Job Description

The Product Lead is responsible for the strategic management and technical delivery of Ford’s Direct and Indirect Sourcing solutions. This role oversees a complex product portfolio featuring the SAP Ariba SaaS suite and home-grown applications integrated with the SAP S/4HANA Procurement module and legacy direct and indirect procurement systems. The Product Lead will drive the technical roadmap for direct and indirect procurement processes involving custom solutions hosted on GCP (Java, Spring Boot, Angular) and lead integration efforts with S/4HANA, IICS, and Java-based middleware. By bridging the gap between business capabilities and technical execution, this role ensures stable, scalable, and high-value sourcing processes for both direct and indirect business operations.

• Manage the end-to-end lifecycle of the Direct Material Sourcing SaaS product (SAP Ariba) and home-grown Java-based solutions, ensuring seamless integration with the S/4HANA-based Procurement module and the legacy systems.
• Lead high-level product discussions and technical strategy specifically related to the Direct Material Sourcing module within the Ariba suite and home-grown sourcing solutions to meet "Post PA" program requirements.
• Oversee the development and maintenance of home-grown applications hosted on GCP, ensuring best practices in modern software stacks including Java, Spring Boot, and Angular.
• Analyse and translate desired business capabilities into robust solution concepts and models; develop data-driven recommendations to deliver maximum business value and process efficiency.
• Establish and maintain a strong working relationship with the Product Owner, providing critical functional and technical guidance to support and prioritize new business requirements.
• Direct and mentor Ford and Agency personnel, providing clear technical oversight and career coaching to teams responsible for delivering IT solutions in close collaboration with business partners.
• Manage complex middleware solutions involving Java and IICS to ensure secure and efficient data flow between sourcing platforms, legacy systems, and the S/4HANA core.
• Ensure all development and delivery practices follow Agile methodologies in strict accordance with Ford’s Integrated ERP (iERP) practices and standards.
• Maintain responsibility for the stability, security, and performance of the sourcing portfolio, ensuring applications meet Ford’s global cybersecurity, data privacy, and audit compliance requirements.

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or equivalent experience.
• 10+ years of progressive responsibility in IT delivery management, specifically within large-scale enterprise environments.
• Proven experience in managing PDO teams to prioritize, plan, and deliver software that meets complex business requirements.
• Strong project management skills with a track record of managing complex dependencies across multiple teams, 3rd party service providers, and vendors.
• Technical familiarity with cloud-native applications (GCP preferred) and Java-based microservices.
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to bridge the gap between technical engineering teams and senior business leadership. Top of Form

Preferred Qualifications (Added Advantage)

• Direct experience managing SAP Ariba implementations or similar Sourcing/Procurement SaaS solutions.
• Deep understanding of integration technologies and patterns (e.g., SAP BTP, IICS, API gateways, message queues, EDI, and IDocs).