SAP Lead - Accounting and Finance

About The Role

Job Title: SAP Lead - Accounting and Finance

Job Purpose/Scope The SAP Senior Analyst - Accounting and Finance is a senior functional leader responsible for supporting, optimizing, and expanding SAP S/4HANA Finance capabilities across the enterprise. This role is expected to provide expert-level production support for the existing environment while also leading SAP Finance workstreams for new market implementations, rollouts, and major business transformation initiatives. The ideal candidate brings deep FI/CO expertise, hands-on configuration capability, and a consultative mindset to partner with Finance, Accounting, FP&A, Operations, and IT stakeholders to solve complex business challenges, define scalable solutions, and guide the business toward SAP best practices rather than simply maintaining what is already in place.

Core Skills & Expertise

SAP S/4HANA Finance (FI) and Controlling (CO): General Ledger, AP, AR, Asset Accounting, banking/cash management, period-end close, and core controlling processes.

S/4HANA Finance architecture concepts, including Universal Journal, parallel ledgers, and document splitting (as applicable to multi-entity/global reporting).

Payments and banking: Automatic Payment Program (F110) concepts, bank accounting/cash management, and banking interface support and reconciliation.

Interfaces and integration patterns with external financial planning and consolidation platforms (including OneStream and Adaptive Planning) and related reconciliation/data-quality controls.

SAP Fiori launchpad and modern SAP user experience (UI5), including adoption of new Fiori-delivered finance innovations and embedded analytics where applicable.

Global, matrixed support model experience (supporting U.S. and international entities across time zones); strong stakeholder management and communication skills. Senior-level SAP project leadership, including leading FI/CO workstreams through fit-to-standard workshops, solution design, configuration, testing, data migration, cutover, go-live, and hypercare for new market implementations or major rollouts. Ability to evaluate business challenges, identify gaps, recommend future-state process improvements, and design scalable SAP solutions beyond the current configuration baseline.

Duties/Responsibilities

1. Serve as the senior SAP Finance functional lead for assigned business areas, owning support and continuous improvement of SAP S/4HANA Finance and Accounting processes while partnering with Finance, Accounting, FP&A, Operations, and IT stakeholders to define business outcomes and translate them into SAP solutions.

2. Lead the design, configuration, testing, deployment, and stabilization of SAP S/4HANA Finance solutions aligned to fit-to-standard principles, internal controls, and scalable global process design.

3. Support and enhance integrations between SAP and external finance systems, including interfaces to OneStream and Adaptive Planning; ensure data accuracy, reconciliation, and operational monitoring.

4. Apply S/4HANA Finance architecture concepts (e.g., Universal Journal, parallel ledgers, and document splitting where applicable) to support accurate global reporting and scalable design decisions.

5. Support payments and banking processes, including configuration/support concepts for the Automatic Payment Program (F110), bank accounting/cash management, and banking interface troubleshooting and reconciliation.

6. Provide day-to-day production support using ITIL-aligned incident/problem/change management practices; perform root-cause analysis and deliver sustainable corrective actions.

7. Develop, standardize, and help roll out test automation for SAP Finance (where applicable), including regression test design, repeatable test scripts, and collaboration with QA/technical teams on tool enablement and execution.

8. Create, maintain, and continuously improve system and training documentation including process flows, configuration rationale, functional specifications, test scripts, end-user training materials, and production support procedures (runbooks/SOPs).

9. Partner with technical teams (ABAP, Integration, Basis, Security, and Data) to deliver end-to-end solutions including reports, interfaces, enhancements, and operational monitoring.

10. Drive adoption of modern SAP S/4HANA capabilities, including SAP Fiori apps and related finance innovations; contribute to enablement and governance for SAP Joule capabilities where available.

11. Participate in design reviews and ensure solutions meet audit, controls, and data governance requirements (including SOX/ITGC-aligned evidence support, as applicable).

