SAP Functional Operations Team Lead

Join Liebherr, a global leader in engineering and manufacturing, as we advance our digital transformation journey. We are looking for a motivated Team Lead - SAP Functional Operations (m/f/d) to play a key role in our newly established IT Shared Service Center in Madrid.

In this role, you will establish and lead Liebherr’s Global SAP Application Management Services (AMS) organization, ensuring the successful transition from global implementation to sustainable business operations following our SAP S/4HANA greenfield transformation.

You will be responsible for building and leading the global functional application support organization, governing Level 2 and Level 3 support services, and establishing the operational processes, governance, and service management practices that ensure stable and efficient business operations across our international Sales and Service Companies. As part of this journey, you will also help define the future Application Management Services (AMS) delivery model, including the evaluation, onboarding, and management of external service providers where appropriate.

Working closely with Program Management, Hypercare teams, implementation partners, and business stakeholders, you will drive the transition from project delivery into long-term operations while fostering continuous service improvement and operational excellence. You will be part of an international, cross-functional team that values innovation, methodology, and long-term thinking.

The working location for this position will be in Madrid city, where we operate a hybrid model, requiring at least 40% of the working time on-site.

Please note that response times to your application may be longer than usual from 30 July to 14 August, as many of our employees will be out of the office during this period., * Define and implement the Global SAP Application Management Services (AMS) operating model, including governance, support processes, service levels, knowledge management, and operational procedures.

• Lead the transition from implementation and Hypercare into stable business operations, ensuring structured knowledge transfer, operational readiness, and successful handover from project teams to operations.
• Manage global functional application support activities, ensuring timely resolution of incidents, service requests, problems, and business-critical issues while meeting agreed service levels.
• Establish operational governance, service performance KPIs, reporting, and continuous improvement initiatives to enhance application stability, service quality, and business satisfaction.
• Evaluate, onboard, and manage external Application Management Services (AMS) providers, where applicable, ensuring high-quality service delivery, effective governance, contractual performance, and seamless integration with Liebherr’s internal support organization.
• Build and develop a high-performing international support team, fostering collaboration, coaching, knowledge sharing, and continuous professional development.
• Drive continuous optimization of support processes, documentation, automation, and operational best practices leveraging tools such as ServiceNow.

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Information Technology, Business Administration, Engineering, or a related field. Certifications such as ITIL, PMP, or Agile are considered a strong advantage.
• 10+ years of professional experience in SAP Application Management, SAP Operations, ERP Support, or SAP transformation programs, including leadership responsibilities.
• Proven experience establishing or leading SAP Level 2 and Level 3 support organizations within international SAP implementation or Application Management Services (AMS) environments.
• Strong understanding of SAP application lifecycle management, Hypercare, transition to operations, service management, and continuous improvement practices.
• Experience defining support operating models and managing international support organizations, external service providers, or Application Management Services (AMS) partners.
• Good understanding of SAP functional business processes across Finance, Supply Chain, Sales, Service, Manufacturing, or related business domains.
• Experience working with IT Service Management frameworks (e.g., ITIL), application lifecycle management tools such as SAP Cloud ALM and ticketing management systems such as ServiceNow.
• Strong leadership, communication, and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to build collaborative relationships across business, IT, and external partners.
• Excellent analytical, organizational, and problem-solving skills, with a structured, customer-oriented, and results-driven approach to work.
• Fluent in English (written and spoken); additional languages (e.g., German or Spanish) are an advantage.
• Willingness to travel (up to 20%) to Liebherr sites worldwide to support Hypercare transitions, and operational readiness.

At Liebherr, we believe people are at the heart of our success. As part of our international team, you’ll enjoy a secure role in a family-owned company that values innovation, collaboration, and long-term career growth:

• Competitive compensation and benefits package that recognizes your expertise
• Flexible and hybrid working model
• Creative freedom and responsibility to shape processes and solutions in our global transformation
• Continuous learning and development with tailored training and certification opportunities
• Meal vouchers
• Life and accident insurance
• Option to include a premium private health insurance package as part of the flexible remuneration
• A safe, stable and international workplace within a trusted family business that invests in people

Liebherr is a family-run technology company that is not only one of the largest construction machinery manufacturers in the world, but also offers high-quality, user-oriented products and services in many other areas. The Group employs nearly 50,000 people in more than 140 companies on all continents.