Expanding into DACH — what companies in Germany actually look for when hiring external SAP SuccessFactors consultants

Here are five things we've noticed after dozens of conversations with clients, recruitment processes, and projects in this market.

1. They're not looking for one great consultant. They're looking for a stable team.

In many countries the model is simple: the client needs one consultant for a few months, you submit a CV, and you start working. Body leasing in its purest form. No responsibility, no understanding of project specifics. Simply sourcing and rebilling.

In Germany this is increasingly no longer enough, because quality starts to take the lead.

Companies don't ask "who will you give us?" — they ask "what happens when that person leaves the project?" They want to know that the knowledge remains with the provider, not with one individual and their laptop.

That's why there is growing interest in models where the provider takes responsibility for an entire competency area — not just for lending out a single profile.

2. Compliance isn't a checkbox. It's the price of entry.

Everyone knows Germany is a regulated market. But only when you are inside a project do you see what that really means.

A Betriebsrat that must approve changes to the HR system configuration. Employee data protection applied more rigorously than standard GDPR. Local working-time models that you won't find in any global template.

Clients can very quickly tell whether a consultant understands this context or only knows how to configure a module. And it's one of the first things they verify.

3. Consultant mindset — not system configurator.

This is probably the most important difference.

In many SAP SuccessFactors (and Workday) projects, the hardest part isn't clicking the right field. The hardest part is understanding why the client wants to do something in a particular way — and proposing something better.

In the DACH market, expectations for consultants are clear: talk to HR Business Partners, analyse processes, translate business requirements into system configuration. Don't wait for a specification — co-create it.

Companies looking for "someone to configure a module" represent a shrinking segment of this market. The growing segment wants people who think like consultants.

4. Location is losing relevance. Competence and availability are not.

A few years ago, "working with a client in Germany" meant being physically present in an office in Munich or Frankfurt. That has changed — or at least it is changing.

More and more companies are open to distributed teams, consultants working from other EU countries, and collaboration models based on KPIs and accountability for outcomes — rather than on being present in an open-space office.

But there is one important detail: flexibility of location does not mean flexibility of quality. Quite the opposite — when a team is distributed, expectations regarding communication, availability, consultant autonomy, and the ability to adapt to the team and its specific project culture increase.

5. It's not about one project. It's about what comes after.

One-off implementations end. But HR systems continue to live on.

Companies need support with rollouts to additional countries, changes in HR processes, integrations with other systems, or post-go-live configuration optimisation.

And that's where the real relationship begins. A client who knows they can rely on you for the third rollout just as much as for the first — that's a client who stays for years.

In the DACH market, long-term commitment isn't a bonus. It's an expectation.

What does this all mean?

The DACH market is attractive. But it requires a different approach than many other European markets.

It's not enough to have certified people in your database. You need to deliver stability, an understanding of the regulatory context, a consulting mindset, and readiness for long-term collaboration.

The advantage goes to those who can combine technical competence with real project experience.

And those — in any market — are always in short supply.