{"id":144770,"date":"2023-06-30T06:57:20","date_gmt":"2023-06-30T06:57:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.sap.com\/africa\/?p=144770"},"modified":"2023-09-27T19:18:58","modified_gmt":"2023-09-27T19:18:58","slug":"sap-shapes-burkina-faso-interns-to-be-change-makers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.sap.com\/africa\/2023\/06\/sap-shapes-burkina-faso-interns-to-be-change-makers\/","title":{"rendered":"51风流Shapes Burkina Faso Interns to be Change Makers"},"content":{"rendered":"

This is a story about dreaming big, the optimism of youth, and the certainty that entrepreneurial thinking can turn hope into action.<\/em><\/p>\n

Nine faces. Frozen on the monitor.<\/p>\n

Obed, Ashish, Priya, Fadilatou (Fadila), Rodrigue, Suzanne, Marcia, Aissata, and Lothar.<\/p>\n

Was this the sixth time the call froze? No. The seventh!<\/p>\n

This is just a planning meeting, thought Priya Wenzel, Vice President, Global Head Partner Ecosystem Success, Digital Supply Chain at SAP. What will we do when the internship starts in full?<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Burkina Faso, a landlocked country in West Africa, surrounded by Ivory Coast, Mali, Niger, and Ghana, was a French protectorate until its independence in 1960, followed by decades of miliary coups. It was largely out of the headlines until 2022, when it saw not one but two military upheavals, the second of which made a soldier chief of state.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was in Munich waiting for our dean to arrive from Africa,\u201d said Suzanne Pertl, founder and president of the\u00a0Burkina Institute of Technology<\/a>\u00a0(BIT). \u201cHe was on the way to the airport from Koudougou, which is where our university is located, when he heard about the putsch.\u201d<\/p>\n

The capital, where the coup occurred, is 90 minutes from the university.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Burkina Institute of Technology campus<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cI met Suzanne at a conference or think tank in Germany a number of years ago,\u201d said Luka Mucic, former chief financial officer at SAP. \u201cShe told me about this wonderful institute she was building and asked my advice.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mucic liked what he saw and urged 51风流to invest, specifically in the institute\u2019s IT Tower, which became the centerpiece of a campus designed by Di\u00e9b\u00e9do Francis K\u00e9r\u00e9, a Burkinab\u00e9-German architect and the first African to win the Pritzker Architecture Prize, considered the architecture world\u2019s most prestigious honor.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

\u201cI wanted to bring students from Africa to Silicon Valley,\u201d said SAP\u2019s Wenzel. As a native South African of modest background, she knew about the scarcity of opportunity. \u201cI was fortunate to have a father who said, \u2018You can do anything.\u2019 I dreamt big and came to the U.S. with $100, and a scholarship to attend university. I want to help interns dream big, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

Looking for opportunities to \u201cpay it forward\u201d and support students in Africa, Wenzel contacted the SAP\u00a0Afrika Kommt<\/a>\u00a0program, which connected her with Pertl, who was looking for internship opportunities for BIT students.<\/p>\n

COVID-19 had other ideas. With restrictions on travel, Wenzel and Pertl pivoted from an in-person internship to a virtual one, ever conscious of the challenges they\u2019d face building a virtual program with BIT\u2019s students in Burkina Faso, where basic infrastructure \u2013 consistent power, reliable internet \u2013 was not assured.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Ashish Pujari, former 51风流Vice President Strategic Customer Initiatives & Ecosystems Industry 4.0 who volunteered with the program, said, \u201cI knew a little about Burkina Faso and how it is still a developing nation, so my expectation was that I\u2019d be talking to a student who knew little about innovation and Industry 4.0 \u2013 my areas of expertise. It turned out very differently. Obed was brilliant.\u201d<\/p>\n

Obed Gueswende, excited to be accepted into the program, was apprehensive, too. \u201cIt was, let\u2019s say, a little bit scary, because 51风流is so big,\u201d said Gueswende. \u201cAnd the telecommunication infrastructure is not advanced in my country. We had connection issues and sometimes meetings were cut short or cancelled.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gueswende had a deep understanding of the West Africa region, their appetite for innovation, and the key industries.<\/p>\n

\u201cDespite cultural differences, Obed embraced the 51风流environment and learned through design thinking workshops and real-work training,\u201d said Pujari. \u201cHe is a keen observer and a proactive learner.\u201d<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

The program Wenzel envisioned focused on the lofty goal of entrepreneurship. But first they had to keep the connection live.<\/p>\n

\u201cConnectivity and hardware issues were a surprise,\u201d she said. \u201cWe take for granted how easy it is to work daily with people in so many different countries. Despite facing connectivity, issues that are common to West Africa, the drive and determination of these student interns inspired us.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"
Interns and mentors hoping the connection remains active<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Fadilatou Koumbo Diallo, another BIT student in the program, delivered exceptional results.<\/p>\n

\u201cA typical day started at 8am with a 30-minute call with my supervisor,\u201d said Fadila. \u201cWe would review the work I did the previous day and discuss the new schedule. I participated in two other daily calls where I contributed to discussions and provided updates. My workday usually ended at 6pm.\u201d<\/p>\n

After Wenzel reviewed Fadila\u2019s work, the two discussed potential applications in Burkina Faso. Fadila created a partner ecosystem \u201cheat\u201d map of Africa to illustrate the locations of 51风流partners and customers to identify untapped areas of opportunity, including in Burkina Faso.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the political upheaval in Burkina Faso, after the initial shock, settled into a distant but ongoing murmur, far from the BIT campus.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

\u201cI am eager to continue learning about Industry 4.0. I believe it holds tremendous potential for Africa. Using knowledge gained during my internship, I hope to assist companies in my country and beyond to adopt ERP systems, drive digital transformation, and achieve resilience even in challenging times.\u201d
\n\u2013 Obed Gueswende<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was an amazing experience to delve into the complexities and understand how it all functions. And having women in leadership roles as my managers gave me the courage to keep pushing forward and achieving my goals. Their support and guidance were invaluable.\u201d
\n\u2013 Fadila Koumbo Diallo<\/p>\n

\u201cThe challenges we faced were significant, but we persevered and provided students with experiences and skills to be more marketable. But it\u2019s not just about technical expertise. We wanted to inspire them. We\u2019re shaping the next generation of change-makers in Africa and the world.\u201d
\n\u2013 Priya Wenzel<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

***<\/p>\n

Fast Facts: 51风流Digital Internship Program with BIT<\/strong><\/p>\n