Top 12 SAP Basis Consultant Skills to Put on Your Resume

In today's competitive job market, standing out as a SAP Basis Consultant means showing a sharp mix of technical depth and people sense on your resume. Call out the top 12 skills in this niche to prove you can run complex SAP landscapes while nudging performance, stability, and change forward.

SAP Basis Consultant Skills

1. SAP HANA
2. SAP NetWeaver
3. SAP Fiori
4. SAP S/4HANA
5. SAP ECC
6. SAP Solution Manager
7. Linux/Unix
8. Oracle DB
9. Microsoft SQL Server
10. SAP Security
11. SAP Upgrade/Migration
12. SAP Performance Tuning

1. SAP HANA

SAP HANA is an in-memory, columnar, relational database designed for real-time transactions and analytics. For a Basis Consultant, it’s the beating heart under modern SAP apps—where sizing, performance, resilience, and lifecycle management truly matter.

Why It's Important

SAP HANA enables real-time processing, slashes latency, and simplifies data models. It shrinks data footprints and speeds up insight, which lets Basis teams run leaner systems and deliver faster outcomes.

How to Improve SAP HANA Skills

HANA runs fast, but it rewards careful hands. Do these well, and it hums:

1. Monitor with purpose: Use SAP HANA cockpit and the Database Explorer. Watch column store memory, delta merges, savepoints, CPU saturation, and disk throughput. Track the expensive statements list.

2. Tune SQL: Analyze with PlanViz and the SQL Analyzer. Push predicate filters down, avoid SELECT *, prefer proper joins, and prune data early.

3. Manage data temperature: Use data aging and Native Storage Extension (NSE) to keep hot data in-memory and warm/cold elsewhere. Archive aggressively but safely.

4. Partition smartly: Partition big tables for parallelism and manageable maintenance windows. Align partitions to business keys and access patterns.

5. Workload management: Apply admission control and statement limits to protect critical workloads. Isolate noisy neighbors.

6. Stay current: Keep to a supported HANA 2 revision. Patches bring optimizer gains, fixes, and security hardening.

7. Cloud elasticity: On HANA Cloud, configure scaling policies to track workload spikes—scale out, then settle back in.

8. Memory discipline: Set global allocation limits, statement memory ceilings, and verify NUMA locality. Size log volumes and I/O paths for sustained throughput.

9. Collaborate tightly: Work with developers on modeling, index strategy, and avoiding row store misuse. Small changes, big wins.

Keep iterating. New data, new code, new bottlenecks—continuous tuning wins the day.

How to Display SAP HANA Skills on Your Resume

2. SAP NetWeaver

SAP NetWeaver is the technical foundation for many classic SAP applications. Basis teams use it to configure systems, manage databases, handle integrations, keep security tight, and scale landscapes that don’t quit.

Why It's Important

It glues processes and systems together. A Basis Consultant who knows NetWeaver can stabilize operations, patch confidently, and troubleshoot across ABAP/Java stacks without flinching.

How to Improve SAP NetWeaver Skills

Sharper NetWeaver, steadier nights:

1. Performance checks: Use ST02 (buffers), ST03N (workload), ST04 (DB), ST06 (OS), ST12/SAT (traces), ST22 (dumps), STAD (statistics), SM21 (system log). Read EarlyWatch Alerts and act.

2. Patch rhythm: Apply kernel, SPAM/SAINT, and component updates on a regular cadence. Validate with sandboxes before prod.

3. Database hygiene: Keep statistics current, reorganize where needed, and align DB parameters with SAP notes for your platform.

4. High availability: Implement Enqueue Replication Server 2, OS/DB clustering, and proper log/file system design. Test failover—don’t just trust it.

5. Security hardening: Enforce TLS, SNC, strong ciphers, and baseline checks. Review critical authorizations and RFC destinations.

6. Monitoring at scale: Use Solution Manager or move toward SAP Cloud ALM for modern, lightweight monitoring and alerting.

7. Data archiving: Archive old data to tighten response times and control growth.

8. Keep learning: New kernels, new features, new pitfalls—stay curious and share patterns with your team.

How to Display SAP NetWeaver Skills on Your Resume

3. SAP Fiori

SAP Fiori delivers a modern UX for SAP, across devices. For Basis, that means front-end server (increasingly embedded with S/4HANA), OData gateways, security, caching, and dependable performance.

Why It's Important

Fiori boosts adoption. Cleaner UX, fewer clicks, faster tasks. If Basis gets the plumbing right, the whole organization feels it.

