News Article

SAP remains at the heart of enterprise transformation. But as the technology evolves, the issue of new opportunities for junior talent still threatens its long-term sustainability.

Traditionally, fresh graduates, career switchers, or junior consultants could enter the SAP ecosystem through structured trainee schemes, client-side roles, or partner-led academies. Today, those doors are narrowing, and junior consultants are finding it increasingly difficult to break into SAP while many organisations want “job-ready” consultants to meet immediate project deadlines. This short-term mindset might solve today’s resourcing challenge, but it risks damaging the future pipeline of SAP expertise.

Why are junior entry routes disappearing?

There are a few factors driving this shift:

• S/4HANA pressure – clients are in transformation mode, often unwilling to invest in training juniors when delivery timelines are tight.

• Lean resourcing models – partners and consultancies are under pressure to maximise billable hours, reducing appetite for junior hires who need time to ramp up.

• Automation and outsourcing – entry-level support roles that once served as a training ground have been automated or offshored, removing natural stepping stones into consulting.

The long-term consequences

While the immediate impact might seem negligible, the long-term risks are clear:

• A thinning pipeline – with fewer juniors entering the market, the future pool of experienced consultants will shrink.

• Increased skills shortages – mid-to-senior level SAP talent is already scarce; neglecting entry-level talent only deepens the gap.

• Rising costs for employers – competition for seasoned consultants drives salaries upward, straining project budgets.

• Innovation stagnation – fresh talent brings energy, diversity of thought, and new perspectives. Without them, the ecosystem risks becoming stagnant and less adaptable.

What can be done?

Organisations that commit to building junior pipelines create more sustainable workforces. Some practical approaches include:

• Partnering with universities and training providers to attract and develop graduates with the right blend of technical and business skills.

• Reintroducing structured academy programmes within consultancies and partners, even if on a smaller scale.

• Blended teams and pairing juniors with seasoned consultants creates knowledge transfer and spreads workload more effectively.

• Leveraging contract-to-perm models, allowing juniors to prove themselves on shorter assignments before committing long-term.

The role of recruiters in shaping the pipeline

Recruitment is about solving today’s hiring challenge as well as anticipating tomorrow’s. That means challenging the overreliance on immediate project demands and helping clients design talent strategies that consider long-term workforce sustainability. 

The SAP industry’s success relies on its talent pipeline. Investing in junior consultants is a strategic one and organisations that act now will enjoy a more resilient, skilled, and innovative workforce in the years ahead.