SAP's Greater China offices wanted to invest in their people, but internal training programs were struggling to land. Attendance was fine. Engagement was not. Participants showed up, sat through slides, and left without changing how they worked.
Leadership across five offices (Shanghai, Beijing, Dalian, Chengdu, and Xi'An) needed a program that felt genuinely worth their teams' time. Not another checkbox exercise. Something that would improve real skills, strengthen working relationships, and signal to employees that SAP was serious about their professional growth.
The key challenges included:
We designed and delivered 12 Learning Days over 13 months, each one tailored to the specific office and audience while maintaining consistent quality across all locations.
Before the first session, we spent time with SAP leadership at each site to understand their teams, their challenges, and what "useful" actually meant in their context. This wasn't a template we rolled out. It was a program we built around their people.
Each Learning Day combined facilitator-led instruction with hands-on practice and open Q&A. Sessions were capped to keep them interactive. We prioritized practical application over theory. Participants worked on challenges from their actual roles, not hypothetical scenarios.
After every session, we held retrospective calls with SAP leadership to review what worked and what to adjust. This feedback loop meant the program got sharper with every delivery. By session 12, we had refined the format based on real data from hundreds of participants.
WHAT PARTICIPANTS SAID
“It was the best training I've been to. [Michael] was really professional and engaging at the same time.”— Product Manager, SAP
“Most engaging training I've ever attended.”
— Site Leader, SAP
“Best training in my time at SAP.”
— Engineering Manager, SAP
“Useful and practical. Hope they come back next year.”
— SAP Learning Day Participant
“Open Q&A was the best part. [Michael] made sure everything was clear and easy to use in our daily works.”
— SAP Learning Day Participant
We now bring this same principal-led approach to AI advisory, training, and transformation programs across Southeast Asia.
