Life at SAP – with Alexandre Lassis

One of the best ways to show what Life is like at SAP is to share our employee stories to provide insight into their experiences and what being successful means to us at the company. I am Heather Walker, and I work on the Global Employer Branding team. Over the last few months I have had the opportunity to speak with 50 colleagues across our Europe, Middle East and Africa region to help share their stories. Here is an interview I did with Alexandre Lassis.

Alexandre, from France, studied Optics and Photonics, so how did he come to work at SAP?

When did you start working at SAP?

I joined SAP last January as an Innovation and Value Advisor.

Previous jobs

I have been a researcher, an intrapreneur team leader in an OEM manufacturer, a consultant in an organization, and finally led the team in a consultancy firm focused on Digital Transformation.

How did you get your current job?

I shared with a head-hunter my willingness to be closer to where innovation and digital transformation is made possible; either disruptive clients or ISVs. The latter came true.

What qualifications did you need for your current job?

Mostly the soft skills developed during my experience as a consultant, plus strong analytical capabilities from my engineer years.

What do you think the key skills people need to possess if they are considering a similar career?

I think the main skills required are:

• Active listening and being able to read between the lines
• The ability to connect the dots
• Eloquence and empathy
• The capability to turn ideas and intuitions into schemes and figures.

What does success look like to you?

To me it means being recognized for my expertise leading to activities in and out of SAP, a good work life balance… and wealth!

If you could go back in time and give your 18-year-old-self one piece of career advice what would it be?

Do what you feel you want to do, and leave little thought for comments regarding the “promising” aspect of the job. When you instinctively like what you are doing, you are doing it well and better and differently than others. Consequently, you will succeed and be recognized.

To see more Life at SAP stories or learn about open jobs at SAP join #LifeatSAP social community channels on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn, Twitter, Weibo and WeChat or visit the career site.