SAP Finance Functional Architect

Job Title

SAP Finance Functional Architect

Overview  

Looking for a challenge in one of the world's leading airline Groups and a dual FTSE 100 and IBEX 35 listed company?  
The Group combines airlines in Ireland, the UK and Spain with key non-airline businesses, enabling them to enhance their presence in the aviation market. 

Purpose of the role

The SAP Finance Functional Architect is responsible for defining, governing, and optimising the end-to-end Finance solution architecture across the enterprise. Focusing on Order-to-Cash (OtC), Record-to-Report (RtR), and Procure-to-Pay (PtP), the role ensures functional integrity, process standardisation, and solution excellence across all SAP S/4HANA Finance capabilities.
This role acts as the primary functional design authority for Finance and works closely with the SAP Product Team, SAP Centre of Excellence (CoE), Business Process Owners, and Transformation Programme teams to ensure that SAP solution decisions are scalable, compliant, and strategically aligned to the Group's transformation objectives.

Accountabilities

Functional Architecture & Design Authority

• Own the end-to-end SAP Finance functional architecture across OtC, RtR, and PtP.
• Translate business strategy and process requirements into scalable SAP S/4HANA Finance solutions.
• Maintain the Finance solution blueprint, standard definitions, and functional guardrails.
• Ensure alignment with enterprise architecture, SAP best practices, and programme principles.

Process Governance & Standards

• Establish and enforce global design standards across Finance processes.
• Govern changes to Finance processes and functional scope through structured design authority forums.
• Drive process harmonisation across operating companies to maximise re-use and minimise customisation.
• Provide expert guidance to Process Owners on best-practice SAP Finance capabilities.

Collaboration with SAP Product & CoE Teams

• Partner closely with SAP Product Managers and SAP CoE to assure consistent design, backlog prioritisation, and release integrity.
• Support Product Teams during refinement, solutioning, configuration, and functional testing.
• Review and approve functional specifications, configuration decisions, and enhancement requests.

Programme Engagement & Transformation Support

• Act as the functional lead across major transformation initiatives including S/4HANA, Central Finance, Group Reporting, Tax, Treasury, and BTP extensions.
• Work with programme streams on solution design, data mapping, integrations, testing, and cutover.
• Provide decision support and ensure functional dependencies are identified and resolved.

Data, Integration & Reporting Alignment

• Ensure Finance master data, transactional structures, and reporting hierarchies align to global standards.
• Oversee functional aspects of integrations across SAP and non-SAP systems (CPI, APIs, banking, tax engines).
• Support design of analytics, KPIs, group reporting, and compliance-related reporting structures.

Stakeholder Leadership & Business Advisory

• Act as the trusted functional advisor to Finance leadership, GPOs, and business SMEs.
• Facilitate solution design workshops, capability assessments, and process maturity discussions.
• Provide clarity on SAP Finance roadmap, dependencies, and functional implications of design choices.

Quality Assurance & Delivery Governance

• Ensure functional designs meet quality, control, compliance, and audit requirements.
• Support testing cycles (SIT, UAT, regression) with functional scenarios and acceptance criteria.
• Validate training materials, business readiness, and future-state process documentation.

  Functional Architecture & Design Authority

• Own the end-to-end SAP Finance functional architecture across OtC, RtR, and PtP.
• Translate business strategy and process requirements into scalable SAP S/4HANA Finance solutions.
• Maintain the Finance solution blueprint, standard definitions, and functional guardrails.
• Ensure alignment with enterprise architecture, SAP best practices, and programme principles.

• Process Governance & Standards

• Establish and enforce global design standards across Finance processes.
• Govern changes to Finance processes and functional scope through structured design authority forums.
• Drive process harmonisation across operating companies to maximise re-use and minimise customisation.
• Provide expert guidance to Process Owners on best-practice SAP Finance capabilities.

• Collaboration with SAP Product & CoE Teams

• Partner closely with SAP Product Managers and SAP CoE to assure consistent design, backlog prioritisation, and release integrity.
• Support Product Teams during refinement, solutioning, configuration, and functional testing.
• Review and approve functional specifications, configuration decisions, and enhancement requests.

• Programme Engagement & Transformation Support

• Act as the functional lead across major transformation initiatives including S/4HANA, Central Finance, Group Reporting, Tax, Treasury, and BTP extensions.
• Work with programme streams on solution design, data mapping, integrations, testing, and cutover.
• Provide decision support and ensure functional dependencies are identified and resolved.

• Data, Integration & Reporting Alignment

• Ensure Finance master data, transactional structures, and reporting hierarchies align to global standards.
• Oversee functional aspects of integrations across SAP and non-SAP systems (CPI, APIs, banking, tax engines).
• Support design of analytics, KPIs, group reporting, and compliance-related reporting structures.

• Stakeholder Leadership & Business Advisory

• Act as the trusted functional advisor to Finance leadership, GPOs, and business SMEs.
• Facilitate solution design workshops, capability assessments, and process maturity discussions.
• Provide clarity on SAP Finance roadmap, dependencies, and functional implications of design choices.

• Quality Assurance & Delivery Governance

• Ensure functional designs meet quality, control, compliance, and audit requirements.
• Support testing cycles (SIT, UAT, regression) with functional scenarios and acceptance criteria.
• Validate training materials, business readiness, and future-state process documentation.

Required Skills, qualifications & experience

Essential

• Deep SAP Finance functional expertise across OtC, RtR, PtP.
• Strong knowledge of S/4HANA Finance, including Universal Journal, Financial Accounting, Management Accounting, Asset Accounting, and Group Reporting.
• Proven experience in functional architecture or senior functional design roles.
• Strong understanding of SAP best practice processes and end-to-end cross-functional integration.
• Excellent leadership, communication, and stakeholder engagement skills.
• Experience working in complex, multi-entity, global transformation environments.

Desirable

• Experience with SAP RISE, Central Finance, BTP, BRF+, tax engines, and Treasury.
• Exposure to regulatory, audit, and internal controls frameworks (SoX, IFRS, etc.).
• SAP certification in Finance modules.
• Experience in regulated or multi-market organisations.

Department

GBS Business Enterprise Architecture (Leathem Sleith)

Reporting to

Leathem Sleith

Contract type

Regular

Location

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