Company Name
Ernst & Young
Search Job Title
ERP Global Delivery Manager
Client Profile
Ernst & Young (EY) is a global professional services organization operating at enterprise scale, with complex internal stakeholders spanning regions, functions, and delivery teams. The organization was in the midst of a large-scale, multi-year SAP implementation program that touched nearly every part of its global operations. Given the scope of the rollout, consistency, governance, and execution discipline across regions were critical to long-term success.
Role Objectives & Challenges
This role was created to ensure that SAP rollouts across the global organization were progressing smoothly and meeting the technical, functional, and delivery standards expected by senior leadership and internal stakeholders. The ERP Global Delivery Manager needed to act as a central point of accountability across a broad, distributed delivery organization.
One of the primary challenges in filling the role was finding a candidate with deep SAP expertise early in their career who had successfully evolved into a true delivery and people leader. The ideal profile required hands-on experience across multiple SAP modules—particularly SAP FICO, SAP Basis, and SAP project management—combined with the ability to credibly engage senior technical experts while leading large, cross-functional teams.
The role also demanded proven experience managing global delivery teams numbering in the hundreds, along with strong emotional intelligence and cross-cultural competence. Beyond technical and managerial qualifications, the selected leader needed to navigate a highly complex internal decision-making environment, as multiple senior stakeholders across the organization had a vested interest in vetting and approving the final hire.
While candidate volume was not an issue, identifying the right blend of technical depth, functional understanding, and genuine leadership capability proved difficult. Many applicants demonstrated exceptional technical expertise in one or more SAP modules but had limited experience leading large, global teams. In several cases, resumes overstated leadership responsibilities, requiring careful vetting to distinguish between technical specialists with informal mentorship experience and candidates prepared for enterprise-level delivery leadership.
Our Approach to Solve the Search
The search process focused on deep qualification and validation rather than surface-level resume screening. Each candidate was evaluated not only on SAP module expertise but also on their progression from individual contributor to team leader and delivery manager.
Extensive technical and behavioral interviews were used to assess whether candidates could effectively manage global delivery operations, influence senior stakeholders, and earn the trust of highly specialized SAP experts. Particular attention was paid to separating candidates who had led complex delivery efforts from those whose leadership exposure was limited to small teams or informal guidance roles.
Given the number of internal stakeholders involved, the process required careful coordination across multiple interview formats, including phone, video, and in-person sessions. Local market knowledge was also leveraged, as in-office presence and the ability to engage directly with internal teams and clients were considered meaningful differentiators for long-term success in the role.
The Hire & Results
The selected candidate successfully navigated a multi-round, highly rigorous interview process involving technical leaders, delivery stakeholders, and senior decision-makers. They brought a rare combination of early-career SAP technical expertise and proven experience leading large, global delivery teams.
An additional factor contributing to the success of the hire was the candidate’s proximity to the North Jersey area, enabling consistent in-person collaboration with internal teams and stakeholders. Following onboarding, the new ERP Global Delivery Manager was positioned to provide strong delivery oversight, improve cross-team alignment, and support the organization’s broader SAP implementation objectives at a global scale.
