IT Architect Advisor - SAP Transformation and Delivery

IT Advisor – SAP S/4HANA Transformation (Technical Architect & Project Lead)At Medtronic, you can begin a life-long career of exploration and innovation, while helping champion healthcare access and equity for all. You'll lead with purpose, breaking down barriers to innovation in a more connected, compassionate world.The IT Advisor – SAP S/4HANA Transformation (Technical Architect & Project Lead) is a senior individual-contributor leadership role within the Global IT SAP Center of Expertise, accountable for architecting and delivering sub-projects within the SAP S/4HANA transformation roadmap—such as Master Data Governance, Data Migration & analytics solutions implementation and other enabling technology solutions across the SAP ecosystem. This role combines director-level delivery accountability with hands-on technical architecture leadership to ensure solutions are scalable, compliant, secure, and aligned to enterprise architecture standards in a regulated medical devices environment.Reporting into SAP CoE leadership, this position partners closely with Enterprise Architecture, Cybersecurity, Infrastructure, Quality/Validation, Data Platforms & Integration team, SAP functional owners, external system integrators and SAP to deliver outcomes with strong scope discipline, quality rigor, and predictable execution. In-person collaboration is an important part of how we work. This role follows Medtronic's hybrid onsite model in support of collaboration and professional growth.Role OverviewThis role serves as a trusted technical advisor and delivery owner for SAP transformation sub-programs, translating business demand into solution architecture, delivery roadmaps, integrated plans, and measurable outcomes. The IT Advisor ensures disciplined execution across plan/build/test/deploy/hypercare, while actively managing vendor performance, scope, risks, and change controls.As a technical architect, you will define end-to-end designs (data, integration, security, environments, extensions) and govern solution implementation. As a project lead, you will set expectations with system integrators, regulate delivery status, escalate quality/timeline concerns, manage contracts and invoices, and ensure deployment readiness and support transition.Responsibilities1) SAP Transformation Sub-Project Leadership (MDG and Enabling Solutions)Own delivery of assigned SAP transformation sub-projects (e.g., SAP MDG, data governance enablement, integration services, workflow automation, reporting enablement, and other SAP-adjacent technologies).Establish and maintain project charters, delivery plans, milestones, dependencies, RAID logs, and success metrics in partnership with business stakeholders and IT peers.Define, baseline, and manage scope, assumptions, and dependencies, ensuring clarity of commitments and outcomes.Drive cross-team execution across platforms, development, testing, release/cutover, deployment, and hypercare, holding every team accountable to commitments.2) Technical Architecture & Solution GovernanceServe as the technical architect for assigned initiatives—defining target architecture, integration patterns, security approach, environment strategy, non-functional requirements, and operational support model.Ensure designs align with: Enterprise architecture principlesIntegration, data, cloud, and security strategiesLead architecture reviews and govern technical decisions to ensure scalable, supportable, and compliant solutions across build and run.Ensure delivery artifacts meet required standards: architecture diagrams, interface specs, technical designs, validation evidence, runbooks, and support documentation.3) Delivery Discipline, Status Governance, and Escalation ManagementEstablish right-sized governance (cadence, templates, checkpoints) to receive and regulate system integrator status reporting, validate progress, and surface risks early.Proactively identify delays, capacity gaps, and quality concerns; escalate to system integrator leadership and Medtronic leadership with clear options, impacts, and recommendations.Ensure disciplined execution across build, test, deploy, and hypercare using standard delivery and release management practices.Drive continuous improvement in delivery predictability and quality through structured retrospectives, defect trend analysis, and process rigor.4) Scope Control, Change Requests, Financial AlignmentDefine and defend scope to meet delivery commitments while balancing business priorities, risk, and regulatory requirements.Monitor, challenge, and resist unnecessary change requests; approve only after due diligence on value, risk, timeline, architecture fit, and funding.Maintain traceability of decisions and commitments; ensure stakeholder alignment on impacts to schedule, cost, and quality.Partner with finance/sourcing as needed to align funding, forecasting, and spend governance for assigned projects.5) System Integrator, Contract, and Invoice OwnershipLead delivery through blended teams and hold system integrators accountable for quality, timelines, adherence to scope, and compliance requirements. Exhibit mastery in language on contracts to enforce accountability, validate estimates and negotiate optimized onsite / offshore working model with SIs, collaborate with sourcing on enforcing sourcing best practices.Own and manage key vendor deliverables and obligations including: Acceptance criteria and deliverable sign-offsKnowledge transfer and documentation expectationsContract execution and commercial governance (with sourcing support)Invoice review/approval tied to measurable progress and acceptanceActively manage vendor performance, risks, and dependencies—driving corrective actions when required.6) Risk Management, Compliance, Validation, and QualityEvaluate and determine program/project risks proactively; define and drive mitigation plans with clear owners and due dates.Partner with Quality and Regulatory teams to ensure systems and changes meet applicable validation and compliance requirements.Ensure audit-ready delivery practices, including documentation completeness, traceability, controlled change management, and inspection readiness.7) Deployment Readiness, Cutover, and Support TransitionEnsure a complete deployment plan is created and validated, including cutover approach, rollback strategy, runbook readiness, operational monitoring, and hypercare model.Validate that documentation is created and that proper support transition occurs (KT to run teams, support model, SLAs, incident procedures).RequirementsBachelor's degree and 20+ years of progressive IT experience in large, complex enterprise environments. (Equivalent combination of education and experience may be considered.)Demonstrated experience as a technical architect and delivery leader on SAP transformation initiatives (SAP S/4HANA and/or major SAP programs).Strong experience leading system integrators with measurable accountability for delivery outcomes, quality, and timelines.Proven ability to define scope, manage change control, and drive disciplined execution across build/test/deploy/hypercare.Experience with architecture alignment and governance across enterprise standards (integration, data, security, cloud).Strong communication and executive presence—able to escalate effectively with clear options, impacts, and recommendations.Relevant domain experience (one or more):SAP Master Data Governance (MDG) strategy and implementationSAP integration patterns (APIs/IDocs/events), middleware, and data flowsSAP security/authorizations and compliance-driven controlsRelease management, testing strategy, cutover planning, and support transition practicesNice to HaveExperience in medical devices, life sciences, or other regulated industries with validation expectations.Exposure to SAP BTP, SAP Integration Suite/CPI, Cloud ALM/Solution Manager, and SAP DevOps tooling.Experience partnering closely with Enterprise Architecture organizations and influencing roadmaps across a multi-team environment.Familiarity with master data operating models (governance, stewardship, data quality KPIs, data lifecycle controls).Leadership CompetenciesDirector-level accountability mindset (outcome ownership without direct line authority).Strong execution and delivery orientation with high rigor and predictable outcomes.Ability to balance scope discipline with business partnership and stakeholder management.Comfortable influencing across IT, business, vendors, and SAP ecosystem partners.Engineering rigor: quality-first thinking, risk management, and operational excellence.Clear communicator with strong Medtronic Plc