12. Lead SAP Finance workstreams for new implementations, market rollouts, and major enhancements, including fit-to-standard workshops, solution design, testing strategy, data migration support, cutover planning, go-live execution, and hypercare leadership.

13. Challenge current-state processes where appropriate, identify business process gaps, evaluate alternative solution approaches, and recommend practical SAP-enabled solutions that improve scalability, control, efficiency, and user adoption.

14. Provide leadership to cross-functional project teams, external consultants, and business subject matter experts by setting clear expectations, reviewing deliverables, resolving design issues, and ensuring solutions are supportable after go-live.

Collaboration & Mentoring Responsibilities

1. Coordinate with U.S.-based and global SAP team members, system integrators, and contractors to ensure consistent solution design, documentation, and delivery outcomes.

2. Review functional designs and proposed solutions for quality, fit-to-standard alignment, integration impacts, long-term scalability, and supportability across global deployments.

Mentor peers and junior analysts by sharing SAP Finance best practices, implementation lessons learned, troubleshooting approaches, and guidance on how to move from ticket resolution to business solution ownership.

Qualifications

SAP Senior Analyst - Accounting and Finance

1. Bachelor's degree in Finance/Accounting, Business, Information Systems, Computer Science, or related field (or equivalent combination of education and experience).

2. 10+ years of progressive SAP Finance experience, with deep hands-on SAP S/4HANA Finance (FI/CO) expertise and demonstrated responsibility for both production support and project delivery.

3. Leadership role in at least two SAP implementations, market rollouts, ECC-to-S/4 transformations, or major SAP Finance programs, with accountability for solution design, configuration oversight, testing, cutover, go-live readiness, and post-go-live stabilization.

4. Strong functional knowledge across core finance and accounting processes (GL, AP, AR, Asset Accounting, banking/cash, period-end close) and integration points to SD/MM and controlling.

5. Working knowledge of S/4HANA Finance concepts such as Universal Journal, parallel ledgers, and document splitting (as applicable).

6. Experience supporting payments and banking processes including exposure to Automatic Payment Program (F110) and banking interface troubleshooting/reconciliation.

7. Experience designing/supporting interfaces and reconciliations with external finance systems (planning and consolidation), including OneStream and/or Adaptive Planning preferred.

8. Experience with modern SAP S/4HANA capabilities including SAP Fiori and awareness/exposure to SAP Joule capabilities in an S/4HANA landscape.

9. Proven ability to translate business requirements into functional designs and drive testing (SIT/UAT) and go-live readiness in partnership with business stakeholders.

10. Proven ability to lead business process discussions, challenge legacy design assumptions, identify gaps, and recommend SAP-enabled solutions that support new markets, new legal entities, and evolving business models.

11. Strong consultative communication skills with the ability to influence stakeholders, explain tradeoffs, facilitate design decisions, and guide business teams through implementation readiness and change adoption.

12. Demonstrated ability to work effectively in a matrixed, global environment supporting U.S. and international stakeholders across time zones; strong communication skills in English.

13. Experience in regulated/controlled industries (e.g., medical devices, pharma, aerospace) and familiarity with audit, controls, and compliance expectations (including SOX/ITGC-style controls) is preferred.

Credentialing

Preferred certifications and credentials include:

SAP Certified Associate SAP S/4HANA for Financial Accounting (e.g., SAP S/4HANA Financial Accounting certification such as C_TS4FI or current equivalent) preferred.

SAP Certified Associate Project Manager - SAP Activate (C_ACTIVATE / C_ACT_2403 or current equivalent) preferred, especially for candidates supporting multiple implementations.

Finance/Accounting credentials preferred: Chartered Accountant (CA - India), CMA (ICMAI) or CMA (US), CPA, and/or ACCA.

Preferred education (India-market aligned): B.Com / M.Com, MBA (Finance), CA Inter/Final (as applicable), or Bachelor's degree in Finance/Accounting/Business; BE/BTech/BS in IT/CS/Engineering is also acceptable with demonstrated SAP Finance domain depth.