SAP Brazil Communication Director joins Sabbatical Social Program in India

Luciana Coen, Director of Communication and Social Responsibility at SAP Brazil is one of the two Brazilian executives chosen by the German multinational to participate in their Social Sabbatical Program, which will take place in Ahmedabad, India, in February.  The Social Sabbatical initiative by SAP is part of the company’s corporate social responsibility strategy to foster education and entrepreneurship among disadvantaged communities.

Since its launch in 2012, the Social Sabbatical program has fielded more than 70 SAP employees to support local organizations in project cities as different as Berlin, San Francisco, Dublin, Galway, Shanghai, Beijing, and Bangalore.

The program provides SAP employees with the opportunity to work together in cross-functional teams on 4-week pro-bono consulting engagements to solve concrete business challenges for non-profits and social enterprises in their own community.

“The third sector is getting more professional. In order to ensure a sustainable growth, it is imperative that, beyond clear mission and values, organizations have a solid business plan”, says Luciana Coen. “The volunteers at the program help to create a solid business vision. In this manner, these organizations can grow to help even more people”, she explains.

The Sabbatical social program also targets the development of employees’ leadership skills, expertise and cultural awareness, along with cross-cultural adaptability. Luciana Coen was the only communication professional chosen to enrol the volunteer’s team, to assist with marketing, communication and leadership issues.

The participants also share their experiences with other SAP employees and continue to provide virtual consulting.