More than 400,000 companies worldwide use SAP as their central inventory management system, making it the most widely used enterprise software in the world. Because of this, SAP developers and SAP consultants are in high demand on the job market. But what exactly are SAP consultants and what tasks do they take on? What steps are necessary to become a SAP consultant?

We have summarized these and other questions for you.

What is a SAP consultant?

SAP consultants support the implementation, adaptation and optimization of SAP software solutions. As a SAP consultant, you act as an intermediary between the IT world and the corporate cosmos. SAP consultants play a special role in the company because they are experts in SAP. They often have a deep understanding of the precise processes and procedures within the company deployed.

What does a SAP consultant do?

A SAP consultant supports the effective use of SAP software systems, such as SAP ERP, S/4HANA, but also SAP CRM. The consultant has broad knowledge of the various modules and functions in SAP, such as finance and accounting, materials management, production, quality management, sales and human resources management.

Typically, an SAP consultant analyzes the business processes of the company to understand how the SAP software can be used to improve these processes. Statistically based on this analysis, the consultant can make recommendations to optimize the SAP configuration or make customer-specific adjustments.

As a SAP consultant, you can also conduct workshops to train the company's employees on how to use the SAP software. In many cases, the SAP consultant also works as a project manager when introducing or replacing SAP systems in new companies or departments.

What makes SAP consultants so popular?

In today's digital world, it is becoming increasingly important for companies to react quickly to changes in order to remain competitive. However, according to the “Future of Jobs” report by the Boston Consulting Group, Germany will lack over a million IT specialists by 2030 if digitization is to be successful. IT consultants and developers who support companies in adapting their business processes to the requirements of the new world of work are particularly sought after.

But why are SAP consultants so urgently needed right now? On the one hand, more and more companies are relying on digital solutions from SAP in order to be able to keep up with the competition. In addition, support for the classic ERP system SAP ECC will expire in 2027, and almost 88 percent of the companies that work with SAP ERP are planning to switch to the new cloud-based release S/4HANA. There is currently a lack of specialists who can support companies in introducing the new software solution.

How do you become a SAP consultant? Can you become a SAP consultant without a degree?

At GOpus, we don't present you with a fixed career path. Instead, we are always looking for individual talents and qualifications, especially in SAP consulting.

If you want to create a solid basis for a job in SAP consulting, a university degree in classic subjects such as business administration, (business) computer science, industrial engineering or logistics is a sensible option. But you are also interesting for us without a degree, because universities rarely offer SAP-specific training anyway. Instead, it is important to have basic business knowledge and SAP skills and to prove this with recognized certificates. But even without an academic degree or professional experience, there are many vacancies that can be filled. At GOpus GmbH, we increasingly rely on qualified lateral entrants and practical knowledge in IT professions.

One way to qualify as a SAP consultant is to retrain or continue your education as an IT specialist, which will provide you with a broad education in the implementation and support of IT systems. A SAP certification in which you focus on the use and configuration of SAP is just as logical. You can choose which SAP modules or business areas you would like to deepen.

Even without a bachelor’s degree, as a career changer or a returnee, you are qualified as an SAP consultant, because SAP certification in particular enables you to acquire sought-after qualifications and internationally recognized proof of your SAP competence in a short time. Of course, we will finance these further training opportunities for you.

What makes the job as a SAP consultant at GOpus so attractive?

In addition to an attractive remuneration, all our employees have great benefits such as profit sharing, subsidies for the gym, company car and e-bike leasing.

Unlike many of our competitors, we do not require our employees to travel regularly. We take family circumstances and personal wishes into account. From time to time we have (foreign) trips that employees are welcome to undertake if they are available.

All employees have an hourly account in which overtime is recorded. This ensures that overtime does not simply expire, but can be remunerated individually. Depending on the agreement, this overtime can either be paid out in the next month or taken as time off in lieu. This ensures that even during stressful project phases, the burden on the employees is balanced fairly and appropriately.

This enables our SAP consultants to optimally plan their work and achieve a good work-life balance. GOpus GmbH is a family-owned company with just over 20 employees. We want to grow and we need you to do it. Convince yourself in a first introductory meeting.