Pursuing a career in SAP-APO?

[Former Member]

Hi Friends,

I need your advice on a career in SAP-APO.Below is a brief description about myself.

I am a Certified SAP-PP consultant with 3.5 yrs in SAP and 6 years of domain exp. Have exp in QM and PM modules also.

I want to pursue a career in SAP-APO and planning to do a certification which would cost around 7 to 8 lakhs in India. But before that, I have a few queries .

Should i pursue a career in SAP-APO is the first and foremost question?

Once i complete the training, what would be my job prospects in SAP APO?

Do Companies recruit fresher?Will i have to start as a fresher in SAP APO?

Can you share your exp in APO.?

Looking for all your valuable suggestions.

Thanks.

[ravi_malpani · Accepted solution]

Hi!

I am an APO consultant. I have colleagues in my company who have switched from SAP PP to SAP APO. They have had PP experience from say 3 to 6 years before switiching to APO.

They did not appear for any APO certification but got APO training within the compnay and were also deployed to work on APO projects.

Having multiple module experience is good. Appearing for SAP APO certification is purely at your discretion. It would be a definite advantage. In my opinion, it would be good to work on some APO projects in the same company where you are working currently. Once you are comfortable with APO then you can look for other opportunities.

Rarely anycompany would like to recruit a "fresher" (Fresher in APO but experienced in PP) and then invest in training if there are trained / experienced APO consultants available

Hope this helps.

Regards,

Ravi

[Former Member]

Thanks to all for your sincere suggestions.

I am now planning to do it individually and start learning on my own.

How is the content of APO? tough else easy to understand.

Can I learn it on my own independently?

Can i install the APO component on my laptop(is it feasible) and start practising ?

However my present company doesn't have APO. So can i look out for a new job once i am done with the APO course?

pls guide on this.

[Former Member]

I think you should think about "why" most. Why APO? All SAP modules are great and thinking that one would be thousand times better than the other is not correct. If it is a matter of getting projects, you can explore within or appear in more interviews. Otherwise I don't think it is a good idea to start as a fresher once again. (Even with certification you would be a fresher). Market is full of freshers with no or less work-ex, there is no value in competing with them.

[Former Member]

Hi Nandi,

Should i pursue a career in SAP-APO is the first and foremost question?

>>> Yes, thats realy a good option to float in APO as you already have PP experience, mainley in APO-PPDS, SNP and Demand Planning.

Once i complete the training, what would be my job prospects in SAP APO?

>>> Once you get the primary knowledge, I suggest look for any start up project is your organization which will be much easier to look for new jobs.

After having exp for couple of years, you can opt for certification.

Do Companies recruit fresher?Will i have to start as a fresher in SAP APO?

>>> Yes, companies do recruit freshers but to be honest it's all luck and chance.

Hope, info from my view will help.

Regards,

Deepak Girme