SAP Application Operations Manager

Proven ownership of SAP application operations within a live production environment, accountable for day to day stability, incident management, and service continuity.

Demonstrable experience coordinating releases, maintenance windows, and system changes with minimal business disruption across international landscapes.

Strong governance capability across SAP change and transport management, including structured control of standard and emergency changes into production.

Hands on experience operating within SAP Solution Manager ChaRM or an equivalent ALM tool, with clear understanding of how changes are logged, approved, and transported.

Established track record of managing external SAP service providers from the client side, including SLA oversight, service reviews, and escalation management.

Practical experience supporting SAP audit and compliance activities beyond finance, including operational controls, audit documentation, and audit readiness.

Solid understanding of SAP security and access governance, including emergency access, critical authorisations, and Security Note coordination.

Confident operating within SAP CoE or ITSM driven environments, balancing run stability with controlled transformation activity.

Exposure to SAP S 4HANA environments, including RISE with SAP and ECC to S 4 transformation programmes.

Experience supporting transition away from SAP Solution Manager into modern ALM tooling integrated with SAP transport layers.

Familiarity with SAP GRC, Firefighter access, and broader compliance frameworks across international organisations.

Experience working within regulated environments with strong audit, governance, and documentation expectations.

Understanding of SAP Enterprise Portal or SharePoint based documentation governance.

Experience coordinating testing strategy, execution alignment, and documentation within change and release cycles.

Comfortable working across distributed global teams, including business stakeholders, IT, and external partners.

Our client is seeking an SAP Application Operations Manager to take ownership of run excellence across a complex, international SAP landscape. Operating within a Centre of Excellence model, this role is focused on ensuring operational stability, controlled change, and audit readiness across all SAP environments. The position sits at the centre of the SAP operating model, acting as the key coordination point between internal stakeholders and external service providers. You will lead the day to day reliability of SAP applications, overseeing incident management, release coordination, and transport governance, while ensuring all activities remain controlled, traceable, and aligned to defined processes. Alongside core operations, the role plays a critical part in supporting a wider S 4HANA transformation journey, including RISE with SAP Private Cloud adoption and future upgrade cycles. This includes maintaining operational continuity during transition phases and supporting the evolution of ALM tooling and governance frameworks. This is a high accountability role suited to an experienced SAP operations professional who brings clear ownership, governance discipline, and the credibility to manage both internal teams and external providers in a structured, outcome focused environment.