SAP, the world's largest business software company, has underlined its dedication to up-skilling Saudi youth and creating employment in the country's burgeoning IT sector by recruiting 20 talented students and young professionals to its ambitious MENA Field Services- Young Professionals Program (YPP). The new recruits were welcomed to the two-year program at SAP's offices in Riyadh following an intensive selection process that entailed seeing off stiff competition from over 300 applications nominated by Saudi Arabia's top universities and employers, as well as undergoing a series of interviews and multifaceted aptitude tests. SAP's push to create jobs is set to be welcomed across the country, with the Central Department of Statistics and Information estimating that around 27 per cent of the Saudi labor force aged between 20 and 29 are currently unemployed. The YPP program is set to provide students with hands-on training in cutting-edge SAP solutions including Enterprise Resource Planning, Mobility, and the in-memory computing trailblazing capabilities of HANA. They will also gain extensive project experience with SAP partners and customers in order to gain invaluable skills and experience with multi-industry appeal. “SAP's solutions have the potential to play a major role in shaping Saudi Arabia's business future,” said Saudi student Ahmed Alwaji. “The YPP is a perfect fit for a country with a young population and a desire to innovate. SAP is giving me the chance to effect positive change on the absolute cutting-edge and I can't wait to get started.” The overarching aim of the YPP is to create a pool of technologically articulate consultants with a strong cultural and social understanding of regional idiosyncrasies, a key requirement for SAP as it seeks to ramp up the localization process of its solutions as a part of an ambitious four-year additional investment plan to up-skill local talent and drive sustainable innovation and growth in MENA. “We are delighted to welcome these talented students and young professionals to the YPP Program,” said Ahmed Jaber Al-Faifi, Managing Director – Saudi Arabia, SAP MENA. – SG
