The Seidman ERP Program News
SAP® YOUNG THINKERS PROGRAM - FEBRUARY 16, 2018
February 16, 2018
More than 32 charter high school students from Covenant House Grand
Rapids (Grand Rapids), Covenant House Detroit – Central (Detroit),
Covenant House Detroit – Southwest (Detroit), Covenant House Detroit –
East (Detroit), University Prep Science and Math (Detroit), Taylor
Preparatory School (Taylor), Michigan Math and Science Academy
(Warren), Canton Preparatory Academy (Canton) learned about the latest
business technologies during the SAP® Young Thinkers Program hosted
Deloitte, SAP,
ERPsim, Seidman College of Business,
and GVSU’s Enterprise Systems Student Union (ESSU).
The event was held on February 16 at the GVSU Seidman College of Business.
The SAP® Young Thinkers Program is a hands-on workshop to equip
high school students with analytical and creative thinking skills.
This experiential learning program aims to help youths understand the
extraordinary revolution brought about by ERP systems today and its
impact on societies, businesses and everyday life. The event at GVSU
taught the high school students how to play The ERPSim Game which is a
water bottle distribution game. This experience was intended for the
high schools students to learn about Enterprise Resource Planning
(ERP) Systems, reporting and business decisions that businesses use
today. GVSU’s ERP Program (www.gvsu.edu/erp) utilizes SAP
software which is run by 250,000 companies in over 130 Countries.
The ESSU Mentors each had a group of 3-4 high school students where they guided the students through the game. Each group contained a Communications Coordinator, an Inventory Specialist, a Purchasing Agent and a Marketing Specialist. Each high school student was given a role to play in the simulation where they learned analytical and creative thinking skills through this hands-on workshop. The ERPSIM Game consisted of three rounds of water bottle distribution to different regions.
Aside for learning about ERP systems in a fun and competitive environment, the purpose of this event was to recruit future students into GVSU’s Seidman ERP Program as well as giving students an idea of what the student group ESSU entails. The Enterprise Systems Student Union (ESSU) (www.gvsu.edu/erp/essu) is the first student organization, open to all majors, at GVSU created specifically for students interested in Enterprise Systems/ERP. The purpose of this organization is to provide a better understanding of enterprise systems and to provide a link between the university and companies who utilize enterprise systems. The organization hosts the ERP speaker series, provides networking opportunities with companies, conducts resume workshops and practice interviews, and provides tutoring to management information systems students.