How big is demand for SAP CRM consultants?
Am I suitable for a SAP CRM? I have nine months hardware and software sales experience and about three years of SAP CRM/SD support experience. Now I am looking for more technical work, maybe with SAP CRM Web Commerce. I also enjoy Analytical work and am doing some at the moment.

Would you recommend SAP CRM and is there demand for consultants of this nature in the UK?

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I'm not considered an expert on the UK SAP market, but if it's similar to the U.S. market, then SAP CRM is a pretty good market, with a couple of disclaimers. The first disclaimer is that the success of salesforce.com has really impacted the CRM market by getting across that sometimes an on-demand solution is all a company needs for CRM. SAP now has its own on-demand CRM product as well, and while that may be a good career path for some, we have not yet seen a consulting market around that offering. Another thing to keep in mind is that during the core upgrade cycle, SD module work has in some cases supplanted CRM as the area companies are focusing on. Of course, there are some pieces of functionality that SAP is no longer enhancing with SD. You have to implement the SAP CRM component to get access to all the CRM functionality. But not all companies are going that route.

Overall, I like the SAP CRM career path, but right now, I like it best when it's tied into integration with SD and core ERP areas, or else focused on an emerging area like mobile applications (NetWeaver Mobile). So, I think you've chosen and good area to focus on if you keep these factors in mind. I also like that you are pursuing an area of SAP that lines up nicely with your existing experience. You'd be surprised how few folks do that. Many of them resist my advice and just pursue what's hot. So, I like your career strategy. As far as your question about how marketable your current background is, there's only one way to find out: go to the jobs section of SearchSAP.com and start applying for CRM positions. That should give you a good gut check right away.

This was first published in February 2008