How to Improve SAP Fiori Skills

Make it smooth. And quick.

1. Prefer embedded deployment: With S/4HANA, embedded FES is generally the recommended approach. Keep SAPUI5 and backend components aligned.

2. Front-end tuning: Enable caching and compression, size ICM threads, and watch cache-busting. Minimize roundtrips and bundle resources where possible.

3. Back-end optimization: Monitor OData performance, activate only needed services, and tune CDS views. Index for real access patterns.

4. Security: Enforce HTTPS everywhere, harden SICF nodes, and apply role-based catalogs/groups with least privilege. Use SSO where possible.

5. Theming and consistency: Use UI Theme Designer for branding and Fiori elements for standardized, maintainable apps.

6. Lifecycle cleanliness: Keep to consistent versioning and transport discipline for UI and backend artifacts.

How to Display SAP Fiori Skills on Your Resume

4. SAP S/4HANA

SAP S/4HANA is the next-gen ERP built natively for SAP HANA. It offers simplified data models, real-time analytics, and a Fiori-first UX—deployed on-premises, in the cloud, or as part of RISE with SAP.

Why It's Important

S/4HANA is HANA-only. It shifts operations, security, and performance playbooks. Basis teams become migration guides, reliability engineers, and cost stewards all at once.

How to Improve SAP S/4HANA Skills

Focus where it pays off:

1. Readiness and simplification: Run Readiness Check and Simplification Item checks. Plan functional adaptations early—no surprises later.

2. Upgrade/migration tooling: Use SUM with DMO (including System Move where relevant). Consider nZDM or ZDO options to reduce downtime if your release stack supports it.

3. Performance: Monitor with Fiori apps, Solution Manager or Cloud ALM. Balance workloads, size memory, and tune HANA queries and CDS views.

4. Security: Patch on schedule, enforce TLS, clean up roles, and adopt modern identity services for SSO and MFA.

5. Data lifecycle: Apply data aging and ILM archiving to keep systems nimble and costs sane.

6. Custom code: Use ATC and related tools to adapt or retire custom ABAP. Fewer modifications, more extensions.

How to Display SAP S/4HANA Skills on Your Resume

5. SAP ECC

SAP ECC (ERP Central Component) is the backbone of classic SAP Business Suite landscapes. Basis keeps it stable, performant, and integrated with the wider ecosystem.

Why It's Important

It’s still everywhere. Many companies run mission-critical operations on ECC and will for a while yet, even as they plan the road to S/4HANA.

How to Improve SAP ECC Skills

Stay sharp and pragmatic:

1. Monitor continuously: Use Solution Manager or Cloud ALM, EarlyWatch Alerts, and core transactions (ST02, ST03N, ST04, ST22, SM21) to catch issues early.

2. Database care: Maintain stats, tune critical SQL, and keep DB patches current. Watch I/O latency and temp spaces.

3. Patch and notes: Apply SAP Notes, support packages, and kernel updates on a defined cadence. Validate transports and retrofit carefully.

4. Performance tuning: Work both ABAP and Java stacks where applicable. Trace with ST12/SAT, fix hotspots, and right-size buffers.

5. Archiving: Implement archiving to control growth and improve run times. Test retrieval scenarios before going big.

6. Security: Tighten roles, enforce TLS/SNC, and review critical authorizations. Patch regularly.

7. Lifecycle planning: Mainstream maintenance for ECC runs until end of 2027, with optional extended maintenance to 2030 for select components. Build a clear migration path.

How to Display SAP ECC Skills on Your Resume

6. SAP Solution Manager

SAP Solution Manager centralizes application lifecycle management: monitoring, change control, documentation, testing, and more. It’s the control tower for many on-prem landscapes.

Why It's Important

It streamlines operations and gives visibility. Basis can standardize processes, spot risks sooner, and automate the routine work that clogs calendars.

How to Improve SAP Solution Manager Skills

Make SolMan work for you:

1. Stay updated: Keep on supported SP levels. Patch for stability, security, and new features.

2. Monitoring done right: Calibrate alerts to reduce noise. Use dashboards for availability, performance, integration checks, and job monitoring.

3. Documentation discipline: Leverage Change Request Management and Focused Build to keep designs, transports, and tests transparent.

4. Adopt best practices: Use guided procedures, automate health checks, and enforce change workflows.

5. Know what’s next: Solution Manager 7.2 is in mainstream maintenance until 2027. SAP’s strategic direction is SAP Cloud ALM; start planning your shift if it fits your roadmap.

