SAP职场指南问答集合

1.由ORACLE转SAP?
Q:I am an Oracle database guy. I work on database design/development. I have been thinking of breaking into SAP consulting for some time now. What course of action would you suggest? Which modules are better for somebody who is a beginner as far as SAP is concerned?

A:I think some people get confused; they see that SAP is having one of the best years of any software company, and they assume there must be a lot of opportunities to break into SAP. That's not the case. The SAP consulting market is extremely competitive, and for the most part, the vast majority of people who are getting their feet wet in SAP are simply lucky to be in the "right place at the right time" with a company that decides to implement. So, what are the implications for someone like yourself? Is there still hope to get into this field? Yes. But you must recognize the competition and be strategic. And your strategy is this: find the aspect of your skills that is most relevant to SAP environments and use that as the means to obtain your first SAP project. From your question, I can't tell if you're aware or not that about 70% of SAP implementations -- including the largest installs -- are running on Oracle databases. Therefore, your Oracle DBA skills are relevant to many SAP environments. In the SAP world, Oracle DBA skills are a subset of the SAP systems administration, or Basis, toolkit. So, your Oracle DBA background might help you break into Basis, and from there, you can pursue other SAP-related technical specialties. Your goal is to apply for full-time Oracle DBA positions in SAP shops. You probably won't have many consulting opportunities, but there should be some full time positions that fit this description. I recommend doing some serious research into the nature of the SAP technical work and SAP's evolving technical architecture before you apply to any positions. This Web site has a lot of free resources that can help you on your way

2.做功能顾问还是技术顾问

Q:What is the difference between a functional and a technical SAP consultant?

A:This is a basic question but an important one if you are looking at careers in SAP. Technical SAP consultants are generally either programmers or systems administrators, whereas functional consultants bring value by combining particular business process knowledge, such as financial knowledge, with the "know-how" of configuring the aspect of SAP that pertains to that process knowledge. So for example, a functional SAP FI consultant generally has a financials background, and understands how to configure the FI tables in accordance with a user's business processes

3.考证有用么？

Q:I am a SAP end user with 3 years experience in production planning. I am able to maintain material master, routing, BOM and generate/maintain production and sales orders. I have a bit of knowledge in other modules too. I am actively seeking the path to SAP consultant but it does not seem easy. Would you please give me some advice on where to start with? Do you reckon a SAP certificate would be helpful (without project experience)?

A: I think one don't put a lot of stock in certifications. As you noted, the key is hands-on experience. The fact is you can't really become a SAP consultant anymore unless you get hands-on implementation experience from a SAP user first. You either need to elbow your way onto the project at your current company or find another company who will give you a shot. Your best chance, by far, is with your current employer -- perhaps on the next upgrade cycle. In terms of certification, I think some type of APO certification would round out your resume and help you to grasp where SAP is going with its supply chain functionality, but remember that certification would essentially guarantee nothing. It would help you feel confident in your SAP skills, but no doors will open unless you can charm a company into putting you on a project where you can gain configuration expertise.

4.由ASP转向ABAP开发，有必要么？

Q:I have an opportunity to join an SAP consultancy firm and learn ABAP. My background is in Web development using ASP. What's your take on the matter?

A:It's hard to see a downside to joining a consultancy and learning ABAP - as long as they have a project waiting for you on the other side! If they don't have some hands-on work for you, then I would be a bit more wary. It might still be a good thing to do, but as you're probably aware, your IT skills can't develop real "teeth" without being tied into project work. It's hard for me to say that this ABAP option is better than what you currently do because I don't know enough about your ASP career prospects, salary, and other key factors. As a rule, I like the idea of getting enterprise-related technical skills. By that I mean: the larger the company, the more mission-critical the project, the more marketable your technical skills become. And the good thing about SAP is that the companies you are working with will be of a decent size. In the long run, even if you do learn ABAP, you will want to find ways of combining your ABAP and your web development skills - bringing all of your programming skills together. SAP is relying more and more on web-based development, so the mix of ABAP and web development could really serve you well down the line.

5.SD顾问的职业道路

Q:I have programming as well as sales and marketing experience. I am considering taking SAP training and certification for SD functional consulting from Partner Academy. What is the typical career path for an SD functional consultant?

A:Well, there really is no "typical career path" in SD these days. :) Some folks are moving into CRM, some are moving into supply chain management, some have become pricing experts, and some are still knee deep in order management. I don't really see "SD" as a destination point any more. It's more of a process you go through as you move into the SAP products of the future. When you think about it, SD isn't really one area anyhow, but several different functional areas, and it makes sense to choose between them. For example, it sounds like you are more interested in the "sales" side of SD than the "distribution" side. Therefore, you might be more drawn toward the marketing and sales aspects of SD. But even there, you have a range of issues - from Internet commerce and online order processing, to mobile applications and so-called "sales force automation." Then, of course, you have marketing campaign management, partner relationship management, etc. To me, the most compelling aspects of SD have to do with the "demand-driven supply chain." In other words, how can we leverage the Internet to give our suppliers and our manufacturing team advance notice and real-time assessment sales trends so that inventory can be reduced and we can deliver products that adapt to meet the changing needs of fussy modern consumers? The reason I find this area so compelling is two-fold: one, because very few companies have truly integrated their "demand chain" and their "supply chain;" and two, SAP, with its all-encompassing product line, is in the ideal position to deliver this kind of functionality. Of course, you can't specialize in all aspects of this "extended" supply chain, but you can certainly find interesting niches in a range of sales and marketing areas - areas which can be connected to order management and sales forecasting.

In my mind, the best way to proceed is to identify the functional areas in sales and marketing that interest you the most, and then focus on the parts of SAP that relate to your interests. For example, let's say you're really interested in marketing and campaign management. In that case, you should learn as much as you can about that functional area. Then, you can study how software can help marketing departments realize those objectives. Finally, you map this into SAP itself and figure out how to pursue it. You might find, for example, that the most interesting marketing functionality in SAP is found in the mySAP CRM components, and so you would skip SD entirely and pursue CRM certification and SAP CRM positions instead. By taking this broader approach, you become a well-rounded CRM business process expert, as opposed to a narrow SAP implementation specialist. The best thing about this approach is that you will make sure that you have identified the specific area of SAP to focus on, instead of just pursuing SD and hoping for the best. This approach will also make you a more effective SAP consultant, and it will enhance your prospects outside of SAP as well. Given you are just getting out of school, you have a lot of options to consider. You might even do well working directly for SAP for a while. I hope I've given you a better sense of what's out there for you in the SD and CRM market of the future.