Am I a good candidate for a CRM consultant career?

Am I a good candidate for a CRM consultant career?

I have two years practical experience in marketing and sales for a computer reseller company. I have a B.A. in management and marketing. Also, I have basic programming knowledge, know both hardware and software technology well, and understand database concepts as well as system and structure analysis concepts. I have excellent analytical skills and I also learn very quickly.

I am very interested in mySAP ERP (especially the CRM module). Am I good candidate for a mySAP CRM consultant career? Remember, I don't have a lot of experience or knowledge in programming or complex software implementation. Could you suggest how to start with this or with some other SAP specialization? How good is this market?

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Your thinking is definitely on the right track. Of all the niches in the SAP product line, I would say that mySAP CRM would be the best fit with your background and experience. SAP CRM implementations involve a range of technical and functional skills, but a sales and marketing background combined with some coding skills is not at all a bad place to start. In terms of the overall CRM market prospects, CRM is definitely one of the major growth areas within SAP. SAP's revenues in this space seem to be greater than Siebel's. By some accounts, SAP is now the CRM market leader. More and more SAP users seem to be installing SAP CRM in favor of tighter integration with core ERP components.

Of course, that leaves open the question of specifically how you can get involved and whether there are real opportunities for someone like yourself. I can't say for sure what your chances are, but I can say that the opportunities in SAP CRM seem more open than anything I've seen in SAP in a long time. An example: A major consultancy recently offered an SD guy I know a full investment in CRM training, followed by placement on a CRM project. Admittedly, this person has previous SAP experience, which you do not have, but it's very rare to see any kind of opportunities for "certification only" consultants of any flavor. Therefore, in addition to applying directly for companies installing SAP CRM, you may also be able to apply to some consulting firms -- a strategy I haven't recommended to anyone in a number of years. But for the most part, the main thing you need to focus on is finding companies using or installing SAP CRM that are interested in the skills you already possess. That takes a lot of research and self-marketing, but that's where you have to start. The SearchSAP.com archives are full of additional questions I have answered that explain my methodology for breaking into SAP in more detail. Good luck!

This was first published in December 2004

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