SAP Functional Lead

Ford Motor; Chennai; On-site; INR 1,500,000 - 2,800,000; Full time

Job summary

Ford Motor is seeking a Senior SAP Functional Lead in Chennai to direct SAP implementation and enhancement initiatives, aligning with business objectives and IT standards. You will guide cross‑functional teams, coordinate with stakeholders and system integrators, and drive process improvements across ERP landscapes.

The role emphasizes requirements gathering, design, testing, deployment, and training, with strong emphasis on leadership, communication, and problem‑solving to support ongoing

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Business, Engineering, or a related field.
• Proven experience leading SAP implementations or major SAP transformation projects.
• Strong knowledge of SAP business processes and system functionality.
• Experience conducting Fit‑Gap analysis, requirements gathering, testing, and user training.
• Experience working with system integrators, business stakeholders, and cross‑functional teams.
• Hands‑on experience with Jira or similar Agile project management tools.
• Strong analytical, problem‑solving, and root cause analysis skills.
• Experience with Agile, iterative, and test‑driven delivery methodologies.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Demonstrated leadership and team management experience.

Responsibilities

• Lead SAP implementation projects from requirements gathering through go‑live and hypercare support.
• Drive design discussions and ensure timely resolution of functional and technical issues.
• Lead teams through requirement workshops, Fit‑Gap analysis, solution design, testing, deployment, and end‑user training.
• Collaborate with business stakeholders, IT teams, and system integrators to ensure successful project delivery.
• Foster a positive, collaborative, and high‑performance team culture.
• Plan, coordinate, and support testing, release management, and data migration activities.

Skills

Leadership

Communication

Analytical thinking

Agile methodologies

Cross-functional collaboration

Problem solving

Education

Bachelor's degree in IT / CS / Business / Engineering

Tools

Jira

Job description

SAP Functional Lead

The SAP Functional Lead will be responsible for leading SAP implementation and enhancement projects while ensuring alignment with business objectives and enterprise IT standards. This role requires collaboration with business stakeholders, IT teams, system integrators, and project teams to deliver scalable SAP solutions, drive process improvements, and support ongoing operational excellence. The successful candidate will possess strong analytical and problem‑solving skills, experience managing cross‑functional teams, and the ability to communicate complex concepts effectively to both technical and business audiences.

Leadership & Project Delivery

Lead SAP implementation projects from requirements gathering through go‑live and hypercare support. Drive design discussions and ensure timely resolution of functional and technical issues. Lead teams through requirement workshops, Fit‑Gap analysis, solution design, testing, deployment, and end‑user training. Collaborate with business stakeholders, IT teams, and system integrators to ensure successful project delivery. Foster a positive, collaborative, and high‑performance team culture.

Solution Design & Configuration

Work with system integrators to design, document, and deliver SAP configurations and customisations. Manage enhancements, interfaces, reports, workflow solutions, and data conversion activities. Ensure application development environments and tools support business requirements and integration needs. Evaluate and recommend new SAP features, technologies, and release enhancements aligned with enterprise IT strategy.

Business Analysis & Documentation

Maintain Jira project artifacts and ensure accurate tracking of project status and deliverables. Create and manage use cases, user stories, functional specifications, process flows, and business requirements documentation. Communicate project progress, risks, and issues effectively to stakeholders.

Testing & Release Management

Plan, coordinate, and support functional, integration, security, and user acceptance testing. Lead defect resolution and validation activities. Support release management, cutover planning, deployment, and post‑production stabilization. Coordinate data profiling, extraction, cleansing, migration, and validation activities.

Continuous Improvement & Support

Perform root cause analysis and implement corrective and preventive actions. Drive continuous improvement initiatives to enhance business processes and SAP system efficiency. Support operational sustainability and team capability development. Design, validate, and support business and operational reporting solutions.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Business, Engineering, or a related field.
• Proven experience leading SAP implementations or major SAP transformation projects.
• Strong knowledge of SAP business processes and system functionality.
• Experience conducting Fit‑Gap analysis, requirements gathering, testing, and user training.
• Experience working with system integrators, business stakeholders, and cross‑functional teams.
• Hands‑on experience with Jira or similar Agile project management tools.
• Strong analytical, problem‑solving, and root cause analysis skills.
• Experience with Agile, iterative, and test‑driven delivery methodologies.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Demonstrated leadership and team management experience.

Preferred Qualifications

• Prior experience with IERP implementations (clarification required on specific platform).
• Experience managing large‑scale SAP deployments across multiple business functions.
• Knowledge of SAP reporting solutions and report design/testing.
• Experience supporting release management, data migration, and post‑go‑live support activities.

Experience Level Senior Level