SAP Careers - Americas

SIFE plays an important role in helping SAP position itself as an attractive employer among young students: Students In Free Enterprise is a private and non-political non-profit organization founded in the USA in 1975. Today, SIFE is globally active at more than 1,800 universities in 47 countries, and has become one of the largest international student organizations in the world.

Last year, SAP Employer Branding entered into a partnership with SIFE Germany with the aim of making SAP more well-known among (non-IT) students.

SAP hosted the SIFE National Cup 2012 in St. Leon-Rot on June 12 and 13. Stefan Krauß, Head of COO DACH, opened the competition on behalf of SAP. He recalled his own career path at SAP and the countless opportunities the company has offered him since he started here. “I had originally only planned to stay at SAP for a couple of years, to gain experience.” he revealed. “But 22 years later, I’m still here.” What excites him the most about working at SAP is being able to collaborate with lots of different companies and industries and keep learning new things. Daniel Schmid, Head of Sustainability Operations, also gave an impressive speech: “The SIFE philosophy ‘Creating economic opportunities for others’ is quite similar to SAP’s strategy ‘Helping the World run better’; that’s why we fit so well together.” The podium discussion that followed focused on the talents that are currently in demand and highlighted just how important “extra-curricular commitment” is to employers.

More than 250 students in 20 teams from 45 different universities across Germany competed to become German champion. The winner was chosen by a panel of over 100 judges (16 from SAP):  The University of Cologne, with its fascinatingly simple idea of installing lights in dark slum shacks, will represent SIFE Germany at the World Cup in Washington, DC in September.
Both students and SAP colleagues were impressed by how well the event was organized, the quality of the work, and the relaxed atmosphere. So the foundation has been laid for SAP and SIFE to enter partnerships in other countries and connect with talented students there as well.

By:  Cornelia Weiss-Justen