SAP Implementation and Integration Lead, Ford Energy

About Ford Energy

Ford Energy is a newly formed, wholly owned subsidiary of Ford Motor Company dedicated to accelerating US energy independence. Leveraging Ford’s century of manufacturing excellence and world-class battery energy storage systems (BESS) technology, Ford Energy designs, manufactures, and services grid-scale and commercial DC battery energy storage systems (BESS). Ford Energy is uniquely positioned to capture the growing demand for reliable, US-built energy storage systems.  We are not just building batteries; we are building the infrastructure for the next generation of the American grid.

The Opportunity

This is a high-impact delivery leadership position. As the SAP Implementation & Integration Lead for Ford Energy, you will serve as the strategic and hands-on leader to spearhead our Greenfield implementation of SAP S/4HANA Public Cloud. This role acts as the primary liaison between our System Integrator (SI), internal business process owners, and the technical leads of our broader Ford enterprise software ecosystem. Your mission is to ensure that our new ERP environment is not just "installed," but successfully "adopted." You will drive the Fit-to-Standard process, manage the complex web of integrations, and provide the technical leadership and oversight to ensure that the final solution delivers measurable business value while maintaining a "Clean Core" and full legal and regulatory compliance.

Key Responsibilities

1. Greenfield Strategy, Governance & Clean Core

• Methodology Execution: Partner with the System Integrator to manage the SAP Activate methodology phases (Prepare, Explore, Realize, Deploy, Run).
• Roadmap Ownership: Own the project roadmap from a business-readiness perspective, holding SAP, the SI, and peripheral system teams accountable to milestones.
• Clean Core Advocacy: Ensure that any necessary extensions are built "side-by-side" on SAP BTP rather than through legacy modifications, preserving our ability to receive bi-annual SAP updates automatically.
• Project Management: Define and refine project scope, develop roadmaps, maintain project plans, and provide regular governance report-outs to leadership.

2. Fit-to-Standard & Technical Integration

• Process Alignment: Facilitate system design with business users and the SI to align company processes with SAP Best Practices. Act as the "guardian of the standard," challenging requests for customizations that could hinder future cloud upgrades.
• Integration Management: Coordinate with owners of peripheral systems to design, validate, and deliver end-to-end data flows.
• Platform Connectivity: Oversee the use of the SAP Integration Suite to ensure seamless connectivity and process integrity across the Ford Energy tech stack.

3. Stakeholder Orchestration & Quality Assurance

• Technical Translation: Translate complex technical requirements from the SI into clear business impacts for executives, and vice-versa.
• Technical Coordination: Coordinate with SI functional teams and technical services (Release Management, Security, and SAP Cloud Basis) for transport management, cutover, upgrades, notes implementation, and build delivery.
• Testing & Validation: Lead the strategy for User Acceptance Testing (UAT) and Dry Run (DR) phases. Ensure business users validate that new processes work seamlessly in a real-world production context.

Position Qualifications and Key Capabilities 

Required

• Education: Bachelor’s degree in a technical or business-related field (or equivalent experience). 

• SAP S/4HANA Experience:5+ years of hands-on experience with SAP ERP. 

• Public Cloud Expertise: At least one full-lifecycle implementation of SAP S/4HANA Public Cloud, with a proven track record of managing cloud upgrades. 

• Methodology Expertise: Proven technical oversight using the SAP Activate methodology and SAP Cloud ALM for project tracking and requirement documentation. 

• Integration Leadership: Strong understanding of SAP BTP (Business Technology Platform), specifically the Integration Suite and API Management. 

• Business Process Fluency: Deep knowledge in at least two core functional areas (e.g., Plan-to-Report Finance, Lead-to-Cash, or Source-to-Pay) to effectively lead Fit-to-Standard discussions.

Preferred

• S/4HANA implementation experience in a manufacturing or complex logistics environment. 
• Experience standing up IT infrastructure or ERP systems for a new business unit or startup venture. 
• Superb communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to translate complex technical risks and requirements into business impact for executive-level stakeholders.

• Clean Core Guardian: Protects standard cloud processes against legacy customization to preserve upgrade viability.
• Technical Translator: Bridges the gap between System Integrators, technical platforms (BTP), and business executives.
• Process Architect: Deeply understands business flows (Finance, Supply Chain) and maps them to SAP Best Practices.
• Delivery Catalyst: Drives the SAP Activate methodology to meet critical startup launch milestones.

Location & Travel

• Location: Dearborn, MI. This position is hybrid. Candidates who are commuting distance toa Ford hub location may be required to be onsite four or more days per week.

• Company: As Ford establishes a wholly owned subsidiary focused on Battery Energy Storage Systems, this role will initially be employed by Ford and is expected to transition to the subsidiary within one year.

Why Ford Energy?

At Ford Energy, you have the backing of an industrial manufacturing powerhouse with the agility of a dedicated energy startup offering industry leading technology. We offer a competitive compensation package including performance-based bonuses, Ford vehicle discounts, and the opportunity to shape the energy strategy of one of the world's most iconic brands.

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