How to Display SAP Solution Manager Skills on Your Resume

7. Linux/Unix

Linux/Unix underpins most SAP deployments. It’s where reliability starts: process scheduling, memory behavior, filesystems, and networking tuned to the workload.

Why It's Important

Solid OS skills cut downtime and make performance predictable. Basis Consultants who know the OS can fix problems before they escalate.

How to Improve Linux/Unix Skills

Go deeper than commands:

1. Core fundamentals: Filesystem layouts, permissions, processes, systemd, journald, networking basics. Bread and butter.

2. Scripting: Bash or shell to automate checks, log parsing, and recoveries. Reusable, idempotent, tidy.

3. For SAP/HANA: Use vendor-tuned profiles (for example sap or sap-hana profiles via tuned), ensure NUMA awareness, set swappiness sensibly, and size huge pages appropriately for non-HANA DBs. Align kernel parameters with SAP notes for your stack.

4. Performance troubleshooting: top, iostat, vmstat, mpstat, sar, perf, and flame graphs. Trace, don’t guess.

5. Networking and security: Harden SSH, manage firewalld/iptables, and keep TLS stacks current. Verify MTU, offloading, and DNS timeouts.

6. Filesystems and I/O: Use XFS/ext4 with correct mount options, queue depths, multipath tuning, and RAID cache policies aligned to DB patterns.

7. Distribution expertise: Know SLES for SAP and RHEL for SAP Solutions specifics—packaging, kernel channels, lifecycle tools.

8. Certs and practice: Hands-on labs plus platform certifications (vendor and SAP) validate your skills.

How to Display Linux/Unix Skills on Your Resume

8. Oracle DB

Oracle Database is a powerhouse RDBMS used widely with SAP Business Suite. It offers mature performance features, reliability, and strong tooling.

Why It's Important

For ECC and other NetWeaver-based systems, Oracle remains a stable choice. Note: SAP S/4HANA is not supported on Oracle—it’s HANA-only.

How to Improve Oracle DB Skills

Keep the engine tuned:

1. SQL tuning: Review execution plans, fix inefficient joins, and parameter sniffing issues. Target the few statements burning most CPU.

2. Right parameters: Calibrate memory targets, redo/log sizing, and I/O configurations for your hardware and workload.

3. Indexes that help: Build helpful indexes, drop the freeloaders. Monitor index usage and bloat.

4. Partitioning: Range/hash/list partition massive tables for manageability and speed.

5. Optimizer statistics: Refresh stats smartly, use histograms where they matter, and lock plans when stability beats change.

6. Storage and ASM: Align ASM and storage layouts to reduce latency. Test throughput under real load, not just synthetic benchmarks.

7. Monitor and maintain: Use OEM or equivalent to watch waits, latches, I/O, and buffer cache hit ratios. Patch on policy.

8. SAP specifics: Follow SAP’s Oracle recommendations for NetWeaver systems and certified versions (commonly Oracle 19c LTS).

How to Display Oracle DB Skills on Your Resume

9. Microsoft SQL Server

Microsoft SQL Server is a robust RDBMS option for SAP on Windows landscapes. It’s known for solid tooling, strong BI add-ons, and steady performance when configured well.

Why It's Important

It provides a reliable platform for SAP Business Suite on Windows. As always, S/4HANA requires HANA, not SQL Server.

How to Improve Microsoft SQL Server Skills

Cut the noise, speed the queries:

1. Index care: Rebuild or reorganize based on fragmentation. Drop duplicates. Add missing indexes where it counts.

2. Query tuning: Use execution plans and Query Store to spot regressions. Target top offenders first.

3. Statistics freshness: Keep stats current. Auto-update helps; supplement with targeted updates on skewed tables.

4. MAXDOP and cost threshold: Set MAXDOP and cost threshold for parallelism to sane values for your CPUs and workload.

5. Memory and tempdb: Cap SQL memory appropriately. Configure tempdb with multiple data files, fast storage, and trace flags only as needed.

6. Maintenance plans: Regular backups, DBCC CHECKDB, and index/cleanup jobs. No heroics, just discipline.

7. Disk I/O: Monitor wait stats (PAGEIOLATCH, WRITELOG) and fix the bottlenecks—controller, cache, or layout.

8. Security and patching: Keep cumulative updates current. Enforce TLS, least privilege, and encryption at rest for sensitive data.

