Lead Consultant - SAC

Role Title: Lead Consultant - SAC

Location: Chennai

We are one purpose-led global organisation. The enablers and innovators, ensuring that we can fulfil our mission to push the boundaries of science and discover and develop life-changing medicines. We take pride in working close to the cause, opening the locks to save lives, ultimately making a massive difference to the outside world.

AstraZeneca (AZ) is in a period of strong growth and our employees have a united purpose to make a difference to patients around the world who need both our medicines and the ongoing developments from our science.   In this journey AZ must continue to work across borders and with partners and new colleagues in a fast and seamless way.  The ambition, size and complexity of the organisation, coupled with the opportunities afforded by new technology, has led the Board to approve a large-scale transformation programme – Axial.

The Axial Programme will be powered by S/4HANA a new ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) system which will be implemented right across the organisation and will provide our business with standardised processes, enhanced financial management, common data and real time reporting, transforming the way we work through our entire supply chain - from bench to patient.

The new system will be used by more than 20,000 employees daily, is foundational to all AZ entities and is central to most core business processes.  This is a once in a generation programme for AstraZeneca and will shape our ways of working globally for many years to come.

The Axial programme needs the best talent to work in it.  Whether it’s the technical skills, business understanding or change leadership, we want to ensure we have the strongest team deployed throughout.  We are aiming to deliver a world class change programme that leaves all employees with a fuller understanding of their role in the end-to-end nature of our global company.  This programme will provide AZ with a competitive edge, to the benefit of our employees, customers and patients.

The SAC Functional Consultant owns the technical solution design for a specific business capability or part of a cross functional component.  The role is a key position on the Axial Programme IT design team taking a central role in defining the global design template for AstraZeneca in line with our ambition of Fit to Standard using SAP best practice as far as possible. You will be a member of a wider Axial IT Design Team that will lead on defining the IT solution that will support our global standardised business processes.  

The Functional Consultant will be specifically aligned to a capability associated with one of the Enterprise Process Owner (EPO) domains or in some cases a cross-domain capability.  During the global process design phase, you will own the solution design for your domain and act as the central point for defining the integrated solution for your capability, ensuring integration between business process definition, SAP solution definition and SAP data objects definition.

In addition, you will be responsible for ensuring that the global standard solution is fully and accurately documented and tested according to project standards and will guide the core design through the required governance forums. You will work closely with IT Enterprise Business Partners, others Product Managers and experts across the design team to ensure that solutions are effectively integrated into a wider AstraZeneca global standard design. This will also include working with SMEs from our external partners to ensure that the AZ solution adopts standard and leading-edge technology in fulfilling business capabilities and outcomes.

As the project moves to the deployment phase you will continue to play a pivotal role in ensuring that the localisation requirements of individual operating units are properly represented in the solution, whilst retaining the integrity of a fit to standard best practice template. You will also support the deployment teams with deploying the business change journey and ensuring successful migration and cutover to the standard design for each entity. You will be a key participant in hypercare management, ensuring that any issues related to your capability are resolved in a timely and effective way.

In the role of Functional Consultant, you will apply extensive knowledge of SAP best practices to enable core business capability and a standard global template for your respective domain.  With awareness of the core end to end process streams across all Finance; eg R2R, P2P, OD2C etc…

In addition to this core SAP focused process awareness, exposure to a wider gambit of planning tools will be critical in ensuring feature parity and capability when designing your specific outputs. It is required for the role to support and drive the planning design across finance with links to multiple separate third-party systems and suggest the most appropriate point to separate these platforms.

What you’ll do

• Lead the IT solution that underpins the global standard process design for your capability / lead area including any integrations.

• Accountable for matching the system design, adopting best practice, to the business capability requirements in your domain/area.

• Work closely with the business process teams in the process design to ensure alignment with S/4HANA and SAC best practice and SAP standard functionality.

• Able to represent your process domain on senior internal and external forums as required in your capability domain and support setting the strategic direction contributing any solution/technology opportunities.

• Support the data team to ensure successful definition / migration / creation of data objects that support the AZ global design across the application landscape.

• Ensure effective prioritisation of activities in line with the overall deployment strategy and project imperatives in alignment with Business Technology Group portfolios and BAU services.

• Accountable for the alignment of existing and new AZ IT projects (i.e., those outside the Axial programme) with the overall solution design in your domain/capability area within the Axial programme

• Work with the AZ Architecture teams to ensure that the solution and data design align with the strategic view for IT applications.

• Work with the Non-SAP systems and Integration teams to ensure effective delivery of integration requirements across the IT landscape, internal and external to AZ.

• Ensure latest industry and SAP functionalities are proactively considered within your capability and the wider program, actively supporting the IT enterprise business partner in your domain area.

• Work in partnership with programme partners to document and test the solution design in accordance with AZ compliance standards.

• Report on status of activity to plan and manage RAID items in your area, rolling up to the Enterprise domain.

• Champion the design for your capability through the appropriate governance forums

• Represent IT as an SME and leader at respective program and business data forums

Essential for the role

• In depth knowledge of SAP S/4 landscape and associated BTP (Business Tech Platforms) solutions

• Strong understanding of business processes in your respective domain in a Life Sciences environment. With awareness of the core end to end process streams across all Finance; eg R2R, P2P, OD2C etc…

• Recognised SME in SAP and associated technologies and functionalities with a proven track record of delivering complex designs for a large business transformation project.

• Demonstrated ability to successfully deliver IT change across multiple locations globally and/or Business Functions including ability to interpret and communicate technical information into business language.

• Good stakeholder management and communication skills with Business and IT areas with a demonstrated capability to influence key partner groups.

• Strong team player able to work across the program team and communicate in business and IT terms.

Desirable for the role

• Certification in specific SAP S/4HANA areas as relevant to your domain

• Worked in a hybrid environment with a mix of internal and external resources in multiple geographical locations.

• S/4HANA implementations for complex global organisations from Design to completion of Deployment

Why AstraZeneca?

At Astrazeneca we’re dedicated to being a Great Place to Work. Where you are empowered to push the boundaries of science and unleash your entrepreneurial spirit. There’s no better place to make a difference to medicine, patients and society. An inclusive culture that champions diversity and collaboration, and always committed to lifelong learning, growth and development. We’re on an exciting journey to pioneer the future of healthcare.

So, what’s next?

• Are you already imaging yourself joining our team? Good, because we can’t wait to hear from you.

• Are you ready to bring new ideas and fresh thinking to the table? Brilliant! We have one seat available and hope its yours

• If you’re curious to know more then we welcome your application no later than

Where can I find out more?

Our Social Media, Follow AstraZeneca on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/1603/

Follow AstraZeneca on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/astrazenecacareers/

Follow AstraZeneca on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/astrazeneca_careers/?hl=en

AstraZeneca embraces diversity and equality of opportunity. We are committed to building an inclusive and diverse team representing all backgrounds, with as wide a range of perspectives as possible, and harnessing industry-leading skills. We believe that the more inclusive we are, the better our work will be. We welcome and consider applications to join our team from all qualified candidates, regardless of their characteristics. We comply with all applicable laws and regulations on non-discrimination in employment (and recruitment), as well as work authorisation and employment eligibility verification requirements.