OREANDA-NEWS. February 19, 2016. SAP SE (NYSE: SAP) today announced a strategic expansion of its SAP University Alliances program. The program will now include offerings for executives and professionals in collaboration with the SAP University Alliances network to help lead the digital transformation.

The announcement was made at the 19th SAP Academic Conference Americas in San Diego, California, where more than 250 faculty members from over 140 universities were gathered to hear SAP’s latest academia offerings to prepare the next-generation designers, developers, data scientists, makers and business leaders for the digital enterprise.

“The extension of SAP University Alliances is a natural next step for today’s strong academic community, which SAP has been building with member schools all over the world,” said Dr. Bernd Welz, executive vice president and head of Scale, Enablement & Transformation, SAP SE.

The expansion, created in collaboration with the SAP University Alliances academic community, features learning offerings for business leaders, IT executives and experts, and end users at the intersection of business models and technologies driving the digital transformation. Offerings range from dedicated executive education programs in collaboration with universities to learning modules to innovation workshops.

Also new are digital transformation info days, which are academic events at leading universities in the global SAP University Alliances network. Participants benefit from the thought leadership of prominent academics and SAP experts and customers. The events also connect the industry with faculty to launch SAP Next-Gen Consulting program projects, which enable bright young minds to create innovative design concepts and prototype solutions using the latest SAP technologies to solve real-world challenges in digital transformation. SAP customers and partners can also recruit top “SAP-ready” early talents who showcase their creativity and innovations through the events.

The new program also includes digital transformation incubator trips into Silicon Valley, where executives and universities can connect with leaders at SAP and the SAP University Alliances network.

Additionally, digital transformation innovation days provide opportunities for customers to visit SAP locations to engage with SAP experts and thought leaders from universities and partners in the SAP University Alliances network.

To provide ongoing opportunities for executives and professionals to continue their education and accelerate their digital transformation journeys, the program also includes a digital transformation executive alumni network.

The SAP University Alliances program opens up the world of SAP to more than 2,650 educational institutions in 90 countries worldwide, aims to develop the critical skills for the digital enterprise among academics, university students and young thinkers, and helps build the bridge to executives and professionals.