COVID-19 Airlift Operation: How Technology Helps Bring German Citizens Home
COVID-19 represents an enormous challenge to each and everyone of us. As German Chancellor Angela Merkel recently shared in her address to the nation “This is serious!” News channels are providing constant updates on closed schools, offices, and leisure facilities, as well as curfews imposed by several states.
I am writing this note in my home office in Berlin. Of course, Corona also impacts my daily life, my work, and the way I communicate with colleagues, customers, family, and friends. To echo our Chancellor, I can only appeal to all of you: Do your part to overcome the virus by helping to slow the spread. Protect others, especially the weakest in our society, by staying at home. Treat the situation seriously but keep also in mind that we are in this together – supporting each other wherever possible and needed.
In the past two days, I personally experienced what can be done when we work in lockstep together and wanted to share this with you.
As you know, global travel is currently severely restricted now because of the pandemic. This means many airports are closed and flights have been cancelled. As a result, many travelers are struggling to get back to their home countries. Several countries, including Germany, are currently running programs to help their citizens return home safely.
The Federal Foreign Office of Germany reached out to us two days ago and asked whether we could support in building a web application to help coordinate this repatriation process from a logistical standpoint. They were looking for a simple, safe, scalable, and stable web application for stranded German citizens to submit their residence and personal data. This information is needed to complete their repatriation as efficiently and quickly as possible. The ministry just officially announced that the application is now live and can be used by all affected German citizens who require assistance to travel home.
What made me personally extremely proud about this important project was the high levels of commitment and dedication shown by our teams. When I asked our engineers for their immediate support, I received a lot of positive responses. In the end, over 40 SAP developers worked across three different time zones to provide the ministry with a productive application – and all of that within less than 24 hours!
We all know that this is just one of many individual pieces that need to come together to overcome this crisis, but it shows what humans can achieve when working hand in hand and how technology can support. I want to thank the Federal Foreign Office for the valuable work they do to make sure everybody is safe, and also the teams at SAP for their immediate support. For now, to you and your families – please stay safe and healthy, and take care of yourselves and others!
The "Art of the possible"
In such times you see very well who is able to contribute ! And surprisingly enough - it′s the nerds we often believe we cannot let them meet with customers because they are not telling the customers what we want them to say….really happy we have colleagues in our Company who can contribute Things that matter!
Head of Global Aerospace Practice bei SAP
4 年The girl was stranded in Rishikesh, India - and experienced it first-hand: How the old platform crashed and how the registration at the new platform worked smoothly, how the embassy called them and how the ambassador gave helpful advice in his daily video broadcast, how two A380s have been sent to India, and - just this morning -, how the girl safely arrived back to Germany... Thank you very much, dear Jürgen, and kudos to the team!
This is SAP! Thanks Jürgen and to everyone who was and is involved
Building large scale systems. Every solution which add values to business, gives me motivation.
4 年Glad to see my work as in fiori element could play role in fighting with this epidemic and helping people. #proud #sap