Sr Dir DT Financial Business Systems - 90409369 - Washington

The Sr. Director, IT - SAP Finance is accountable for the ongoing leadership, stability, and evolution of SAP Finance systems that support core financial operations and reporting across the enterprise. This role serves as the primary technology partner to Finance leadership, including the Controller, Accounting, Treasury, and FP&A, ensuring SAP Finance capabilities are reliable, compliant, and aligned to business priorities.

This position owns the continuous improvement of SAP Finance platforms and related financial planning, reporting, and asset accounting systems. The role focuses on operational excellence, governance, vendor management, and incremental enhancement of Finance capabilities.

Scope & Decision Authority

• Accountable for SAP Finance systems and supporting finance applications, ensuring operational reliability, regulatory compliance, and data integrity.
• Owns Finance technology roadmaps focused on system stability, functional enhancements, cost optimization, and evolving business needs.
• Provides governance over Finance system design, integrations, release management, and production support in collaboration with Architecture, Data, Cybersecurity, and Infrastructure teams.
• Serves as the primary escalation point for Finance system issues, risks, and prioritization decisions.
• Manages vendor and system integrator performance related to SAP Finance operations and enhancements.

Essential Functions

SAP Financial Portfolio Ownership

• Own and oversee end-to-end SAP Finance capabilities, including GL, AP, AR, Treasury and Cash Management, and FP&A enablement
• Own and support SAP Business Planning and Consolidation (BPC) and related planning tools
• Partner with FP&A to ensure planning, forecasting, consolidation, and reporting tools are stable, well-integrated, and fit for purpose.
• Coordinate enhancements to planning and consolidation capabilities based on evolving business and regulatory needs.
• Provide overall system ownership for PowerPlan, including system support, integrations, and data accuracy.
• Ensure PowerPlan is effectively integrated with SAP Finance to support asset accounting, revenue recognition, and regulatory reporting requirements.
• Partner with Accounting stakeholders to ensure PowerPlan meets controllership and compliance expectations.

Service Delivery

• Balance system stability with delivery of prioritized enhancements and automation opportunities.
• Ensure effective change management, testing discipline, and segregation of duties for all Finance system changes.
• Promote standardization, documentation, and knowledge retention across Finance support teams.

Lean-Agile Delivery & Value Stream Execution

• Execute Finance technology initiatives using Lean and Agile principles, emphasizing flow efficiency, predictability, and business outcomes over project throughput.

• Align SAP Finance delivery teams to end-to-end Finance value streams (e.g., Record-to-Report, Order-to-Cash), rather than purely functional or project-based structures.

• Establish and maintain predictable delivery cadences, release rhythms, and integrated planning across build and run activities.

• Apply pragmatic Agile practices (Scrum, Kanban, or hybrid) appropriate to regulated Finance environments, avoiding unnecessary ceremony while maintaining controls.

• Actively manage work-in-progress (WIP), dependencies, and capacity to reduce bottlenecks, improve cycle time, and increase delivery reliability.

Business Partnership & Stakeholder Engagement

• Act as the primary IT partner to Finance leadership, including the Controller, Accounting, Treasury, and FP&A leaders.

• Translate Finance business priorities into clear, achievable system initiatives and enhancement roadmaps.

• Provide transparent communication on system performance, risks, and improvement opportunities.

• Support Finance process owners in driving adoption and effective use of SAP Finance capabilities.

• Manage day-to-day vendor and system integrator relationships supporting SAP Finance and related applications.

• Oversee SLAs, service quality, and commercial performance.

• Coordinate with Procurement and Supplier Management as needed.

Governance, Risk & Compliance

• Ensure SAP Finance systems comply with internal controls, audit requirements, and regulatory obligations.
• Partner with Architecture, Data, and Cybersecurity teams to enforce standards for security, integrations, and data integrity.
• Support audits and control reviews related to Finance systems and processes

