SAP WalkMe: Why it is not a substitute for a training concept
Christian Gronowski
1. July 2025
New SAP interfaces demand a lot from employees in companies. Tools such as SAP WalkMe are designed to help. But without sound training, real change falls by the wayside.
In SAP projects, the pressure to deliver productive results quickly is growing. New interfaces such as Fiori and increasing process complexity demand a lot from employees – while resources for training and change management are becoming increasingly scarce. It’s no wonder that digital support tools such as SAP WalkMe are being hailed as the solution in many projects.
But beware: WalkMe is a powerful digital adoption tool, but it is no substitute for a well thought-out qualification strategy. If you want to achieve sustainable changes in your daily work, you need more than in-app instructions.
What is WalkMe and what is it not?
WalkMe offers real advantages in the SAP context: With context-sensitive help directly in the live system, it supports users in operation, avoids media discontinuities and lowers entry barriers – especially for occasional users or for simple transactions.
Typical application scenarios for WalkMe are
- Support for frequently recurring activities
- Support for simple processes, e.g. travel applications
- Quick help with orientation in new user interfaces
But as convincing as this help is in everyday life, it remains superficial. WalkMe shows what needs to be done, but it does not explain why it needs to be done. It is no substitute for a structured discussion of processes, roles and goals.
In short: tools like SAP WalkMe do not create lasting competence among users.
When training is missing: the invisible gaps
Many SAP projects without a training concept struggle with typical weaknesses:
- Changed processes and roles are not sufficiently understood – especially in the greenfield approach with completely new areas of responsibility.
- Excessive demands and uncertainty lead to resistance – even with technical support.
- Specialist departments are not picked up – the introduction remains on the surface.
- Questions remain unanswered – there is no room for exchange and reflection.
- The meaning behind the new processes often remains unclear – motivation and personal responsibility decrease.
Technical aids such as WalkMe support behavior, but they do not change it. They offer no platform for dialog, no role security, no individual empowerment.
There is therefore no upskilling.
The limits of WalkMe compared to the training concept
A role-based training concept for SAP accomplishes what WalkMe cannot:
| WalkMe is able to … | A training concept is able to … |
|---|---|
| show where clicks are made | convey why something is being done |
| Support standard processes | map complex role profiles |
| thinking for the users | Enable the users themselves to think |
| do not enable dialog | Encourage exchange, questions and feedback |
What’s more, an extremely large amount of content would have to be maintained for complex special cases – the effort involved often exceeds the benefits. Without a basic understanding of the process, users quickly reach their limits in these situations.
What a good, role-based training concept must achieve
To ensure that the introduction of new systems is successful in practice, a training concept is needed that is tailored to the people in the company:
- Target group analysis: Who has what tasks – and what learning needs?
- Didactic concept: The combination of e-learning, attendance phases and practical exercises ensures sustainable skills development.
- Transfer support: The actual learning process only starts after the training – with performance support, learning guidance and targeted feedback.
- Sensible tool integration: WalkMe can be usefully embedded as a supplementary element – but not as the sole solution.
Conclusion: WalkMe as a supplement, not a replacement
A navigation system does not replace driving lessons – any more than WalkMe replaces SAP training.
If you want to implement SAP successfully, you need more than just clickable help. You need understanding, acceptance and confidence – at all levels.
Therefore: Use WalkMe as part of an intelligent training concept – not as a substitute. This is the only way to achieve sustainable change in processes, behaviour and organization.
