Especially for consultants who are new or have little time in the market, this is a recurring question.
Should you start working directly on projects (Rollouts, implementations, etc.) or in the support area (AMS, enhancements)?
What is better?
In my opinion, there is no better or worse, but there are advantages and disadvantages to each path.
Below I will list the points that I always took into account when I had to choose between a project or support opportunity.
1 – Personal Profile
As I said above, there is no better or worse. But there is an affinity of profile Versus type of opportunity.
Generally (mainly speaking of the functional area of SAP), when you are working on a project, you have a great interaction with the end customer.
When you work with support or small improvements, there is a very high chance that you will work remotely within a consultancy.
Here we will have one of the big differences, which in my view, weigh a lot in the long run.
The keyword here is NETWORKING.
Being further away from the end customer, you will have fewer chances of really meeting people and especially knowing the business models in depth (over time you will notice how important it is to know as much as possible the business models of the clients you work for).
Also, many of the things you will learn will not be in the “main work environment”.
What do I mean by “main work environment”? Your table, meetings, etc.
You will learn many things during coffees, lunches, walks to the parking lot, etc.
On the other hand, many people just prefer not to be on the “front” with the client, precisely due to the great exposure (and pressure) to which the consultants are submitted.
2 – Aprendizado
This is a point that generates much discussion.
Where do you learn the most? On projects or support?
My answer is Both.
When you are working with support, there is a very good chance that you will be able to serve several customers and this will allow you to face (and learn) very different challenges each day.
In addition to this diversification of “problems”, you will not have as easy access to the people of the company itself (which can be good or bad, depending on your proactivity), making you have to work hard to resolve the tickets and solve them as quickly as possible.
In the project environment, on the other hand, you will have a more defined scope, easier access to those responsible for the processes, and you will have an easier time getting answers to your questions.
There is even a “joke” that is always spoken by the support team after implementing a project.
They always say that now that the project has been completed, and the project team has left, they are going to have to “do magic” to solve the problems that the project team left behind.
I can guarantee you that this is never done for malice.
Generally, during a project, the time is so short, the complexity is so high and the pressure is so great for the delivery on the date, that the project team will hardly have time to test all the processes in the smallest details and this result in “leaving” unknown problems behind.
In short, they are two different worlds, but in my view, they complement each other.
It is important during your career to have experiences in both areas (projects and support), as both environments are very rich in learning.
3- Travel
In my view, this is one of the points that weigh the most between the two paths to be followed within an SAP career.
When you are dedicated to working fully with projects, there is a great chance that you will travel a lot.
You are not required to travel, but at different times in your professional life, some incredible projects will appear and unfortunately (or fortunately), these projects will be in another city or even in another country.
Some professionals love to travel (especially those who are single) while others hate being at the airport several times a month.
In my personal opinion, traveling is sometimes very good and breaks that routine every week doing the same thing, in addition to having the opportunity to visit new cities/countries (which I think is incredible).
To conclude this topic, I would say that it is very important that you weigh your moment of life (single, married, with children, etc.) with the trips.
I know many people (including myself) who have had major personal problems due to travel.
I think a lot about the question of having a certain balance in life and for that reason, I always recommend to my friends that are already married to think a lot before accepting proposals that need to travel.
4 – Salary
I could not forget to mention a point as important as remuneration.
Are there differences between working in these two areas?
Yes, they exist.
Generally, you will be a little better paid (I cannot estimate how much) working on projects.
Of course, we cannot generalize, because the longer you are working for a consultancy/company in the support team, your salary may increase as the years go by and this difference may not be as relevant anymore.
But speaking from my personal experiences, working with projects has always paid me better than working with support.
Conclusion
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A big hug,
Bruno César
