ERP (SAP) Vs J2EE

[siva kumar]

Hi friends,

I have a friend who happen to work in Java/J2EE,

He is requested by his manager/company to move into SAP ERP, He will initially work in technical programming ( AWAB) part then he will move into more functional part.

He is bit confused whether to continue in his present company or look for openings else were

My doubt is what is the difference between working in ERP packages such as SAP/ ORACLE APP's and working in Java/.NET

It is said that SAP consultant are highly paid than a J2EE programmer is it true

what is the difference between working in SAP or Java; is there a difference in way projects are managed.

Does ERP Like SAP or Oracle Applications needs special skill not gathered working in Java/J2EE

Finally what is the difference between a SAP technical guy and SAP Functional Guy ( He will work in AWAB not NetWeaver)

Besides which is better in ERP market SAP or Oracle Applications

Finally is it recommend to move from Java/J2EE to SAP.

If anyone could clarify the above questions; I would be grateful.

[shan Iyer]

I am working on SAP ABAP and other technical SAP stuff over the last 10 months . People from my team are getting very attractive offers with just 2-3 years exp in SAP technical , which is quite unlikely in J2EE . Unlike J2EE , ABAP and other technical things of SAP just cannot be installed and learnt anywhere . One needs to learn it only by working on SAP projects in companies . This automatically results in fewer number of SAP technical consultants than J2EE , thus automatically increasing their market value .

[Jay Dilla]

In the US it is the difference 0f $20K . I hear SAP salaries are way higher then Java developer. ABAP is similar to a scripting language I heard and it is not taught in schools and I never seen a book on it in any bookstore(trust me I've been looking). I think you can only learn it through a company. That being said the new version of SAP will use Java in it, so there will be demand for people who know ABAP and Java. I'm trying to learn ABAP but can't find any resources so if you friend has an opportunity to learn it he should take it, he can learn java ANYWHERE and download multiple free IDEs. As far as the long term potential in SAP i am not sure. I guess another product can pop up and overtake SAP, but it probably won't be for a while....and you friend can make ALOT of money right now, so he has to decide if he wants to commit himself to one product related language and run with it

[Tontang Bei]

I'm trying to learn ABAP but can't find any resources so if you friend has an opportunity to learn it he should take it

There are plenty of books on ABAP on amazon.

[Jay Dilla]

Originally posted by Tontang Bei:


There are plenty of books on ABAP on amazon.

O thanks, I normally buy books in stores though.

[siva kumar]

Hi All,

Thanks for the nice reply...

But still Iam confused; Is it easy to migrate from Java to SAP; is there any difference in the way you do programming and besides SAP consist of number of modules modeled on Functional domains..

Do we need to learn new skills
( Just for Info There are lot of Training centers in India who happen to train you on SAP but the only prerequisites is that you should have some exposure to a functional domain)

[ankur prabhu]

Originally posted by siva kumar:
Hi All,

Thanks for the nice reply...

But still Iam confused; Is it easy to migrate from Java to SAP; is there any difference in the way you do programming and besides SAP consist of number of modules modeled on Functional domains..

Do we need to learn new skills
( Just for Info There are lot of Training centers in India who happen to train you on SAP but the only prerequisites is that you should have some exposure to a functional domain)

Now why are you worrying so much. It's your friend's concern.

[Jay Dilla]

Originally posted by ankur prabhu:


Now why are you worrying so much. It's your friend's concern.

Lol, I was wondering the same thing.

[stephen gates]

It's the age old theory of "My friend needs help.." When the "friend" is really the person who is asking you the question.

Learn as much as you can like I told another poster. It never hurts to learn new things, as long as you like it.

[siva kumar]

Hi ,

I agree I am too concerned about my friend.... Well.......I may also think of a career shift

But anyway I have talked to some SAP professionals

and got the following answers

1.)ERP package's are easy to learn as far as technical part is concerned

2.) The toughest part is learning how use it effectively in a particular domain

3.) The ERP professionals mostly communicate directly with clients and negotiate the requirements and functionality.

4.)Generally you need to be a domain expert to make a lot of money

5.)The job demands a lot of soft-skills such as good communication and inter-personal skills and any miscommunication is very costly.

6.) Consultants who make a killing; work alone and possess years of exposure
and expertise to a particular domain.

[Ram Kumar Subramaniam]

Hey Siva,
Its 2010 now and I am curious to know if you made that career shift and let us know your experience.
Regards,
Ram

[Tiju Thomas]

Ram Kumar Subramaniam wrote:Hey Siva,
Its 2010 now and I am curious to know if you made that career shift and let us know your experience.
Regards,
Ram

Many people ask about how their shift from Java to SAP will become, but never care to come back and share their experience.

[amrutab patty]

Jay Dilla wrote: I hear SAP salaries are way higher then Java developer. ABAP is similar to a scripting language I heard and it is not taught in schools and I never seen a book on it in any bookstore(trust me I've been looking). I think you can only learn it through a company. That being said the new version of SAP will use Java in it, so there will be demand for people who know ABAP and Java.....

Hi, I am a java developer with 2 years of experience. I want to know whether opting for sap ABAP would be a good idea after having 2 years of experience in java.
If I go for ABAP now, I'll again have to start my career as a fresher and I am confused whether it would be a beneficial decision.
Also I want to know whether my java skill and knowledge will be of any use to me and it will be considered or not after the switch. Please help.