True SCM Blog #1
SAP (Systemanalyse Programmentwicklung) Jobs!
Are you aware that there’s a huge soccer stadium in Hoffenheim, Germany named Dietmar-Hopp stadium with a capacity of 6,350 seats? What about the highly sought-after research lab at Stanford University properly named the Hasso Plattner Institute of Design AKA “d.school”? If you did, then you’re a hard-core SAP aficionado. If you didn’t, then perhaps you learned something new today about the greatest multinational enterprise organization to ever exist, SAP (translates to Systems Application Programming in English)!
50 years ago, five former IBMers (Dietmar Hopp, Hasso Plattner, Hans-Werner Hector, Klaus Tschira, and Claus Wellenreuthe) created SAP (Systemanalyse Programmentwicklung) in Weinhem, Germany in 1972, where they set on a real -time mission. A batch job mission that is! Back in the days, they were configured to run nightly and these founders knew during the 70s (most likely earlier than that) that real-time computing was integral and what customers really needed. Think about that mindset carefully during the 1960s–1970s! That was way beyond their time! I could only imagine what they think of S/4 HANA today as compared to what their original intentions and visions were for their software.
As pioneers and entrepreneurs, they set out to share this visionary system with real-time business process integration with their first client at a chemical company (Imperial Chemical) and they had no idea what was to come of their vision. People at that time could barely comprehend the technological idea at that time as Tech was still in its infancy stages so this went over a lot of people’s heads. A time when IBM mainframes were the de facto standard for powerful computing based on COBOL, but the system of the future.
When was the last time you heard of anyone thanking these pioneers much less remember their names? Therefore, we must pay homage to Dietmar, Hasso, Hans-Werner, Klaus, and Claus. As civilized humans, we must give many thanks and gratitude to the founders for what they have done for us as SAP professionals who have made a living off of their conceptions, especially on this 50th anniversary of SAP. Their vision has now created millions of jobs and billions in revenue globally and has enabled people to not only provide for their families but also a stable career in both business and IT.
As the SAP founders went on to become billionaires from this concept, they also created a plethora of millionaires directly and indirectly through consulting opportunities, third-party vendors and solutions, and countless SAP opportunities for everyone small and big.
Imagine the what if. What if they didn’t close this deal with the Imperial Chemicals subsidiary and SAP went bust? What would most companies run as the ERP of choice today? What if the founding members didn’t jump ship from IBM to chase their dreams? We’d probably be working on another ERP solution or be in an infrastructure role or another IT capacity!
Life is about opportunities, luck, and perseverance and the founding members of SAP had all three! What are you going to do today to change tomorrow? Chase your dreams, love what you do, and be someone! My dream and goal for 2023 (perhaps sooner) are to work at SAP in a leadership role and I guarantee that this will come to fruition because I believed when my closest friends and family didn’t.
Thank you again Dietmar Hopp, Hasso Plattner, Hans-Werner Hector, Klaus Tschira, and Claus Wellenreuthe! We love your smiles in this picture and we are forever thankful! I can only imagine you four in this picture were laughing your way to the bank while chasing your passion and dreams where you made that vision become reality!
Ich möchte mich recht herzlich bedanken (I would like to thank you sincerely) - Trung Van Tran
Credit: https://www.sap.com/about/company/history/1972-1980.html
