ABAP Developer Hiring Guide

Hiring Guide for ABAP Engineers

Ask the right questions to secure the right ABAP talent among an increasingly shrinking pool of talent.

ABAP, an acronym for Advanced Business Application Programming, is a high-level programming language developed by the German software company, SAP SE. First introduced in the 1980s, it was designed for the development of business applications within the SAP environment. It is widely used for creating reports, module pool programming, interfaces and forms in the SAP application server. ABAP has evolved over time to include object-oriented language extensions and is particularly adept at handling database operations. Today, it remains a key component of SAP's NetWeaver technology platform (source: SAP SE).

First 20 minutes

General ABAP knowledge and experience

The next 20 minutes of the interview should attempt to focus more specifically on the development questions used, and the level of depth and skill the engineer possesses.

What are the types of windows in Smart Forms in ABAP?

The types of windows in Smart Forms in ABAP are Main Window, Secondary Window, Final Window, and Copy Window.

How would you create a secondary index in ABAP?

A secondary index in ABAP can be created by going to SE11, providing the table name, and then going to Indexes. From there, you can create a new index.

Describe the difference between a transparent table and a pooled table in ABAP.

A transparent table has a one-to-one relation with the table in the database. It stores data directly. A pooled table, on the other hand, has many-to-one relation with the table in the database. It stores data in a pool (or table pool) in the database.

What are the types of data classes in ABAP?

The types of data classes in ABAP are System Data, User Data, and Master Data.

How would you define Data Dictionary in ABAP?

Data Dictionary in ABAP is a central and structured source of data for the development of objects. It is used to create and manage data definitions (metadata).

The hiring guide has been successfully sent to your email address.
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.

What youre looking for early-on

Does the candidate have experience with version control systems like Git?

Version control is an important part of any software development process, and experience with it is a big plus.

Can the candidate work well under pressure and meet deadlines?

Software development often involves tight deadlines and high-pressure situations, so it's important for the candidate to be able to handle this.

Did the candidate show a good understanding of database concepts and SQL?

As an ABAP developer, they will often need to interact with databases, so understanding these concepts is crucial.

Has the candidate demonstrated an ability to learn and adapt to new technologies?

The field of software development is constantly evolving, so it's important for developers to be able to adapt and learn new technologies.

Is the candidate able to effectively communicate their thought process and problem-solving strategies?

Effective communication is important in a development team to ensure everyone is on the same page and can understand the code.

Does the candidate have a solid understanding of ABAP development?

This is crucial as the primary role of the position is to develop and implement software programs using ABAP.

Next 20 minutes

Specific ABAP development questions

The next 20 minutes of the interview should attempt to focus more specifically on the development questions used, and the level of depth and skill the engineer possesses.

How would you improve the performance of an ABAP program?

Performance of an ABAP program can be improved by minimizing the amount of data transferred, minimizing the number of database accesses, and using internal tables. Other techniques include using indexes effectively and optimizing the nested selects.

Describe the difference between a value table and a check table in ABAP.

A value table is proposed by the system where check is to be made. A check table is the actual table used for check against the foreign key.

What are the types of selection screens in ABAP?

The types of selection screens in ABAP are Standard Selection Screen, Selection Screen as Subscreen, and Selection Screen as Block.

How would you handle errors in ABAP?

Errors in ABAP can be handled using exception handling techniques. This includes TRY-CATCH blocks, RAISE EXCEPTION statement, and system class based exceptions.

Describe the difference between BAPI and RFC in ABAP.

BAPI (Business Application Programming Interface) is a standard SAP application interface that allows the integration of third-party applications. RFC (Remote Function Call) is a protocol to execute a program in a remote system. BAPI uses RFC under the hood.

The hiring guide has been successfully sent to your email address.
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.

The ideal back-end app developer

What you’re looking to see on the ABAP engineer at this point.

At this point, a skilled ABAP engineer should have demonstrated strong technical ability in ABAP programming, understanding of SAP functional areas, and problem-solving skills. Red flags include lack of detail in responses, inability to explain complex concepts, or unfamiliarity with recent SAP technologies.

Digging deeper

Code questions

These will help you see the candidate's real-world development capabilities with ABAP.

What does the following ABAP code do?

DATA: lv_text TYPE string.
 lv_text = 'Hello, World!'.
 WRITE: / lv_text.

This code declares a string variable, assigns the string 'Hello, World!' to it, and then prints the string to the console.

What will be the output of the following ABAP code?

