My experiences in the SAP trainee programme at adesso orange

Have you just finished your studies? Or do you have several years of professional experience in a field from which you can switch to IT consulting, but you're not sure how? Or maybe you just want to get to know the IT industry from a different perspective?

If you are not yet sure whether a trainee programme is right for you, then my blog post, in which I report on my completed adesso orange SAP trainee programme, is certainly something for you.

For those who are enthusiastic about SAP, the trainee programme at adesso orange takes place three times a year, on 1 March, 1 July and 1 November. The programme lasts five to six months, depending on the cycle.

The beginning: onboarding and first impressions

Welcome Days

I started on 1 July 2023. As befits a consultant's life, the first week of July started with a trip to Cologne. We were welcomed to the onboarding event at the NH Hotel directly on the Rhine for two days. When I arrived, I got to know many colleagues, some from adesso and others from subsidiaries such as adesso orange or adesso mobile solutions. It was even more exciting to meet colleagues from a wide range of departments, from HR to web development and working students. Of course, I was particularly pleased to meet colleagues from the SAP department.

During these two days, we had the opportunity to get to know adesso better through events and the corporate culture. The Welcome Days, which I attended in Cologne, also took place in parallel at the Dortmund, Berlin and Munich locations. After we learned more about adesso, there was a quiz about the company in which we from the Cologne office competed against the other locations. Everyone was very motivated, but unfortunately we lost to Munich, although we took it in good sportsmanship.

Onboarding and setup

On the third day, there was an online onboarding session specifically for adesso orange, where the new colleagues who started this month were able to introduce themselves. Managing Director Olaf Reiter was also present and gave us a warm welcome.

On the fourth day, we set up the hardware and software we need for our further work using SAP and Eclipse.

Team building

Before the trainee programme really got started, we had a departmental get-together where colleagues from all over Germany came together in Essen to spend time together. This included a joint breakfast and a bike tour through Essen. It was a great opportunity to exchange ideas with colleagues from other departments. We had a lot of fun during the conversations and laughed a lot. I really appreciate being part of my team and of adesso.

Overview of the trainee programme

The programme is divided into five main parts:

Part 1: Methodology for project management

This module consists of several practical exercises. In BPMN, the theoretical basics of process modelling were deepened through exercises, whereby the complexity of the notation posed a challenge at the beginning. The Scrum Master and Product Owner training taught agile project methods and concluded with certifications that enhance the CV. In requirements engineering, the focus was on the precise definition of requirements, which requires a lot of practice. In rhetoric training, presentation techniques were improved through feedback and video analysis, which was unusual for many. Professional Consulting Basics provided practical insights into the day-to-day work of a consultant, while PRINCE2 training taught a structured project management method that is helpful for complex projects.

Part 2 and 3: SAP R/3 - ABAP Programming

The second and third parts dealt with the topics of SAP R/3 - ABAP programming and provided in-depth technical knowledge. The part on ABAP Platform Architecture and Programming Basics taught the fundamentals of ABAP programming, with a step-by-step introduction making it easier to get started, even if the ABAP syntax was unfamiliar at first. The ABAP Dictionary and Database Access training module taught the database structures in SAP, with practical exercises helping to internalise the complex concepts.

In the ABAP Objects training section, we learned about object-oriented programming, which opened up new programming possibilities for us, even though the change from procedural to object-oriented programming was a challenge. The ABAP Advanced and Extensibility section showed how to extend existing SAP programs.

Part 4: SAP S/4HANA - Fiori, SAP UI5, oData, CDS etc.

The training courses on web technologies for ABAP developers and SAP UI5 introduced us to modern web development in an SAP context, including HTML, CSS, JavaScript and SAP technologies such as Fiori and UI5. The opportunity to develop modern user interfaces was motivating, even though the switch from ABAP to JavaScript was a big change for many of us.

Core Data Services (CDS) offered new possibilities for efficient data modelling at the database level, but its complex concepts posed a challenge and required intensive training.

Part 5.: Industry-specific training

The public sector training provided a comprehensive insight into public sector administration and the SAP modules. Understanding the specific administrative processes was particularly valuable, even though their complexity was sometimes overwhelming.

The fundamentals of energy were fascinating because of the relevance of energy production, transmission and distribution to daily life, even though the technical details were challenging.

In the training on the fundamentals of SAP IS-U, we learned how SAP is used in the utilities industry. In particular, the practical exercises provided a realistic insight, even though the multitude of specific processes was initially confusing.

Final project

At the end of the programme, we carried out a complex project for a fictitious customer in the field of sports data analysis. The task was to expand an existing S/4HANA on-premise system for external use by customers. We presented our solutions to experienced colleagues, team leaders and members of the board. Although we were all very nervous, we were ultimately able to be proud of our achievements.

Conclusion

The trainee programme was basically exhausting, because on the one hand we were on the road a lot and on the other hand we had to take part in 29 training sessions in a short period of time. Nevertheless, I would like to mention three outstanding aspects:

• 1. intensive: adesso invests a great deal in the development of its junior staff and promotes a mindset that thinks outside the box and leads out of the comfort zone. The programme lays the foundation for a successful entry into the world of SAP consulting and strengthens essential knowledge and skills.
• 2. Unique: None of the previous training was comparable to the future one. We always had the opportunity to provide feedback after each training, which was then taken into account for future training to continuously improve it.
• 3. Structured: The programme was very well structured. We were constantly informed about changes, which is due to the careful work of the team.

Overall, I am satisfied with the trainee programme in terms of my expectations. Personally, the training sessions and intermediate projects have given me valuable experience, increased my self-confidence and shown me how to deal with stressful situations better. In terms of expertise, I have already completed the basic phases of the induction programme. But there is still a long way to go before I can answer the question ‘What do you do for a living?’ with ‘I work as an SAP consultant’.

I hope that this blog post has dispelled some of your concerns. In the meantime, I have successfully completed my first project in the field of energy supply and am now working on my second project. It is fascinating to see how the knowledge I have acquired in the trainee programme is being put to the test and further developed in practice. I will report on my latest experiences and insights in another blog post. So it remains exciting.

Would you like to learn more about exciting topics from the world of adesso? Then take a look at our previously published blog posts.

Also interesting:

• Our new partner: the University of Hildesheim