Job Description
Role: Senior Release Manager Location: New Haven, CT - Onsite 2-3 days per week (non-negotiable) Duration: Long-term engagement (minimum 2-3 years) Rate: Open Overview: We are seeking an experienced Release Manager to lead a global SAP S/4HANA transformation initiative. This role is responsible for managing the end-to-end release lifecycle across functional, technical, and integration streams, ensuring high-quality delivery and alignment with program objectives. The ideal candidate brings deep experience in large-scale ERP environments, excellent communication and stakeholder management skills, and a strong command of release governance in complex, multinational settings.
Responsibilities: - Develop, maintain, and execute the enterprise-wide release plan for all S/4HANA waves, sprints, and deployments.
- Coordinate release activities across global workstreams, including functional, technical, data, testing, and change management.
- Ensure cross-team alignment on release scope, timelines, dependencies, and milestone.
- Establish and enforce release governance processes, quality gates, and documentation standards.
- Facilitate release readiness assessments and go/no-go reviews.
- Ensure adherence to change control, including defect triage, deployment checklists, and risk assessments.
- Lead execution of deployment activities (cutover, transport management, hypercare stabilization).
- Work closely with Basis, Infrastructure, and project teams to ensure successful transport movement, environment management, and system availability.
- Track and resolve release-related issues, escalating as needed.
- Serve as the central point of contact for release management across business and technical teams.
- Communicate release schedules, status updates, risks, and impacts to a global audience including senior leadership.
- Translate complex technical details into clear, concise messages for non-technical stakeholders.
- Evaluate release management processes and identify opportunities to optimize cycle time, quality, and predictability.
- Champion best practices for SAP S/4HANA release management, agile methodologies, and project enablement.
Requirements: - 10+ years of experience in release management, program delivery, or IT project management.
- Proven experience delivering large-scale global SAP programs, preferably S/4HANA (Greenfield or Brownfield).
- Strong knowledge of SAP transports, development lifecycle, environments, and integration patterns.
- Demonstrated ability to manage multiple concurrent releases in complex, multi-vendor environments.
- Exceptional written and verbal communication skills with the ability to drive alignment at all organizational levels.
- Experience working across diverse global teams and time zones.
- Strong analytical, problem solving, and organizational skills.
- Proficiency with tools such as SolMan/ChaRM, Jira, Azure DevOps, or similar.
Nice-to-Have: - Familiarity with SAP Activate.
- Background working in regulated industries or environments with strong compliance requirements.
- PMP, SAFe, ITIL, or similar certifications.
Job Tags
2 days per week, 3 days per week