Introduction
It is a great pleasure that today we are publishing the sixth episode of our talk show “Talks” and I would like to thank both our interviewee of the day and all followers of SAP Steps.
The idea of this interview program is to talk to people who are directly connected to the SAP world (Consultants, Project Managers, etc.), as well as to interview people who are on the “business” side and who have been or are going through SAP projects.
Jacqueline is an experienced SAP ABAP Consultant having worked in the most different market segments.
Below, I will transcribe the chat we had about her professional journey to this day.
Interview
Bruno César: Good morning Jacqueline, how are you? First of all, I would like to thank you for participating in our series of interviews. The purpose today is to pass on to SAP Steps readers a little of its history within the SAP market and talk a little about the ABAP module. Before I start talking about the main topic, would you like to ask you to talk a little about yourself, your main hobbies, your family, etc.?
Jacqueline Lopes: Hi Bruno, thank you for the opportunity. There is not much to talk about Jackie, I am a young lady, with common habits, 2 cats, who loves music, and has a pet piano.
Bruno César: One nice thing to say is that even today (early 2021) we still don’t know each other personally, as we went through a “challenging” project during the COVID pandemic in 2020 and have since become friends. It’s really cool to know that even in such difficult times (with so many people suffering) good things can still happen, like making new friends.
Jacqueline Lopes: Thank God, even in this delicate moment I experienced good things. You are certainly a pleasant surprise, you became my heartfelt friend.
Bruno César: Now, to begin with, could you tell us how it got into the SAP market?
Jacqueline Lopes: Well, I studied IT, I did Information Systems and when I left college I was totally lost, I didn’t even know what SAP was. I don’t know how things are today, but in my day we left college very unprepared for the job market. But a college colleague was invited by Softtek to do an interview to participate in the Abap Academy, she already had a job in another company, so, she was not interested and referred me.
Bruno César: And why did you choose to become an ABAP programmer?
Jacqueline Lopes: As I said before, it was an indication of employment, far from being a choice. In fact, I thought I was unable to program, that there was no way. This colleague indicated me in the vacancy and I called a great friend who encouraged me and studied programming logic with me to prepare for the interview and I passed !!
Bruno César: Do you have any type of workplace preference, type of project you prefer to work in, etc.?
Jacqueline Lopes: Ahh, I was always in the projects and never in the factory or support. While I was able to choose, I ventured into many good projects, I never cared where, I went to Bahia, Minas, Rio Grande do Sul, I had the opportunity to go to Austria and the USA, in addition to São Paulo, I went to everything that went anywhere. I always preferred the implementations, I think we learn a lot from them. The Go-live of a company that does not have SAP is very exciting, with the right to sleepless nights, tension, nervousness, and good laughs.
Bruno César: Can you tell us what was the most difficult project you participated in?
Jacqueline Lopes: That question is difficult huh … Because each project has its own characteristic. I went through several challenges that made me who I am today and I am grateful to all of them.
Bruno César: Thinking about your career, do you have any regrets or something that you would do differently?
Jacqueline Lopes: No, it was 15 years well-lived … I like my CV and I am grateful to God for all the opportunities I experienced. They were intense, I made a lot of friends, I learned a lot, without this regret.
Bruno César: Regarding challenges, what are the main challenges for an SAP ABAP consultant, in your opinion?
Jacqueline Lopes: I think the biggest challenge for those in the technical area is to follow the changes/evolution that are occurring all the time in the sap. We don’t always have time for this, and we don’t always want to either. Being open to learning becomes more and more difficult over the years.
Bruno César: And when we talk about ABAP. What do you think is the most difficult to learn and apply?
Jacqueline Lopes: Look Bruno, it’s hard to take the specification and transform it into code, right hahahhahhaha
Bruno César: Can you tell us about your experience working with foreigners? In international projects, etc.?
Jacqueline Lopes: It was a wonderful experience, I learned a lot. I don’t own beautiful English, so I first learned to communicate, and then I learned to be accepted into another culture. For the rest, SAP is the same as making a project in Brazil.
Bruno César: If you could give 3 tips to a person who wants to become a SAP ABAP consultant, what would they be?
Jacqueline Lopes: 1 – Ask: don’t do anything with doubt, the chance of going wrong is huge, 2- Debug: Abap who doesn’t like to debug, is dead ABAP! Debug saves lives, 3- Test: Insist on a test case, it will prevent you from being embarrassed and your name will end up in the mud.
Bruno César: Jackie, I want to thank you for your participation. It was a pleasure to welcome you here at SAP Steps. Would you have anything else to add?
Jacqueline Lopes: Pleasure was all my dear. Count on me!
Bruno César: That’s it for today guys, I thank you from the heart for the presence of our guest Jacqueline and I hope you all enjoy the chat we had today.
Conclusion
I hope you enjoyed our sixth interview (of many) on our Talks program.
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If you have any suggestions (including subjects you would like to read about or possible candidates to be interviewed), feel free to send an email to sapsteps@sapsteps.com.
A big hug,
Bruno César
