Twelve SAP SE employees coming from different countries completed a month-long assignment that allowed them to work with four social enterprises in the Philippines. Messy Bessy Cleaners Inc., Solar Energy Foundation, Hapinoy and Rags2Riches Inc. benefited from the SAP Social Sabbatical, a program for SAP talent given short-term assignment to contribute their time and expertise to helping entrepreneurs and small businesses solve business challenges.
Twelve SAP SE employees coming from different countries completed a month-long assignment that allowed them to work with four social enterprises in the Philippines.
The Social Sabbatical program was started in 2012, but this is the first time it was implemented in the Philippines.
“SAP is committed to helping the world run better and improving peoples’ lives by making strategic social investments that have a lasting and sustainable impact on society,” said Darren Rushworth, managing director of SAP Philippines. “Through the SAP Social Sabbatical program, our aim is to empower our best talents in skills-based volunteering. It is an important part of our social investment strategy in order to support emerging entrepreneurs. At the same time, we recognize the potential this program holds for our employees across the globe to practice and hone their skills in diverse teams and markets. We hope to see this program grow from strength to strength in the light of its positive impact.”
More specifically, the SAP employees leveraged their expertise in such areas as strategy, marketing, IT, HR, finance, and consulting. The four social enterprises in the Philippines were given guidance on issues pertaining to staff skills, capacity building, and operational excellence.
For SAP, the program is a “win-win approach to doing business”, Rushworth said.
For one, it helps “create goodwill to the communities in the markets we’re serving.” But while this makes for good branding, it also “makes true the company’s vision of helping the world run better and improving people’s lives”.
This is because – even as the social enterprises benefit from the expertise of the SAP employees that temporarily work with them – the program also exposes these employees “to emerging market dynamics, diverse teams, and a number of opportunities to hone their leadership skills.”
The Social Sabbatical selects projects on the basis of their strategic fit with SAP’s Corporate Social Responsibility focus on honing innovative social enterprises and the future workforce.
In the Philippines, the program’s implementing partner is PYXERA Global, a non-profit organization based in Washington D.C. The company siphons the applications for consideration in inclusion in the program, with the hopes of eventually opening up the application process in the long run.
