SAP Technical / Basis Lead

About the role

At IBM, work is more than a job—it's a calling: to build, design, code, consult, think alongside clients, make markets, invent, and collaborate. This role is for an experienced SAP Technical / Basis Lead to oversee SAP system administration, architecture, and technical operations, driving system performance, ensuring stability, and leading infrastructure initiatives including cloud migrations, upgrades, and security compliance.

Responsibilities

• SAP Basis & System Administration
  • Lead the installation, configuration, and maintenance of SAP systems (S/4HANA, ECC, BW, etc.)
  • Manage SAP landscapes including DEV, QA, and PROD environments
  • Perform client copies, kernel upgrades, and system refreshes
  • Monitor system performance and proactively resolve issues
• Technical Leadership
  • Act as the primary technical lead for SAP Basis and infrastructure initiatives
  • Provide guidance to Basis administrators and cross-functional teams
  • Collaborate with SAP functional and development teams for system changes and transports
• Architecture & Upgrades
  • Lead SAP upgrades, patches, migrations, and HANA conversions
  • Design scalable SAP architectures (on-premise, hybrid, and cloud environments such as AWS/Azure/GCP)
  • Support SAP S/4HANA implementations and roadmap planning
• Performance & Optimization
  • Monitor and tune SAP system performance using tools like ST02, ST03, DBACOCKPIT
  • Analyze workload trends and proactively improve system efficiency
  • Manage database administration (HANA, Oracle, SQL Server, etc.)
• Security & Compliance
  • Implement SAP security best practices (user administration, roles, authorizations)
  • Ensure compliance with audit and regulatory requirements
  • Address vulnerabilities and apply SAP Notes and patches
• Disaster Recovery & High Availability
  • Design and maintain backup, restore, and disaster recovery plans
  • Manage system replication and high-availability setups (e.g., HANA replication)
• Cloud & Infrastructure Support
  • Support SAP deployments on cloud platforms (Azure/AWS/GCP)
  • Work with infrastructure teams on networking, storage, and compute optimization
  • Automate system monitoring and administration tasks where possible

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, IT, or related field
• 8+ years of experience in SAP Basis administration
• Strong experience with SAP S/4HANA and HANA database
• Experience leading SAP technical teams or projects
• Hands-on experience with system installations, upgrades, and migrations
• Knowledge of OS (Linux/Unix/Windows) and database management

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with cloud-based SAP environments (Azure preferred)
• SAP certifications (e.g., SAP Certified Technology Associate/System Administration)
• Familiarity with automation tools/scripts (PowerShell, Python, Ansible)
• Experience with SAP Solution Manager or Focused Run
• Exposure to DevOps practices and CI/CD pipelines

Skills

• SAP Basis Administration
• SAP S/4HANA & HANA DB
• SAP System Monitoring & Performance Tuning
• Cloud Architecture (Azure/AWS/GCP)
• Technical Leadership & Team Management
• SAP Security & Compliance
• Disaster Recovery & High Availability
• Strong leadership and mentoring abilities
• Excellent problem-solving and analytical skills
• Effective communication with technical and business stakeholders
• Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment