Senior SAP Consultant FICO - Enterprise IT

Job description / Role

Senior SAP Consultant FICO - Enterprise IT - Al Futtaim Group - Dubai, UAE

The Senior SAP Consultant FICO Controlling will be responsible for defining and supporting the Finance and Controlling areas of the application functionality. The successful candidate will assume responsibility for the design, configuration, testing, implementation, documentation and maintenance of the SAP FICO environment, as well as maintenance support of the current system and assigned to the more complex projects that typically require significant integration with other areas.

The Senior SAP Consultant FICO maintains a high degree of customer satisfaction in each of their customers through their installation, configuration, investigation, analysis, consulting, development, coaching, knowledge transfer and relationship building efforts.

Main Responsibilities:
Support and Maintenance of the SAP systems

The successful candidate will demonstrate the ability to manage configuration and other business process related activities including:
- To provide an expert level of skills & knowledge in the evaluation, development, testing and delivery of SAP application and business process developments.
- Collaborate with the business in identifying functional requirements for process groups, and create corresponding technical specifications
- Create and modify SAP configurations using defined development standards, procedures, and design specifications
- Develop test scripts, perform unit testing, and contribute to integration testing of development objects
- Provide technical support to end users; diagnose and resolve application-related issues, identify root causes, as well as institute corrective actions and preventive measures.
- Carry out detailed impact assessments for proposed change requests, proposing alternative cost-effective solutions where appropriate.
- Ensure Change Controls are developed, tested & released according to an agreed schedule and ensure all high business impact changes are escalated as appropriate.
- Expected to be involved in some support activities and a number of development activities and to have developed excellent business process design skills.

Design and Evolution of the business process design
- Able to evaluate the system strategies and requirements related to new SAP components; recommending and implementing them.
- Developing and documenting the detailed design and configuration of the business process
- Delivery of programme/project solutions/ Request for Change
- Responsible for leading the design and configuration streams within complex SAP solutions for a specific module.
- Develop functional specifications for reports, forms, and interfaces, modifications and data conversions.
- Legacy data mapping and integration to other modules and Legacy applications.
- Operating in a programme context, including participation in cross functional teams and working with people and organisations from different regions/cultures.
- Demonstrated commitment to change/incident management
- Responsible for ensuring that the system change request process is adhered to in terms of quality and commitment to timelines for estimation/delivery
- Responsible for ensuring that incidents are resolved as per approved Service Level Agreement
- Responsible for identifying trends in incidents, and targeting areas for improvement
- Work with other functional teams within IT and the Business to identify opportunities for
- Process design and gap analysis to standard SAP functionality within the business blueprint project phase process improvement and assist in the implementation of those agreed
- Maintain and enhance SAP Development skills and knowledge.
- Identify and recommend new technologies to management, as well as detail potential applications and implications for the business.
- Expected to provide positive influence to junior members to be capable of advising on additional process improvement opportunities.

Communications
- Maintain close working relationships with EIT - RETAIL team members, infrastructure groups, and customers to ensure broad awareness of program status and issues.

The Candidate will be an individual who is organized, reliable and has a proven track record. Used to working within large project and support teams. Candidate will provide skills that compliment the ability of EIT - RETAIL to deliver to promise.

This role will suit candidates who are looking to contribute to an exciting leading edge organization that offers significant career development.

Requirements

- A degree in Finance/ Accounting related discipline
- SAP certification
- Working knowledge of Systems Lifecycle
- Experience in SAP implementations
- Detailed knowledge of SAP Solution Manager will be highly regarded

Job Specific Training:
- Project Management experience
- Business Systems Analysis
- Business process improvement methods e.g. Lean Six Sigma Continuous Improvement

SAP Solution Design:
- The candidate should be well versed with all areas of SAP FI/CO management
- Knowledge of SAP modules (MM, SD, Retail) will be an advantage
- Integration with other SAP modules and external applications
- SAP certification is mandatory
- Strong business process knowledge stretching beyond SAP functionality in the Trading & Retail Industry

General:
- Strong problem solving, and decision making abilities
- Ability to reprioritize in response to a fluctuating work or customer environment.
- Excellent negotiation, process/analytical, organizational, customer service and communication skills
- Proven track record of building and maintaining strong working relationships
- Demonstrate facilitation, communication and collaboration skills.
- Understands delivery within a context of possible constraints (e.g., cost, schedule) and able to operate effectively within those constraints
- Able to provide coaching and knowledge transfer to team members, including ensuring that resources have proper understanding of application functionality and system technologies
- Must have excellent interpersonal and communication skills and the ability to write clear and concise documentation
- Strong team player with ability to share knowledge with other team members.
- Work as part of a support team
- Keep up-to-date with SAP technologies
- Rapidly absorb and act upon detailed material
- Work independently and use initiative
- Have a flexible approach to working hours, including possible weekend/holiday working if required
- Ability to interface and negotiate with different levels of management within the organisation
- Effective organizational skills coupled with the ability to collaborate across functional areas, departments, and business units

Behavioural Competencies:
- Ability to learn new technologies
- Adaptability
- Innovative thinking
- Attention to detail
- Sound influencing and negotiation skills
- Customer focus
- Strong Customer Relationship building capability.
- Strong decision making and problem solving abilities
- Judgement
- Technical acumen

Required:
- 4+ years professional IT systems and SAP experience with a primary emphasis in configuration of FICO, coupled with 3 full life cycle implementations of SAP modules
- Involvement in SAP opportunities as either overall lead or solution lead would be advantageous
- Experience of working in the retail/trading environment will be highly regarded
- Experience of working in the Middle East will be a plus
- Experience with New GL and document splitting will be highly regarded
- Other experience in Retail, MM, WM, SD, BW is preferred, but not mandatory
- Experience using OSS, SAP Workflow, reporting concepts (e.g. List, Interactive, ABAP Query & ALV), programming concepts (e.g. Data Dictionary, LSMW, CATT, SAPScript, Portals, EDI, XML, BAPI, Authorizations), as well as development methodologies such as ASAP or ITIL preferred

Desired:
- Experience with SAP Solution Manager 7.0
- Awareness of Run SAP methodology

About the Company

Established in the 1930's, the Al-Futtaim Group initially operated as a trading enterprise. Rapid development throughout the 1940's and 50's saw it establish itself regionally as an integrated commercial, industrial and services organisation, positioning itself one of the leading business houses in the lower Gulf region. Today, it operates collectively over 40 companies bearing the Al-Futtaim name, dominates many market segments in the UAE, and has expanded its sphere of operation to include Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman and Egypt.

The Group comprises a diverse range of strategically positioned operating subsidiaries and associate companies, structured to give the Al-Futtaim Group the flexibility and versatility to keep ahead of local competition while keeping pace with the ever-evolving global business scenario. The Groups continued investment in world-class systems technology is clear evidence of its commitment to maintain leading edge performance and service delivery.

The success of the Al-Futtaim Group can be attributed to a business approach that combines the ability to change with the traditional values of integrity, service and social responsibility that define its core business philosophy. This, linked with the Groups belief in decentralisation, gives the heads of the operating companies a high degree of functional autonomy and authority, providing the Group with essential flexibility, and individual employees a clearly defined work culture and sense of responsibility.