SAP S4 HANA - Fico Lead

Position Title: FI/CO Lead – SAP S/4HANA Project
Reporting To: SAP Project Lead / SAP Project Manager
Location: Rosebank
Employment Type: Fixed-Term Contract

 

The FI/CO Lead will represent the Finance function on the SAP S/4HANA Project Owner's Team and serve as the primary Finance business lead throughout the implementation lifecycle.

The role is responsible for ensuring that Finance processes, controls, reporting requirements, and statutory obligations are effectively supported by the SAP S/4HANA solution while aligning local business requirements with the Group's global template and target operating model.

A key responsibility of this position is working closely with Group Process Owners and the implementation partner to ensure adherence to the approved Global Design Solution, whilst appropriately addressing local business, regulatory, and operational requirements.

Key Responsibilities

Finance Workstream Leadership

• Lead the Finance and Controlling (FI/CO) workstream on behalf of the business.
• Act as the primary liaison between Finance stakeholders, the SAP implementation partner, and Group Process Owners.
• Drive the adoption of SAP best practices and standardised business processes.
• Support project governance, planning, risk management, and decision-making activities.
• Ensure the Finance workstream delivers agreed outcomes within project timelines.

Global Design Alignment

• Partner with Group Finance, Global Process Owners, and Solution Architects to understand and adopt the approved Global Design Solution.
• Evaluate local business requirements against the global SAP template.
• Drive fit-to-standard principles and minimise customisation wherever possible.
• Identify gaps between current processes and the global design and facilitate resolution with Group stakeholders.
• Ensure deviations from the global template are appropriately justified, documented, approved, and governed.
• Promote process harmonisation and standardisation across the organisation.

Business Process Design
Lead and support the design, validation, and optimisation of:

• General Ledger (GL)
• Accounts Payable (AP)
• Accounts Receivable (AR)
• Asset Accounting (AA)
• Cost Centre Accounting
• Profit Centre Accounting
• Internal Orders
• Product Costing
• Material Ledger
• Project Systems (PS)
• Profitability Analysis (COPA)
• Budgeting and Forecasting
• Treasury and Cash Management
• Group and Statutory Reporting

Solution Design & Governance

• Participate in design workshops and solution review sessions.
• Review and approve finance-related configuration and functional specifications.
• Ensure compliance with accounting standards, internal controls, audit requirements, and tax regulations.
• Validate solution designs against business objectives and reporting requirements.
• Escalate design, process, and business risks where required.

Data Migration & Master Data

• Define Finance master data requirements and governance standards.
• Support Chart of Accounts, Cost Centre, Profit Centre, Asset, and Project Structure design.
• Lead Finance data cleansing, validation, and migration activities.
• Validate opening balances and reconciliation results.
• Approve migrated Finance data prior to cutover and go-live.

Testing & Quality Assurance

• Lead Finance participation in:
  • System Integration Testing (SIT)
  • User Acceptance Testing (UAT)
  • Regression Testing
  • Cutover Testing
• Develop and review test scripts and business scenarios.
• Coordinate Finance key users during testing cycles.
• Manage defect resolution and business sign-offs.

Change Management & Business Readiness

• Champion the SAP S/4HANA transformation within the Finance community.
• Support training design and delivery.
• Ensure Finance users are prepared for new processes and systems.
• Support organisational change management and communications activities.
• Drive user adoption and process compliance.

Go-Live & Hypercare Support

• Support cutover planning and execution.
• Validate opening balances and critical financial controls.
• Participate in go-live readiness assessments.
• Provide Finance leadership during hypercare and stabilisation phases.
• Ensure post-go-live issues are resolved effectively.

Stakeholder Management
Build effective relationships with:

• Finance Leadership
• Financial Controllers
• Cost & Management Accountants
• Shared Services Teams
• Internal and External Auditors
• Group Finance Teams
• Global Process Owners
• SAP Implementation Partner
• PMO and Project Leadership
• Business Workstream Leads

Qualifications

Minimum Requirements

• Bachelor's Degree in Accounting, Finance, Commerce, or related discipline.
• Professional qualification such as CA(SA), CIMA, ACCA, CPA, or equivalent.
• SAP S/4HANA certification or implementation experience.
• Project management exposure.
• Experience working within a global ERP template environment.
• 10+ years' experience in Finance, Management Accounting, Financial Reporting, or Controlling.
• Experience in large, complex organisations.
• Previous involvement in SAP ECC and/or SAP S/4HANA projects.
• Experience in mining, manufacturing, or asset-intensive industries will be advantageous.
• Demonstrated experience managing business process transformation initiatives.
• Experience working with Group functions, global process owners, or global template deployments is highly desirable.

Key Competencies

Technical Competencies

• Financial Accounting and Reporting
• Management Accounting and Costing
• Budgeting and Forecasting
• Financial Controls and Governance
• SAP FI/CO Processes
• Data Migration and Reconciliation
• Process Design and Optimisation

Should you meet the required skills please respond to this advert