SAP Training Manuals

Wow! This is a big move for us.



Our SAP Training Manuals are now for sale.



Learn which ones are available, how to buy the manuals, and copyright restrictions.



The careful reader will note that we didn't say much on the website about why we are doing this, and any concerns that we have about possible cannibalization of future training revenue.



As the economy has gone downhill and the recovery has stalled over the last 18 months, corporate IT training has changed rapidly. Companies have slashed travel and training budgets, and training vendors (even SAP and Oracle) are scrambling to figure out what to do next.



What makes sense, in this market, is to offer a number of different educational products--focused on content that can be consumed in a variety of ways, and in pieces smaller than a traditional week-long class with a live instructor.



We have a number of initiatives going on at ERPtips (SAP) and JDEtips (JD Edwards).



In addition to selling our SAP training manuals, we'll be increasing our virtual training offerings, creating eLearning modules for self-study, and creating more videos to supplement our SAP Library, ERPtips Journal.

I consider selling our SAP manuals to be similar to the Journal--offering "bite sized" pieces of learning materials--in this case a lot of "bites" that can be consumed over time.



Will selling our entire set of training materials cannibalize training revenue from future classes? I don't think it will. First, some people just don't have the time or budget to ever attend a class. Second, some clients will be impressed with the level of material covered and will realize just how valuable attending a class would be. At a class you get a lot more--especially the opportunity to interact with a senior instructor/consultant who has many years of implementation experience, plus the interaction with other students who have a lot of good ideas to contribute as well.



I recently licensed some eLearning content to learn Adobe Captivate. It was about 8 hours of eLearning (ironically, to learn how to use an eLearning development software package) and I made it through about half. But that was all I really needed to get started using the software. I still have access to the learning content and plan to go back and review it over time, as I need to learn additional features. That said, I really want to take a live class now so I can perfect my skills and ask the instructor a load of question I know have that have had the opportunity to try the software, make mistakes and learn what I need to really need to know.



So, as a consumer of software training with a very demanding schedule, I know this model will work for ERPtips and that allowing our customers to buy our manuals will just make them want to come back to us for more learning, in more training medias (live, instructor led training, virtual classes, webinars, eLearning, etc.).

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