Coming from an understanding that the diversity of its employees is a critical ingredient for fueling innovation, SAP has been offering targeted internship and co-op programs to attract talent from all backgrounds of life. The German enterprise software giant also constantly evaluates different sourcing channels to expand its search for talented, smart, and creative people. 

The firm’s subsidiary in China has contributed to the whole organisation’s vision of cultivating diversity and inclusion by investing in autism talent projects and covering multiple links — from skills training to talent recruitment — since 2016. For two consecutive years now, the SAP Autism Talent Employment Preparatory Skills School has been in place to provide systematic and professional career development counseling for autistic people to help them better integrate into the workplace. The third phase of the program’s completion ceremony was held recently with 18 autistic students successfully finishing the SAP training courses provided for 10 days.

The students coming from across seven provinces in the country received a certificate of completion jointly issued by SAP, China Association of Mental Disabilities and Relatives and Friends (China Association of Fine Arts), and Beijing Xingyu Education Research Institute (Xingyu). Dr. Huang Chenhong, the newly appointed SAP Global Executive Vice President and President of SAP Greater China, participated in the closing ceremony and described it as “such a meaningful event.”

Since taking on the new role this month, Dr. Huang has been meeting with colleagues, customers, and partners to learn more and share thoughts about SAP’s purpose-driven culture. Commenting on the SAP Autism at Work initiative, he stated:

“Since the SAP Autism Talents Program was launched for 6 years, we have worked with partners to continuously launch a variety of projects to help autistic groups integrate into society, self-reliance, and healthy living. SAP also hopes to contribute to the building of a more inclusive society while implementing its corporate vision of making the world run better and people’s lives better.”

Integrating Talented Autistic People into Society through SAP Programs in China

The SAP Autism Talent Employment Preparatory Skills School is designed for high-functioning autistic individuals over the age of 20, with the goal of improving their employment competitiveness and enabling their smooth transition into the workplace. Last May, multinational companies such as Audi China, Hewlett-Packard, GEA, and Flex attended the first SAP Autism Talents Online Promotion Conference. Initiated by SAP, the organisations issued the “Autism Inclusion Declaration” to further promote the employment of people on the spectrum in China.

Moreover, Wen Hong, Chairman at China Association of Mental Disabilities and Relatives and Friends, stressed that SAP has taken the lead in providing employment opportunities and vocational skills training for people with autism in the country. Dubbing the tech giant’s contribution as something that has “very far-reaching significance”, Hong further said:

“SAP not only provides best practices for the industry but also invites more client companies to learn about the employability of people with autism. It has had a great influence on the improvement and perfection of China’s autism service concept and system.”

The training courses provided in the SAP Autism Talent Employment Preparatory Skills School are taught by a volunteer faculty team consisting of university tutors and SAP experts. The project has received tremendous recognition since its introduction in 2019. SAP has also provided vocational skills training for more than 60 high-functioning individuals with autism in the last six years, in addition to previous Autism at Work training camp activities.

The post SAP Programs Improve Employability of People with Autism in China appeared first on InsideSAP Asia.