Pioneer in SAP Training Shares Insights About How Professionals Learn Today

It is human nature to be curious. In the business world, this innate interest often translates into professional development, whether it’s working your way up the corporate ladder, adding new skills to your resume to improve your current performance, or looking to understand SAP technology for the first time. According to Thomas Michael, owner and founder of Michael Management–a leading provider of online SAP training and live SAP access services–hands-on, interactive training continues to be one of the most effective methods for learning.

Thomas started Michael Management in 2000 as a boutique consulting company. In 2007 the company started dabbling in online training and education. “I’d taught a lot of live training classes and realized that people don’t really like the death by Power Point approach,” he says.

While the content hasn’t changed much over the years, Thomas has watched the training model itself change, with the traditional classroom model shifting to online training, and the average course length shortening from eight hours to one and a half. “We used to boast that you were really getting value for your money with an eight to 10-hour course, but today, people don’t have that kind of time to dedicate to training. Everything is shorter, bite size.” An average lesson, says Thomas, is a mere seven to 10 minutes.

He expects this trend to only continue, although the need for learning still certainly exists, despite the fact that most companies will continue to work remotely as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak. “Simulation courses used to be very popular (where it looks like you’re logged into a real SAP system) and that’s a great method of learning but I think the future for Michael Management is going to be video-based content. Because we’re all working from home, the peer-to-peer model won’t be a common training method moving forward. That leaves online self-study training, or online live training. Either way, they’re both online.”

Michael Management has delivered half a million training sessions over the last few years. “Hands down, the basic SAP skill courses are the most popular because no matter what job you have in SAP, you need those skills. At the next level, its logistics and financials,” says Thomas.

All courses offered by Michael Management are either hands-on simulation courses or instructor-led video courses. To learn more, visit their website.