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Q. I am an SAP trainee (Abap), working on in-house projects since June 2008.

Although I want to continue my carrier in Abap, I seem to have a harder time, now, looking for SAP-related employment.

What can I do to improve my employment chances in IT?

Career advice from Tay Kok Choon, country manager of JobStreet Singapore:
The employment market is definitely getting tighter than before. However, I would advise the public not to lose heart as the economy will turn around and get better in time.

It is important to progress in one's career. Move along from the basics, progressing gradually to the more complex tasks.

Expand your horizons to include applications other than SAP. For example, at the "system analyst" type of training (explained below), skills are no longer simply applications specific; rather, relevant business knowledge is more appreciated at this level.

However, while continuous training will be beneficial for career development, one should not to fall into the trap of overtraining or undertaking training that is irrelevant.

There are, broadly, three levels of SAP-related training:

1. User-type training: For people who want to use specific modules or applications, which the IT professional should be able to master within a very short period.

2. Basic system training: Relevant for entry level staff doing configuration of the application to be implemented in an organization.

3. System analyst-type training: For people who have sufficient technical depth and business knowledge so that they can advise others on how best to exploit the application to its fullest.

In our opinion, IT professionals should aim to attain item (3) within a longer period of maybe two to three years.

Terremark is offering SAP customers the chance to run their business applications online.

The move by Terremark beats SAP to the punch in terms of offering its applications online. SAP is still beta-testing its own cloud computing offering – known as Business ByDesign.

Terremark claims that it can use its data centres to provide SAP customers with a new platform, where they can access their SAP applications from a pool of resources, reports CBR.

'Our partnership with Terremark will provide customers the ability to experience significant cost savings, while not having to sacrifice the reliability of their hosted SAP applications,' said Michael Ressemann, global head of BPO solution delivery and partner enablement at SAP.

Austin-based Versata Software, Inc., was awarded $138 million in a jury verdict against software provider SAP America (NYSE: SAP - News) and its German-based parent company SAP AG for infringement of two Versata patents related to pricing technology.

Following a seven-day trial, a jury in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, Marshall Division, made the award following six hours of deliberation. The jury found that SAP infringed upon two Versata software product patents used to organize multi-level pricing tables. Created in 1995, the revolutionary Versata technology enables complex pricing structures to be processed faster and more efficiently.

“Versata has always focused on innovation, resulting in market-leading solutions that drive customer success,” said Randy Jacops, CEO and President of Versata Software, Inc. “Our patented technology enables Versata customers to deploy best-in-class solutions that competitors simply cannot match. We cherish and defend the mutually successful, multi-decade relationships resulting from our innovation investment.”

“Versata has maintained a long and consistent practice of filing for patents on new and valuable inventions,” said Lance Jones, Sr. VP and General Counsel. “The jury’s verdict in this case was an extremely important validation of our trust in the patent system as a crucial partner in Versata’s commitment to innovation.”

The jury found that SAP infringed on U.S. Patent No. 6,553,350 B2, issued in 2003, and U.S. Patent No. 5,878,400, issued in 1999 by selling and distributing SAP’s CRM and ERP solutions.

“We had a brilliant team of litigators and technical consultants who worked extremely hard on this case,” Jones said. “Our team was remarkable in its professionalism and execution.”

Versata was represented in the case by Sam Baxter, Ted Stevenson, Scott Cole and Steve Pollinger of McKool Smith. The technical consultants on the trial team were from iRunway India Private Limited and Ntrack, LLC.

Versata has announced that it intends to seek a permanent injunction preventing any further infringing activities by SAP, including the sale or distribution of infringing technology.

About Versata

With a global presence covering 45 countries, Versata Enterprises solves the most complex business problems for the world’s largest organizations. Versata Enterprises comprises a number of leading enterprise solution providers, including Versata Software, Inc. Versata, Inc., Artemis International Solutions Corporation, Nextance, Inc., Gensym Corporation, Clear Technology, Inc., Tenfold Corporation, eCora Software, Inc., Evolutionary Technologies, Inc. and AlterPoint, Inc. Versata distinguishes itself in the software industry by focusing on customer priorities as driven by value delivered.