Blog of SAP Business Intelligence Insights & Information - Lonnie Ayers, CEO and SAP Certified Consultant

12 Easy Steps to Being a Better SAP Consultant

  

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New to the SAP Consulting world?  Not to worry, everybody had to start fresh at some point, sometimes by design and sometimes, accidentally.  Like any demanding profession, there are a number of areas where you will need to work constantly to achieve the skill level required to excel in SAP Consulting:

1. Learn to be a superb communicator.  Written, Oral, Emotional.  Consider joining toastmasters.  Put yourself out there.
   It is said that fear of public speaking, for some, exceeds the fear of death.   My advice-get up there in front of the audience, the more hostile, the better, as often as possible.  By all means, study the Best Practices, but, at the end of the day, practice makes perfect.  You will know you have reached an acceptable level of expertise when you are invited to be a ‘guest speaker’.
2. Learn to Learn
   As a SAP Consultant, we sell what we know.  You need to develop a personal development plan, and each year, strive to add at least one new ‘major’ skillset.   For instance, this year, Inbound Marketing and Balanced Scorecard Certification were on my agenda. 
3. Find a Mentor
   Better still, become a mentor.
4. Learn to be a good team member and team leader
   If you had the good fortune to be trained by the military, great.  If not, there are lots of opportunities to both lead and be led.  Outdoor adventure training anyone?
5. Get practical Industry Experience
   Though it is entirely possible to become a SAP consultant with zero work experience, you will find that SAP Business Processes make a lot more sense to you when you learn to compare 'this to that'.  For instance, the entire procurement process happens when you go grocery shopping.  You just don’t see all the individual pieces until they are pointed out.
6. Get Certified by SAP, on your module and Business Process Expertise. Many might disagree.  We say, can’t hurt.  And it is not as easy you think.  Beyond the basic certification, you should be looking at Business Process Management expertise as a core add-on.
7. Keep up-to-date with current technological developments
   This, of course, is an open ended task.  Some effort will be required on your part to 'sort and sift'.
8. Strive to be a Thought Leader in your Industry
   You don’t have to be a PhD to write a valuable paper for your industry.  You can probably come up with a constant stream of valuable industry content if you plan and execute it carefully.
9. Understand how to develop a business Case.
   Even if you are a purely technical guy, SAP is about helping the customer make more profit.  You should have a basic understanding of finance, and there are a number of courses you could take at your desktop to get you up-to-speed.  Search for financial competence and am sure you will find plenty of offerings.
10. Understand the SAP Implementation Methodology, all types
    Know SAP Solution Manager, become a PMP, and become ASAP Certified.  Then dig in to each type of implementation and read the various documents that are already there.  You might be surprised by how much of the heavy lifting has already been done for you.  Download the off-line ASAP zip file from service.sap.com/asap and run it in your browser.  Don’t reinvent the wheel.
11. Study and be able to articulate SAP’s competitive differentiators with regards to their competitors, including Oracle and Microsoft.
    Just because the sales cycle is over and the deal is signed, doesn’t mean the sales process is not on-going.  Your job depends on keeping the deal closed.
12. Develop the self-discipline to survive being a roadwarrior.
    You will need to develop the self discipline to work out, most likely in hotel room.  Why?  Because it gets cold outside and sometimes the gym is full/small/your tired of it.  I recommend Combat Conditioning by Matt Fuery.  Whatever you do, keep doing it.  If not, your body will soon break down on you and then what good are you?

There you have it.  12 easy steps to consulting excellence.

Thanks

  Lonnie D. Ayers, PMP

  President, SAP BW Consulting, Inc.

  Lonnie.Ayers@SAPBWConsulting.com