9. SAP guidance: Follow SAP-specific recommendations for SQL Server versions and configuration on Windows.

How to Display Microsoft SQL Server Skills on Your Resume

10. SAP Security

SAP Security covers the controls that protect systems and data: identities, authorizations, configurations, encryption, and monitoring. Basis plays a pivotal role in making it real day to day.

Why It's Important

It keeps sensitive data safe, ensures compliance, and preserves system integrity. One weak link can ripple across the landscape.

How to Improve SAP Security Skills

Build layers, not illusions:

1. Patch discipline: Track SAP Security Patch Day items and apply HotNews notes rapidly. Shrink the window of exposure.

2. Harden comms: Enforce HTTPS/TLS for ICM, use strong ciphers, and deploy SNC with Secure Login components for ABAP connections.

3. Access control: Least privilege. Periodic role reviews. SoD checks. Prune over-assignments relentlessly.

4. Audit logging: Enable and review security audit logs. Pipe to a SIEM and alert on anomalies.

5. Secure config baselines: Apply SAP security baseline templates. Lock down RFC destinations, HTTP endpoints, and admin interfaces.

6. Data protection: Encrypt sensitive data at rest and in transit. For HANA, enable data and log volume encryption with key management procedures.

7. Incident readiness: Run tabletop exercises. Document playbooks. Know who to call and what to collect.

8. Identity services: Adopt modern SSO with IAS/IPS or equivalent, move to MFA for privileged users, and retire stored technical user passwords where possible.

9. Regular assessments: Pen tests, config scans, and code reviews for custom apps. Fix, retest, repeat.

10. Awareness: Train admins and end users. Phishing drills. Clear policies, enforced evenly.

How to Display SAP Security Skills on Your Resume

11. SAP Upgrade/Migration

Upgrades and migrations move systems to newer releases or new platforms. Basis leads the planning, execution, and stabilization—keeping downtime small and data intact.

Why It's Important

It unlocks new features, performance gains, and security fixes. It also keeps you compliant and supportable—no small thing.

How to Improve SAP Upgrade/Migration Skills

Plan carefully, execute cleanly:

1. Assess: Inventory systems, add-ons, interfaces, and custom code. Run Readiness Check and Simplification Item lists early.

2. Plan: Define timelines, downtime windows, and fallback strategies. Align infra sizing and licenses well ahead of cutover.

3. Custom code: Use ATC and related tools to classify, adapt, or retire custom objects. Less is more.

4. Testing: Automate where you can. Integration, regression, performance, and security—all must pass, not just smile.

5. Data cleanup: Archive and housekeep before migration. Smaller payloads, faster runs.

6. Execution tooling: Use SUM with DMO; consider DMO with System Move for hardware/cloud changes. For downtime, explore nZDM/ZDO when supported.

7. Post-cutover: Monitor closely, fix quick wins, and run hypercare with clear SLAs.

How to Display SAP Upgrade/Migration Skills on Your Resume

12. SAP Performance Tuning

SAP Performance Tuning is the craft of making systems snappy and resilient: parameters, code paths, DB design, OS settings—the whole stack working as one.

Why It's Important

Faster response times and better throughput mean happier users and lower costs. It also buys headroom when workloads spike.

How to Improve SAP Performance Tuning Skills

Be systematic, then relentless:

1. Benchmark first: Establish baselines for response, throughput, and resource usage. You can’t tune what you don’t measure.

2. End-to-end monitoring: ABAP tools (ST03N, ST12/SAT, ST05, STAD), ICM/HTTP stats, queue/dispatcher metrics, plus DB/HANA views for expensive statements and wait times.

3. SQL and CDS: Optimize joins, filters, and aggregations. Push computation to HANA wisely; reduce data shipped to the app server.

4. Memory and buffers: Tune ABAP buffers (ST02), HANA memory ceilings, and OS kernel settings. Prevent swapping at all costs.

5. Workload distribution: Load balance app servers, batch jobs, and RFC traffic. Keep dialog response times tight.

6. Housekeeping: Archive with ILM, purge obsolete logs, and right-size job schedules. Less clutter, less contention.

7. Patch for performance: Kernel, DB, and app patches often bring optimizer and runtime improvements. Keep current within policy.

8. Custom code quality: Use ATC and SQLM to find hotspots. Refactor slow loops and bad selects. Cache smartly, not blindly.

How to Display SAP Performance Tuning Skills on Your Resume