Let’s face it, if you’re employed (or looking for work!) at a large organization in the financial, operational or supply chain areas, then you’ve probably heard about SAP. Large companies use SAP for their buying, selling, human resources, financial, and reporting needs—to name only a few areas.
Many companies require their prospective employees to be familiar with the software, which means you should have some background in how it and works and how to use it. That said, I have many people reaching out and asking me how they can get the exposure without having previously worked in SAP.
In this article, we’ll talk about the different ways you can learn SAP ERP as a completely new user.
What is SAP ERP?
SAP Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) is a software that helps streamline businesses' process when recording the transactions and financials for each part of the organization. The ERP package helps support and integrates each area of a business such as logistics, procurement, finance, accounting, and human resources.
An example would be when a client requests to purchase a product from a sales team. The sales team will contact the inventory department to check the availability of the product. When configured correctly, SAP ensures the company will have the appropriate amount to sell. And if the stock is unavailable, the system will initiate the process to either purchase or manufacture the required items.
With SAP ERP, data is maintained at a central location and is shared with various departments that may need to use it. This mostly static data is called master data, and it helps integrate business processes that offer the following advantages to a company:
It helps eliminate duplication of or redundancy in data
It provides the same accurate information to all departments
It helps increase productivity, which in turn helps boost company sales
It improves the customer experience
It enables the recording of transactions in real time
How Can I Learn SAP ERP?
Okay, so now we’ve got a very general idea of what SAP ERP does. But what is the best way to learn it efficiently and effectively? Here are the three most straight-forward ways to learn about SAP ERP.
Online Courses
If you’re completely new to SAP (as in you’ve never seen the system before) or it’s been a while since you’ve been in the system, the best way to learn about SAP ERP is to watch my SAP ERP Essential Training on LinkedIn Learning. You may be thinking to yourself that I’m biased, and you’d be absolutely right! But I’ve worked extremely hard to give you exactly what you need to know about the system and nothing more. The course explains the difference between master data and transactional data, the benefits and limitations of SAP, the ins and outs for a typical SAP implementation, and the unique meaning of clients in SAP.
After looking at the theories, we’ll jump into the system to look at navigation basics using transaction codes and other essentials. You will learn how to run reports and uncover results that meet your company’s needs. When you’re finished taking the course, you’ll receive a certificate from LinkedIn Learning that you can share to your profile to entice prospective employers.
Once you’ve nailed down the SAP Essentials, I strongly encourage you to check out my other courses which cover SAP Financials, SAP Sales and Distribution, SAP Materials Management, and SAP Production Planning. If you’re ready to take your navigation and reporting up a notch, jump in to SAP S/4HANA: Beyond the Basics.
Work Experience
To be fully transparent, there is probably no better way to learn SAP than through on-the-job training. In fact, that’s exactly how I first learned the software. Because I had an excellent mentor, I was able to get a clear picture of how the system supported the business activities at the company where I was working. I also had access to an SAP training environment where I could go in the system and make mistakes without having it impact the business. A fantastic first role for someone wanting to learn SAP would be as a Jr. SAP Business analyst. Once you get hired by a company, you should get specific instruction in how the company uses SAP. The difficulty in finding these roles is that oftentimes a company will want someone to have at least some exposure to SAP in the past. This is where LinkedIn Learning can prove to be especially useful!
Books
If you prefer to learn about SAP ERP on your own, you can purchase books that outline the transactions and reports you’d like to learn about. However, there are certain disadvantages to self-learning through manuals. For one, you don’t have a mentor to guide you in using the system. Secondly, no one can answer your questions when you get confused. Lastly, you won’t receive a certificate for reading the books. Still, books can be a supplemental resource to deepen your understanding of the software. So if you’re ready further your SAP learning journey, I’ve found the material in the manuals from SAP Press to be laid out well and exceptionally helpful.
Final Thoughts
If you truly want to learn about SAP ERP, online videos and eCourses are your best option. These tutorials make it easier for you to understand technical terms, and they can walk you through the process of using the software. Lastly, you can gain a certificate, which increases your credibility when looking for a job.Plus, you can expand your network on the spot! If you want to talk more about learning SAP, or you have feedback on any of my courses, be sure to connect with me on LinkedIn.
