It's my pleasure to join the SCN with my first post...blogging it forward. marcusm invited me to share a little bit about myself. He posed three great questions that I'll answer below in just a bit, but first I'm supposed to introduce myself. My role at SAP is Industry Principal for Engineering, Construction, and Operations (EC&O) in North America. I've been with SAP since December 2011 and love the company. Our move to a "Beyond ERP" company is so relevant and enables us a great opportunity to grow the SAP footprint within EC&O. Personally, I'm married to a wonderful woman who keeps life moving forward even when I'm traveling. We have five kids and a Saint Bernard. We live in Arizona and absolutely love it...and yes, even the heat in the summer! I heard the phrase "You don't have to shovel the heat" and it's become a family motto!
Okay...now to those questions.
What was your dream job as a kid?
Like many kids, I dreamed of being a professional athlete. The sport of choice would change depending on what season it was: football season meant football, baseball season meant baseball, and basketball season meant basketball. Needless to say, I didn't quite possess the talent to play sports professionally. However, a secondary profession that always interested me was sales. Specifically related to construction software and technology. My father worked for Burroughs, Timberline, and JD Edwards with a focus on the construction vertical. I guess you could say the apple didn't fall far from the tree...as I've spent the last 15 years in construction software industry. It's been a lot of fun to share experiences with my dad along the way...as we're both amazed at how dramatically things have changed over the years.
What is your favorite place in the world?
My favorite place on earth is the colonias outside of Juarez, Mexico. Juarez is all over the news these days due to the drug-related violence. What you don't hear in the news is anything about the hard-working families in the colonias outside Juarez that are struggling to survive. The colonias are far removed from the violence, but their financial conditions have still been affected greatly. We had a chance to build a home for a deserving family back in 2007 and fell in love with the people and community. Since then, we've had the priviledge of being a part of more than 20 additional homes being built for awesome families who simply need a break. It's my favorite place in the world because of the perspective it brings. How a culture of people who are struggling to meet basic needs such as food and shelter can remain so positive and content is both eye-opening and convicting.
Here's a before and after comparison of typical living conditions compared to the new home a family receives.
Some of the homes have been donated through eightythreehundred.org and you can see a photo blog of two homes being built in March 2012 at this link: http://eightythreehundred.org/project-updates/march-2012
What was the most fun project you ever participated in and why?
I would have to say one of the most enjoyable work projects I've been a part of is currently ongoing. I won't share the prospective customer's name because it's an active sales process, but seeing the "SAP engine" humming along at full speed has been great. It's been a very challenging and highly competitive opportunity, but seeing my colleagues from across North America rise to the occasion and repeatedly perform in such professional ways has been a treat. From Solution Engineers to Proposal Manager to VPs to Solution Director to the AE, people have continually answered the call. And througout the hardwork...the core team has really managed to have fun and keep their spirits up...which has made the whole process rather jovial.(Jovial is an inside joke for some of us on this project...as we're working to replace the word "cool" with jovial. It's been a slow process to say the least. :lol: )
Blogging it Forward...I've got the same three questions for: johnny.clemmons & carson.diltz.
- What was your dream job as a kid?
- What is your favorite place in the world?
- What was the most fun project you ever participated in and why?
Do you already know about Blog It Forward? If not, I suggest you to read the “Blog It Forward Community Challenge” by Moshe Naveh [http://scn.sap.com/community/about/blog/2012/08/20/blog-it-forward-community-challenge] and have a look to the existing chain [http://scn.sap.com/docs/DOC-30977].
- SAP Managed Tags:
1 Comment