DATA: lv_num1 TYPE i VALUE 10,
 lv_num2 TYPE i VALUE 20,
 lv_sum TYPE i.
 lv_sum = lv_num1 + lv_num2.
 WRITE: / lv_sum.

The output of this code will be 30. It declares two integer variables with values 10 and 20, respectively, and a third variable to hold their sum. It then adds the two numbers and assigns the result to the third variable, which is then printed to the console.

What does the following ABAP code do?

DATA: lt_numbers TYPE TABLE OF i,
 lv_number TYPE i.
 DO 5 TIMES.
 lv_number = sy-index.
 APPEND lv_number TO lt_numbers.
 ENDDO.
 LOOP AT lt_numbers INTO lv_number.
 WRITE: / lv_number.
 ENDLOOP.

This code creates an integer array and populates it with the numbers 1 through 5 using a loop. It then iterates over the array and prints each number to the console.

What does the following ABAP code do?

CLASS lcl_worker DEFINITION.
 PUBLIC SECTION.
 METHODS: do_work.
 ENDCLASS.
 CLASS lcl_worker IMPLEMENTATION.
 METHOD do_work.
 WRITE: / 'Work done'.
 ENDMETHOD.
 ENDCLASS.
 DATA: lo_worker TYPE REF TO lcl_worker.
 CREATE OBJECT lo_worker.
 CALL METHOD lo_worker->do_work.

This code defines a class with a single method that prints 'Work done' to the console. It then creates an instance of the class and calls the method.

What will be the output of the following ABAP code?

CLASS lcl_counter DEFINITION.
 PUBLIC SECTION.
 METHODS: increment,
 get_count RETURNING VALUE(rv_count) TYPE i.
 PRIVATE SECTION.
 DATA: lv_count TYPE i.
 ENDCLASS.
 CLASS lcl_counter IMPLEMENTATION.
 METHOD increment.
 ADD 1 TO lv_count.
 ENDMETHOD.
 METHOD get_count.
 rv_count = lv_count.
 ENDMETHOD.
 ENDCLASS.
 DATA: lo_counter TYPE REF TO lcl_counter.
 CREATE OBJECT lo_counter.
 DO 5 TIMES.
 CALL METHOD lo_counter->increment.
 ENDDO.
 WRITE: / lo_counter->get_count().

The output of this code will be 5. The code defines a class with a method to increment a counter and a method to retrieve the current count. It then creates an instance of the class, increments the counter five times, and prints the final count to the console.

What does the following ABAP code do?

DATA: lt_numbers TYPE SORTED TABLE OF i WITH UNIQUE KEY table_line,
 lv_number TYPE i.
 DO 10 TIMES.
 lv_number = sy-index.
 INSERT lv_number INTO TABLE lt_numbers.
 IF sy-subrc <> 0.
 DELETE TABLE lt_numbers.
 ENDIF.
 ENDDO.
 LOOP AT lt_numbers INTO lv_number.
 WRITE: / lv_number.
 ENDLOOP.

This code creates a sorted integer array with unique values and attempts to populate it with the numbers 1 through 10 using a loop. If an insertion fails (which it won't in this case), it clears the array. It then iterates over the array and prints each number to the console.

Wrap-up questions

Final candidate for ABAP role questions

The final few interview questions for a ABAP candidate should typically focus on a combination of technical skills, personal goals, growth potential, team dynamics, and company culture.

Describe the difference between a function module and a method in ABAP.

A function module in ABAP is a standalone routine that can be called from any program. A method, on the other hand, is a routine that is always part of an object or a class.

What are the types of internal tables in ABAP?

The types of internal tables in ABAP are Standard Tables, Sorted Tables, and Hashed Tables.

How would you debug an ABAP program?

An ABAP program can be debugged by setting breakpoints in the program, then running the program in debug mode. The debugger allows you to step through the program, inspect variables, and evaluate expressions.

Describe the difference between a structure and a table in ABAP.

A structure in ABAP is a data object that consists of a number of components, each of which has a name and a type. A table, on the other hand, is a collection of records of a particular structure.

What are the types of data types in ABAP?

The types of data types in ABAP are Elementary Data Types, Complex Data Types, and Reference Data Types.

The hiring guide has been successfully sent to your email address.
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.

ABAP application related

Product Perfect's ABAP development capabilities

Beyond hiring for your ABAP engineering team, you may be in the market for additional help. Product Perfect provides seasoned expertise in ABAP projects, and can engage in multiple capacities.