SAP is said to have not taken possible rapes seriously enough

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The software company is facing serious allegations in the USA.

(Photo: Reuters)

Düsseldorf SAP is confronted with serious allegations in the USA. The Bloomberg news agency reported on Friday that the Dax group had mishandled reports of possible rapes. SAP rejects this.

However, the allegations reported by Bloomberg weigh heavily: two anonymous employees claim that they were each raped by a male colleague in the hotel room after events by the software company in 2018 and 2019 in the USA. Both women believed a drug had previously been smuggled into their drink.

After the two independent incidents, the victims complained to SAP. The human resources department questioned the accused men. They described the sex as consensual and claimed the women were drunk. The investigations were then discontinued.

The financial service said it spoke to the two women and seven other current and current employees who reported abuse and harassment. “We take all allegations of misconduct and criminal conduct extremely seriously,” SAP said in a statement on Friday.

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However, the allegations could become an image problem for the software company. This is particularly tricky in the US, SAP’s most important market. There, the group achieved around 30 percent of its sales last year with 8.9 billion euros. But the incident could also have a negative impact in the fight with other IT companies for talent. SAP had expressly taken up the cause of promoting women.

SAP emphasizes new corporate culture

The company does not see itself fairly represented in the Bloomberg article. The police had been called in “given the seriousness of the allegations”. SAP fully supported their “independent investigations and at the same time initiated their own investigations”. The police in Texas as well as in Las Vegas – where the events in question took place – had come to no conclusion. There was a lack of “sufficient sufficient suspicion,” according to an authority in Texas.

important market

30

percent

Of its sales, i.e. around 8.9 billion euros, SAP generates in the USA.

SAP took “reasonable action” against the two employees, the statement said. More details were not given. One employee is still working in the company, another has left SAP.

Both incidents are said to have occurred at the SAP subsidiary Ariba. The American software company bought SAP in 2012 for $4.3 billion to get a faster connection to the cloud business. The company was one of many US takeovers directed by former SAP CEO Bill McDermott. This allowed the companies to continue working with their own names and a lot of entrepreneurial freedom.

“The SAP of the year 2022 is different from the SAP of the past.” Company statement

After McDermott’s departure at the end of 2019, SAP switched and integrated the companies and their business processes more closely into the company. This also includes stricter supervision of corporate culture. “The SAP of the year 2022 is different from the SAP of the past,” says the company. Policies and procedures are constantly being reviewed to ensure they “do justice to our employees.”

No more alcohol self-service

In recent years, SAP has also tightened global guidelines for events. These traditionally play a major role in the Group’s sales business. Numerous events are held around the world, such as the SAP Sapphire customer conference.

In Europe, too, there is a lot of alcohol at some conferences, SAP employees say, without wanting to give their names. The company’s culture is very male-oriented, but this is less due to a wrong culture than to the high proportion of men, especially in the development department.

According to the group’s tightened guidelines, self-service for alcohol is no longer allowed. Heavily intoxicated guests are also no longer allowed to be served.

The company is also trying to improve employee grievance channels. Misconduct, harassment or discrimination in the workplace can be emailed to a team in the Global People and Compliance Office, and there is a local People Compliance Officer who can also be phoned. Employees can also remain anonymous if they wish, using the “Speak Out at SAP” tool.

More: Several hundred million euros: SAP sells learning platform Litmos.

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