Breaking News: ABAP Developers Not Dumb
Robert Eijpe asks Are ABAP Developers Ready for AI with SAP Joule? The rule of thumb for questions in article titles is that the implied answer is "No". (I don’t think Robert meant it that way.)
However, in this case I think the answer is "Yes". ABAP developers are ready for AI with SAP Joule. Why?
No one is actually ready, until they are. Using tools based on large language models (LLMs, like GPT-[x], Claude, or Gemini) is a vibe. You can read all the preparatory posts (like Robert's) you want, but you won't find your personal groove until you go play.
If you feel like you're not ready, here are a couple pointers:
LLMs aren't command line interfaces (though you can equip them with tools that use CLIs). Don't treat them that way. Brainstorm. Go back and forth. Ask questions that you're not sure have an explicit answer. Tell them more than you think you need to.
In some sense, LLMs are constructed to behave like humans. As you're saying something to Joule, think to yourself: "If I asked this question to a smart human, would I have given them enough to be able to figure out what I mean?" It can be hard to reflect in this way.
Even if you believe they can't really think, treat them like they can.
ABAP developers can't use Joule for ABAP Developers anyway. Joule for ABAP Developers is available on S/4 Public Cloud (now also known as "SAP Cloud ERP") and BTP ABAP. Not many ABAP folks are running their real-world ABAP thingies in either of those places. (There are some, I know! Haters to the left, please.) ABAP developers are just as smart as any other kind of developers, but professionally speaking they have fewer opportunities to flex their AI muscles.
And realistically, inside enterprises, ABAP developers get no love. If you are the manager of a team with ABAP developers, and some poor soul wants to expense $20 a month for ChatGPT or Claude or WhateverCopilot... for the LOVE OF ALL THAT IS GOOD, GET THEM AI TOOL ACCESS! Go fight any bureaucracy that stands in your way. Anyone who is eager and motivated will deliver that $20 back to you on the first day. Easily. PM
