City SAP graduate tells of her leap of faith

21 October 2016

Henriëtta Steenkamp pursued the ‘Industry Solutions for Utilities with SAP ERP 6.0’ training module. She is now a globally certified SAP associate consultant working in a permanent post for the City of Cape Town.

Pursuing a qualification in SAP was an obvious choice for Henriëtta as she is of the opinion that everything in business relies on some form of technology. She studied computer applications technology at high school, which has provided her with a firm foundation to pursue a career in SAP.

She is currently part of a team working on a relatively new City project called the Emergency Police Incident Control (EPIC) system that runs on SAP software. Henriëtta is part of the Level 1 support team that conducts preliminary investigations and troubleshoots user and system issues.

Henriëtta attributes her success to one of her former lecturers who alerted her to the training programme.

‘I would like to express my appreciation to Ms Mandie Richards for alerting me to this training programme. If she did not send me an e-mail with the link to apply for the programme, I would not have taken that leap of faith and none of this would have happened.

‘I would like to continue working for the City of Cape Town for the next couple of years because the level of exposure to the various SAP departments will be invaluable for my career. I also enjoy working with the highly motivated people at the SAP-ERP support centre. Within the next five years I plan on obtaining a further SAP qualification,’ said Henriëtta.

"The City is proud to be associated with SAP South Africa’s job creation initiative. One of the biggest benefits of this training is that it caters for a business need that makes the graduates immediately employable. We are pleased to have taken 15 of the graduates under our wing.

Such partnerships are crucial to successfully train our future generation, providing them with much-needed scarce skills. The graduates are well prepared to face the challenges in their careers and will be able to adapt to the shifting demands of an ever-changing digital world. I extend a warm welcome to Henriëtta and trust that she will have a long and fulfilling career with the City of Cape Town," Xanthea LimbergCity Mayoral Committee Member: Corporate Services and Compliance

Henriëtta has some words of motivation for young people: ‘Do not be afraid to take that leap of faith and grab an opportunity that comes your way, even if you have doubts. I don’t believe in luck. Luck is when hard work meets opportunity. You might be the hardest worker, but see no opportunity – it is therefore up to you to create those opportunities. My opportunities came along because I built good professional relationships with fellow students, former employers, colleagues and lecturers. Never forget the people who helped you along the way. Most of all, saying please and thank will go a long way’.

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