It is not often that one would find a technology guru who is a billionaire, passionate about education and some one who is adept at cracking jokes. Hasso Plattner, the 70-year old co-founder of German software giant SAP AG, however, fits all these roles to perfection.

Catching up with Plattner on a chilly morning in May in Potsdam, on the outskirts of Berlin, where SAP has set up a new research and development facility, it is easy to understand why he is considered to be one of the doyens in the software design industry.

The lonely, rather small building next to a lake in downtown Potsdam does not have the trappings of a bustling facility. In fact, visitors need to pay extra attention at night as the unfinished roads without streetlights can often lead people astray.