SAP Technical Manager

We are seeking an experienced SAP Technical Manger to oversee and manage the SAP Team within our organization. This pivotal role will be responsible for governing the global SAP template, ensuring that SAP solutions are standardized, scalable, and aligned with business objectives. As the SAP COE Lead, you will manage the internal SAP team, driving best practices for template governance and minimizing customization to ensure efficiency, consistency, and long-term sustainability. This role is focused on maintaining the integrity of the SAP system, providing ongoing support for business users, and ensuring that the organization maximizes the value of its SAP investments. You will be the go-to leader for driving SAP excellence, facilitating continuous improvement, and aligning SAP capabilities with evolving business needs.

This is a Full-time, onsite position. Must live or willing to relocate to one of our site locations. San Antonio, Tx, Pensacola, Fla, Baltimore, MD, Mobile, Ala, Alexandria, Va

Key Responsibilities:

Template Governance:

Lead the governance of the global SAP template, ensuring that the solution is standardized and maintained across all implementations and rollouts.

Ensure that customization requests are properly evaluated, and only essential customizations are allowed to avoid deviation from the template.

Work closely with functional and technical teams to define and enforce template best practices, ensuring that any changes or customizations align with global standards and are approved through a formal change control process.

Regularly review and audit the SAP template to ensure it remains in compliance with business requirements, technical capabilities, and industry best practices.

Functional Solutioning Oversight:

Oversee the functional solutioning process, guiding the team to ensure that the solution stays within the boundaries of the SAP template.

Collaborate with business stakeholders to understand their requirements, while ensuring that the solutions proposed are based on standard SAP functionality and require minimal customization.

Perform thorough assessments of business processes and recommend standard SAP functionality where possible to reduce complexity and customization needs.

Team Leadership & Management:

Lead and manage a team of SAP consultants, ensuring that they adhere to template governance and delivery standards.

Foster a culture of collaboration and high performance within the team, providing ongoing coaching, feedback, and support.

Ensure the team is aligned with the governance framework and understand the importance of maintaining the integrity of the SAP template.

Conduct regular team meetings to monitor progress, address challenges, and ensure the template is being followed during implementation and support activities.

SAP Implementation & Rollout Management:

Manage the rollout of the SAP solution across multiple geographies or business units, ensuring the template is implemented consistently.

Act as the primary point of contact for implementation teams, ensuring that any deviations from the template are properly justified and documented.

Coordinate with project managers, technical teams, and other stakeholders to ensure that project goals, timelines, and budgets are met, while also maintaining the integrity of the SAP template.

Client Consulting & Relationship Management:

Engage with key stakeholders (internal and external) to ensure alignment on business requirements, template governance, and the role of standardization in the SAP solution.

Lead client workshops and meetings, providing expert guidance on SAP best practices, template governance, and the advantages of using standardized functionality over custom solutions.

Ensure that clients understand the value of maintaining a minimal customization approach to maximize long-term sustainability and reduce the total cost of ownership.

Post-Implementation Support & Optimization:

Ensure that post-implementation support is aligned with the global template, and that any enhancements or fixes are evaluated in the context of maintaining template integrity.

Manage the ongoing optimization of the SAP solution, ensuring that future changes or updates to the template align with evolving business needs while keeping customizations to a minimum.

Change Control & Process Documentation:

Lead the change control process for any proposed template changes, ensuring proper documentation, approval, and testing are conducted.

Develop and maintain comprehensive documentation for the SAP template, including guidelines for change requests, customizations, and best practices.

Provide training and support to business users and other stakeholders to ensure they understand the SAP template and the importance of adhering to it.

Continuous Improvement & Innovation:

Monitor industry trends and SAP innovations to ensure that the template remains competitive and in line with best practices.

Actively propose and implement process improvements to keep the SAP template relevant and efficient while minimizing the need for custom solutions.

Required Skills & Qualifications:

Experience:

7-10 years of experience in SAP functional consulting, with a focus on template governance, solutioning, and minimizing customizations.

Strong experience in managing or overseeing SAP implementation projects using a standardized template (e.g., SAP S/4HANA, SAP ECC).

Proven expertise in governing SAP templates across multiple regions or business units, ensuring consistency and scalability.

Solid understanding of SAP modules and business processes (e.g., SAP FICO, SAP MM, SAP SD, SAP PP, etc.) with the ability to evaluate and propose standard SAP solutions.

Leadership & Team Management:

Experience leading and managing cross-functional SAP teams, ensuring high performance and adherence to governance standards.

Ability to manage a team remotely or across multiple locations and cultures.

Strong interpersonal and communication skills to manage stakeholder relationships and guide teams through template governance practices.

Consulting & Client Management:

Strong consulting skills, with the ability to engage with senior business stakeholders and clients, providing clear guidance on SAP template governance and the benefits of minimizing customizations.

Experience in leading client workshops, discussions, and presentations on SAP best practices and template standardization.

Project Management & Governance:

Experience with SAP implementation methodologies (e.g., ASAP, Agile, Activate) and managing project timelines, budgets, and resources.

Knowledge of project management tools and techniques for tracking and reporting on project progress, risks, and issues.

Strong change management and process documentation skills, with a focus on governance and compliance.

Preferred Qualifications:

SAP certification(s) in relevant functional modules (e.g., SAP S/4HANA, SAP FICO, SAP MM).

Experience with SAP Cloud-based solutions (e.g., SAP S/4HANA Cloud, SAP SuccessFactors).

PMP, ITIL, or other project management or IT governance certifications are a plus.

Education:

A bachelor’s degree in Information Technology, Business Administration, or a related field.