• Bachelor's Degree or equivalent combination of education, training and/or relevant experience.
• Plus 13 years of relevant work experience.
• Significant leadership experience owning SAP Finance systems in a production, business-as-usual environment.
• Deep functional knowledge of SAP Finance, including GL, AP, AR, Fixed Assets, Treasury, and management/accounting and reporting processes.
• Demonstrated experience applying Lean, Agile, or hybrid delivery models in large ERP or Finance transformations.
• Ability to operate effectively in product-oriented, value-stream aligned delivery environments.
• Hands-on experience supporting financial close, audit, and regulatory reporting processes.
• Experience owning or supporting SAP BPC and financial planning/consolidation solutions.
• Strong experience partnering with Controllers, Accounting leaders, and FP&A teams.
• Proven experience managing vendors, system integrators, and mixed onshore/offshore support models.
• Experience managing large hybrid teams (internal employees, contractors, and system integrators) across multiple vendors.
• Solid financial acumen, including budget ownership, investment prioritization, and measurable value realization.
• Demonstrated financial and budget management capability., * Bachelor's Degree or equivalent combination of education, training and/or relevant experience.
• Plus 15 years of relevant work experience.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Strong understanding of financial controls, audit requirements, and compliance within SAP Finance environments.
• Ability to lead stable, highly reliable Finance systems while driving incremental improvement.
• Practical understanding of SAP integrations and Finance data flows across enterprise systems.
• Strong communication skills with the ability to explain technology concepts to Finance leadership in business terms.
• Sound judgment in balancing risk, control, cost, and business needs.

Environmental Conditions/Physical Demands

The salary/hourly range is $206,200.00 - $267,192.00. Pay is based on several factors including but not limited to education, work experience, certifications, etc. Depending on an employee's assigned worksite or location, Amtrak may consider a geo-pay differential to be applied to the employee's base salary. Amtrak may offer additional incentive and pay programs to recognize and reward our employees, including a short-term incentive bonus based upon factors such as individual and company performance that is commensurate with the level of the position. Health and Wellbeing Financial and Retirement Work and Family Life Support Health, Dental, and Vision Insurance 401K with Employer Match Generous Paid Time Off Wellness Programs Railroad Retirement Benefits Paid Caregiving Days and Backup Care Health Savings Account Public Service Student Loan Forgiveness Fertility and Family Building Benefits No-cost Personal Health Advocate Student Loan Assistance Adoption and Surrogacy Assistance Medical Plan Opt-out Credit Tuition and Education Reimbursement Paid Family Leave Life Insurance Rail Pass Privileges Short- and Long-term Disability Insurance Employee Assistance Program No-cost Financial Advisor Sessions Commuter and Flexible Spending Accounts

Learn more about our benefits offerings here.

As we move America's workforce toward the future, Amtrak connects businesses and communities across the country. We employ more than 20,000 diverse, energetic professionals in a variety of career fields throughout the United States. The safety of our passengers, our employees, the public and our operating environment is our priority, and the success of our railroad is due to our employees. Are you ready to join our team? Our values of 'Do the Right Thing, Excel Together and Put Customers First' are at the heart of what matters most to us, and our Core Capabilities, 'Building Trust, Accountability, Effective Communication, Customer Focus, and Proactive Safety & Security' are what every employee needs to know and do to be most impactful at Amtrak. By living the Amtrak values, focusing on our capabilities, and actively embracing and fostering diverse ideas, backgrounds, and perspectives, together we will honor our past and make Amtrak a company of the future., We want your work at Amtrak to be more than a job. We want your career at Amtrak to be a fulfilling experience where you find challenging work, rewarding opportunities, respect among colleagues, and attractive compensation. Amtrak maintains a culture that values high performance and recognizes individual employee contributions. Amtrak is committed to a safe workplace free of drugs and alcohol. All Amtrak positions requires a pre-employment background check that includes prior employment verification, a criminal history check and a pre-employment drug screen. Candidates who test positive for marijuana will be disqualified, regardless of any state or local statute, ordinance, regulation, or other law that legalizes or decriminalizes the use or possession of marijuana, whether for medical, recreational, or other use. Amtrak's pre-employment drug testing program is administered in accordance with DOT regulations and applicable law. In accordance with DOT regulations (49 CFR § 40.25), Amtrak is required to obtain prior drug and alcohol testing records for applicants/employees intending to perform safety-sensitive duties for covered Department of Transportation positions. If an applicant/employee refuses to provide written consent for Amtrak to obtain these records, the individual will not be permitted to perform safety-sensitive functions. In accordance with federal law governing security checks of covered individuals for providers of public transportation (Title 6 U.S.C. §1143), Amtrak is required to screen applicants for any permanent or interim disqualifying criminal offenses. Note that any education requirement listed above may be deemed satisfied if you have an equivalent combination of education, training and experience. Amtrak is an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race/color, to include traits historically associated with race, including but not limited to, hair texture and hairstyles such as braids, locks and twists, religion, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth and related conditions, such as lactation), national origin/ethnicity, disability (intellectual, mental and physical), veteran status, marital status, ancestry, sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression, genetic information, citizenship or any other personal characteristics protected by law.