Presales Communications Associate Review

Having arrived at the end of my placement, after taking a moment to look back over the time period, I have extremely fond memories of working for SAP. It is an exceptional company, especially as a young person just starting your career, due to the open nature of the organization. Each day, I was offered the chance to undertake a plethora of varied tasks and was given a multitude of exciting opportunities. For example, I was given the chance to attend the SAP User Group with my fellow colleagues. I was extremely lucky to be part of such a welcoming and fun team. For all of the reasons presented, I have thoroughly enjoyed my placement.

To a great extent, I have felt extremely valued by my colleagues. Presales is an open community, all who I have encountered within the department have been willing to give me their time and have allowed me to participate in their on-going projects. I have been given high levels of responsibility, as I have had the opportunity to organize events and participate in customer engagements. This is a great show of trust from the team, as I have participated in live sales cycles.

My manager was really supportive during the whole process. I have had two managers due to role changes and although both have differing styles, they were both great. They provided guidance and support where needed. We were also assigned a buddy on arrival at the company, my buddy has been a great source of information and support, it is a great system to provide extra guidance.

My work load varied on occasions, I would however state that this position has a heavy workload. Although the workload is high, this is tied to the great levels of responsibility given to interns. You are treated like a full time member of staff, this is reflected in the work load provided. I would state, however support is always available if you feel you are unable to take the load. The level of work has given me an insight into a real working life and I believe it has increased my work ethic to a great extent.

As stated previously, I was given great levels of responsibility, I feel as though the people around me treat me as just another member of staff. There is no micro management within presales, this means you are given a large reign to participate in what you are interested in.

Although I study a seemingly unrelated degree (International History and Politics), I believe that I have developed skills that will assist me in my degree. For example we were provided with professional training in presentation and communication skills. Further skills and training I have received at SAP will definitely assist beyond my degree. I have learnt skills in Adobe products something I had never had the opportunity to try before SAP. I have loved learning about SAP products, gaining a technical knowledge in SAP has increased the breadth of my skill set and will stand me in good stead for the future.

The general atmosphere in the office was great within the presales area! there are lots of presales colleagues who frequently come into the office. It is sometimes a tense environment towards the end of a sales quarter, however I think its actually an exciting environment to be in, especially when a large deal is signed.

Although I have thoroughly enjoyed the work placement, I do not think it has been organized well, it is an extremely unstructured placement. This has suited my particular work style, however, if you prefer a task orientated work style, you may not enjoy this particular placement.

The company invests greatly in the interns. The professional presentation training that I have mentioned before was paid for by the company. We were given the chance to partake in further development tasks such as a myers briggs test. The company were willing to pay my travel expenses, so that I could sit in on a customer demonstration in Leeds. This showed how much they valued and were willing to invest in the interns.

Future employment prospects in the company are extremely appealing. The company offers a graduate scheme for the Presales and Sales departments, this scheme allows you to go to California for a training program and then rejoin SAP as a full time employee.

Yes! SAP hires over 40 interns and as a result there is a great community of individuals of the same age. We all get together often and sit together daily at lunch. This is a really nice bonus especially if you are moving a large distance from home.

The cost of living in the area is high (if you were to live in London for example I resided in Richmond). This cost however is indicative of average cost in the south area and especially in London. I would like to say it was not too expensive to the level where you could not socialise.

The nightlife in the area I lived was quite dull, due to it being a family area. I was however extremely connected to different towns where there was a great level of nightlife. The company itself hosts many events, where free drinks and nibbles are provided. This includes the Christmas party and offsite events.

There were a multitude of opportunities, including the SAP netball team and events such as the SAP children christmas party. For example the company is participating the the Pride parade and has invited staff to come along. During my time I was also able to attend the Imagine Dragons concert on behalf of SAP.