The SAP Consultant Handbook [Paperback]

Jon Reed (Author), Michael Doane (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0972598804 | ISBN-13: 978-0972598804 | Publication Date: October 1, 2002

Since SAP R/3 exploded on the North American scene in 1993, the SAP consulting market has been phenomenal. As the market moves into a mature phase, SAP consultants need new strategies and tactics to further their careers. In this eagerly-awaited handbook, the authors - an SAP practice director and an SAP recruiter - combine forces to offer in-depth advice on everything from how to get a start in SAP consulting to balancing multiple job offers. This book is a must for anyone involved in the field of SAP consulting.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Since SAP R/3 exploded on the North American scene in 1993, the SAP consulting market has been phenomenal. As the market moves into a mature phase, SAP consultants need new strategies and tactics to further their careers. In this eagerly-awaited handbook, the authors -an SAP practice director and an SAP recruiter- combine forces to offer in-depth advice on everything from how to get a start in SAP consulting to balancing multiple job offers. This book is a must for anyone involved in the burgeoning field of SAP consulting. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Jon Reed is the Director of the SAP Division at Allen Davis & Associates Inc., a national IT recruiting firm. He is the author of the weekly Opportunities in SAP Newsletter, which has been a leading source of SAP market information for the last four years.

Mr. Reed is also the editorial director of the weekly New Directions in ERP, a sister publication that analyzes market trends in Oracle, Peoplesoft, and in the overall ERP market. He can be reached via email at [e-mail].

Michael Doane is a senior consultant specializing in SAP management and education. He has twenty-five years of business systems experience in the U.S., Europe, and Asia and has lectured widely about SAP to executives. He can be reached at [e-mail].

He is the author of In the Path of the Whirlwind, An Apprentice Guide to the World of SAP and Capturing the Whirlwind, Your Field Guide to a Successful SAP Implementation as well as the recent SAP Blue Book, A Concise Business Guide to the World of SAP. He can be reached via e-mail at [e-mail]. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: eCruiting Alternatives, Inc (October 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0972598804
• ISBN-13: 978-0972598804
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #136,747 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #72 in Books > Business & Investing > Industries & Professions > Consulting

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Real Advice For Real Consultants, September 24, 1999

By 

David Firoozi, Training Manager (david@firooz... (Sydney, Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: SAP Consultant Handbook (Paperback)

This book shoots straight. Don't read this book if you are gold digging. Do read it if you want to know what is going on or what is about to happen in the next few years in SAP. The book takes you on a virtual journey in preparation for the real journey through SAP consulting.

The purpose is; "We wrote this book because we believe that there are many people who can make a real contribution to the SAP field . . ." (p65). And they let the cat out of the bag on page 30; "The best way to get into SAP is still to be in the right place at the right time . . . the next best way is to . . ." (read the book for yourself). The real secret to becoming an SAP consultant is on pages 72-73.

There is a recurring theme of knowledge transfer and training throughout the book: "A professional with clear-eyed business knowledge . . . a knack for teaching . . . and empathy." (p21) " . . . but the most successful pay attention to the `soft' communication skills involved in project management, training, team-building and knowledge transfer." (p37) "The key phrase now is `knowledge transfer'" (p 56) "The Queen's English" (p69) ". . . the ability to express what you know . . ." (p69) ". . . think communication skills PLUS." (p76) "References count more for SAP candidates than in most other sectors of business." (p85) "You may find it necessary to educate the client . . ." (p92) "Those who have done and can teach SAP should be paid as much or more than when they are doing, but will not be." (p114) ". . . a transfer of knowledge is the greatest service a consultant can provide." (p135) ". . . consultants who are not certified are finding themselves at a disadvantage." (p145) "You may lag longer than you wish on a given assignment, but there could be gold waiting down the line for you if you take advantage of that lag time to . . . learn." (p159) "We do believe that strong communication skills and a solid business understanding are necessary for all who succeed in this business" (p192) "Continuous career improvement?" (p229, these are the final words of the last chapter).

Welcome to Germany. I trained some German SAP guys in London many years ago as R/3 was just coming out. Not in R/3 but in project management and software consulting skills. A word of caution. Go big. At least initially. The Germans have a love of scale and scope that is reflected in their industries. Their finances. Their software paradigms.

Your doing skills are a function of your being skills. In other words, what SAP can do is a function of what the Germans are. Engineers. And so, when it comes to reengineering, you can't go past SAP. Actually, Enterprise Resource Planning. Which is a subset of Enterprise Project Management. In other words, by the time you restructure the organisation to function on a project-by-project basis, something that is extremely difficult in a large organisation, but very profitable for a multibillion dollar company, you will have sorted out the enterprise resource planning. This is why SAP stresses the concomitant reengineering that is integral to any SAP implementation. This explains the SAP storm. Directors finally saw a business return, both savings and higher profits, from their IT systems and they went for it. The benefit for the Board was that they regained the agenda from the techies. By rolling in SAP into their IT systems, directors were rolling out the techie agenda from the board. They finally found a way to connect business sense to IT spend.

The authors stress the importance of Implementation experience throughout the book. And implementation experience is about Delivery, which is a function of who you are. Or as the authors put it; "Who are you?" (p17). This partly explains why it is so hard to become an SAP consultant. You have to be the `right person' in the right place at the right time.

My criticisms are thus: The font is too small.

In conclusion, this is a book for the Pro by the Masters in the field. Even the contributors are among the best in the business. If you think it's easy giving career advice, try it sometime. The authors are to be congratulated for their honesty. This book gets a gold medal.

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A good reference book for SAP Consulting career, September 22, 2002

By 

Shankar G.B. (CHENNAI, Tamil Nadu India) - See all my reviews

This review is from: SAP Consultant Handbook (Paperback)

This book is meant for those, who are research eyed and plan well before whatever they do. I have come across many a times, people asking me questions what it makes to be successful in SAP career and whether it is time for them to join the band wagon of SAP Consultants (based on the demand-supply position). I regret that I was delivering lectures at that time, instead of asking them to refer to this book. This book contains quite a few good points that are essential to be successful in SAP career.
Positive point: This is the only book available on SAP Career guidance.
Negative points: (1) this book was written in March 1999 and not updated thereafter. (2) The data are all old; most of them are dated 1997 & 1998. (3) Forecasts about SAP market growth and job opportunities in the new millennium are missing.
With new dimensions of SAP emerging such as BW, APO, CRM, etc and availability of many Industry Specific (IS) Solutions and the actual BIG market (money spinner for SAP Consultants) for SAP has dried up, the SAP Consulting career guidance book certainly needs an update.
Thanks for reading

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Zen and the art of SAP consulting, June 17, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: SAP Consultant Handbook (Paperback)

This book offers the most honest assessment of SAP employment opportunities I've seen anywhere. Don't expect the standard "Take a SAP course and write your own ticket to paradise" approach. The authors are true SAP professionals, a senior consultant in SAP and a director of SAP recruitment. The main focus of the book is to help current and aspiring SAP professionals succeed through making the right decisions about their employment future. Be prepared for a shock! Success, according to the authors, isn't measured solely by how many dollars you make an hour. Such minor factors as getting to see your growing family more than one weekend per shoe size, not burning your bridges, keeping your skills current, and even job satisfaction are also stressed. This book could almost have been titled "Zen and the art of SAP Consulting" for it's big picture approach to a career in SAP consulting.