SAP Market

Update on the SAP Market


We see or hear about this recession that we're in just about everywhere we turn. I'd like to share some thoughts about what we see in the market about SAP Talent.



Strictly in terms of SAP, we don't see a recession or at least the current indicators are that maybe it hasn't caught up with us yet! Below are some market indicators that we see, and I'm curious to know if any of you are seeing similar indicators or different?

1. All the Fortune 500 clients and SAP Consulting Firms are hiring people at all levels and in all skills sets throughout the United States.

2. The SAP Market seems hot in major markets like: Chicago, Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, St. Louis, Minneapolis, Milwaukee, Florida, NY/NJ, and in California.

3. We see a little bit of a slow down in markets like Detroit, Michigan and Ohio but it isn't dead by any means.

4. The SAP Consulting Market seems to be very strong. Indicators include the fact that 50% or more of the people are in consulting. Bill rates are strong. Great SAP Talent are always on project and can easily get multiple contract offers in a fairly short time.

5. Major companies are committing to NEW SAP implementations and major upgrades creating large-scale hiring projects and opportunities for consulting partnerships

6. Certain industries are really HOT - including Medical Device/Equipment, Pharmaceutical, Banking/Insurance, Aerospace & Defense, Mining (Gold/Copper/Coal), Energy/Utility, Hi-Tech Mfg, and the Public Sector. We see a little slow down with Manufacturing, Food/Beverage, CPG, and Chemical industries.



7. Companies are still seeking SAP Direct-Hire talent and are willing to pay very healthy fees & relocation to get the talent they seek, but many of clients are still very picky and in a very tight candidate-market, it results in open positions for sometimes 3-6 months.

8. Companies & Hiring Authorities that realize we're in a very tight candidate-market are seeing success through a very quick interview-to-offer process.

9. GREAT SAP Talent in today's market, generally speaking, can easily find a very good opportunity to take advantage of their talents. (Especially those in major markets or willing to relocate)

10. The guess is that 40-60% of all companies that run SAP in the U.S. are open to transferring a visa if the person still has 2-3+ years remaining to work on a visa. Even these companies may be picky to hire someone with great soft-skills and very solid SAP technical skills and wait 6 months - 1 year before helping with Green Card Processing.

11. Lastly, certain SAP skills seem to be in HIGH Demand including: Netweaver, XI, Enterprise Portals, BI 7.0, APO, CRM, SCM/SRM, WM, IS-Retail, AFS, HCM, and as always FI/CO!



In summary, the market indicators shows that many of our country's major Fortune 500 companies across industries and across the U.S. are still hiring!



(Thanks to Jeremy Sisemore for his great analysis on SAP market)