutes, in their enthusiasm to get a job for you, may project more experience than that what you actually have. You keep in touch with them and find out how you are being projected. You shall always tell the truth as your prospective employer generally believes you and you are expected to give correct details.
