IT Change & Release Manager

Role Description

The IT Change & Release Manager is responsible for leading enterprise-wide SAP change governance, release management, deployment coordination, and production readiness activities across a complex global SAP landscape. This role serves as the primary owner of SAP change governance and Change Advisory Board (CAB) coordination, ensuring all SAP changes, releases, enhancements, upgrades, and deployments are planned, validated, approved, communicated, and executed in a controlled and predictable manner.

This role partners closely with SAP functional teams, SAP Basis, development teams, integration teams, business stakeholders, project leadership, and production support organizations to balance transformation initiatives with operational stability. The role plays a critical leadership position in the company’s SAP S/4HANA transformation by establishing disciplined release processes, deployment controls, and governance standards that reduce risk, improve visibility, and enable successful delivery of business capabilities across both production and project environments.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Information Systems, Computer Science, Business, Engineering, or related discipline required.
• Equivalent combination of education and relevant experience may be considered.
• 8+ years of SAP experience supporting enterprise SAP environments.
• 5+ years of experience in change management, release management, deployment management, application lifecycle management, or related IT disciplines.
• Experience supporting SAP S/4HANA, SAP ECC, and complex SAP landscapes across multiple environments.
• Experience managing enterprise change governance processes and leading Change Advisory Board (CAB) activities.
• Experience supporting multiple full lifecycle SAP implementations, upgrades, migrations, or major enhancement programs.
• Experience working within global manufacturing or complex multi-site organizations preferred.
• Demonstrated experience supporting production and project delivery activities simultaneously within dual-track delivery environments.
• Experience leading cross-functional teams and coordinating activities across technical, functional, operational, and business stakeholders.
• ITIL Foundation certification preferred.
• SAP Cloud ALM, SAP Solution Manager, SAP Activate, Project Management, Agile, or related certifications preferred.
• Strong knowledge of SAP Cloud ALM, SAP Solution Manager, SAP ChaRM, or comparable application lifecycle management platforms.
• Strong understanding of SAP landscapes, transport management processes, deployment coordination, and release governance.
• Knowledge of SAP S/4HANA implementation and support methodologies.
• Understanding of software development lifecycle (SDLC), Agile delivery, release management, and operational support practices.
• Experience working with ITSM platforms such as ServiceNow, Jira Service Management, Azure DevOps, or similar tools.
• Ability to assess deployment readiness, identify risks, and drive issue resolution across technical and business teams.
• Strong project coordination, stakeholder management, facilitation, and organizational skills.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to communicate effectively with technical teams, business stakeholders, and leadership audiences.
• Demonstrated ability to establish structure, governance, accountability, and process discipline within complex delivery environments.

Requirements

• Results-oriented with strong execution focus.
• Risk identification and mitigation mindset.
• Strong organizational and planning capability.
• Collaboration and cross-functional influence.
• Sound judgment and decision-making ability.
• Continuous improvement and operational excellence orientation.
• Accountability and ownership mentality.
• Effective communication and stakeholder engagement.

Working Conditions

• Remote work environment with extended periods of computer use, virtual collaboration, and participation in global meetings across multiple time zones.
• Up to 10% domestic and international travel.
• Occasional after-hours support may be required during critical releases, deployments, system upgrades, or major transformation milestones.