Bernd Schmidl - IT Business Applications & Partnerships Lead

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Groß-Gerau, Germany

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Experience

Jan 2023 - Present

3 years 8 months

Darmstadt, Germany

Head of IT Business Applications & Partnerships

Software AG

Strategic overall management of the global IT application landscape and further development of the roadmap for core applications (Salesforce, SAP, Workday, OpenAir, Jira)
Realignment of the IT architecture towards cloud-native (IaaS/SaaS) and establishment of an agile DevOps culture and process automation
Leading the IT application workstream for the successful separation of four business units (carve-outs)
Acting as a strategic business partner for C-level functions (COO, CRO, CHRO) to ensure IT-business alignment
Representing IT interests to employee representative bodies and ensuring compliance
Reduced maintenance effort by 66% by designing and rolling out a new customer portal
Implemented a fully automated CPQ self-service to accelerate sales processes
Successfully went live with critical business platforms to support the target operating model (e.g., Dayforce for HR/payroll, Coupa for P2P, Zuora for billing)
Replaced legacy custom software with scalable SaaS standard solutions (legacy modernization)

Oct 2020 - Dec 2022

2 years 3 months

Darmstadt, Germany

Head of IT PMO

Software AG

Established and led a global PMO organization, including defining company-wide project management standards and governance processes
Program management of the group-wide IT security initiative "SecureBiz" (budget responsibility: €50 million)
Operational implementation of the IT strategy in close coordination with the IT leadership team and the executive board
Introduced a central portfolio management including KPI reporting for real-time monitoring of the project landscape
Significant and measurable hardening of the IT security architecture through the successful execution of the transformation program

Jun 2018 - Sep 2020

2 years 4 months

Darmstadt, Germany

Head of Digitalization

Software AG

Overall responsibility for the digital agenda in the sales area and management of the digitalization budget (€5 million)
Identified and implemented strategic digitization projects to increase process efficiency in sales
Achieved a 300% increase in pipeline opportunities by introducing a data-driven account planning solution
Optimized sales processes through strategic stakeholder management and tailored IT architecture measures

Oct 2014 - Jun 2018

3 years 9 months

Darmstadt, Germany

Senior Manager Corporate Projects & Digitalization

Software AG

Cross-departmental leadership of global strategic major projects for corporate development
Leading project management for setting up a joint venture, including intensive C-level stakeholder management to ensure strategic objectives
Successfully implemented and certified integrated management systems according to ISO 9001 (quality), ISO 22301 (business continuity), and ISO 27001 (information security), significantly improving process quality and resilience

Apr 2010 - Sep 2014

4 years 6 months

Darmstadt, Germany

Senior Consultant Business Process Excellence

Software AG

Served as lead solution architect and development lead in complex client projects
Analyzed and redesigned critical business processes to improve operational excellence
Designed and implemented integration solutions (EAI/BPM) as part of active software development
Provided technical sales support by creating proofs of concept (POCs) and delivering expert training sessions for the webMethods Suite
Achieved major efficiency gains for large clients by designing and implementing customized, high-performance integration architectures

May 2003 - Mar 2010

6 years 11 months

Various working student roles and international internships

Industry Experience

See where this freelancer has spent most of their professional time.

Experienced in Information Technology and Professional Services.

Information Technology

Professional Services

Business Area Experience

See which departments and functions this freelancer has contributed to most.

Experienced in Information Technology, Sales, Project Management, Operations, Strategy, and Quality Assurance.

Information Technology

Sales

Project Management

Operations

Strategy

Quality Assurance

Summary

Senior IT Executive & Strategist

Track Record: Over 15 years of experience in IT strategy, operations, and digital transformation within global corporate structures (€1 billion revenue).
Leadership: Experienced in leading globally distributed teams (up to 25 FTE) and managing complex budgets (Capex/Opex up to €50 million).
Business Value: Established "Trusted Advisor" for C-level (COO, CRO, CHRO) focusing on business enablement through cloud-first approaches (SaaS/IaaS) and process automation.
Focus Areas: Application management (Salesforce, SAP, Workday), IT transformation, post-merger integration & carve-outs.

Languages

German

Native

English

Advanced

Education

Oct 2003 - Mar 2010

TU Darmstadt

Diploma in Business Informatics · Business Informatics · Darmstadt, Germany

Gymnasium Gernsheim

General university entrance qualification (Abitur) · Gernsheim, Germany

Certifications & licenses

PMI

Software AG Certified Architect

Software AG

webMethods Certified Developer

Software AG

Statistics

Experience

Total positions 6

Experience in Information Technology 16.5 y

Avg length 3 y 10 m

Longest experience 6 y 10 m

Global Experience

Countries worked in 1 (Germany)

Primary country Germany

Expertise

Recent roles Head of IT Business Applications & Partnerships, Head of IT PMO, Head of Digitalization

Main industries Information Technology, Professional Services

Main business areas Information Technology, Sales, Project Management

Qualifications

Certifications earned 5

Profile

Created

January 2026

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Frequently asked questions

Have questions? Find more information here.

Bernd is based in Groß-Gerau, Germany.

Bernd speaks the following languages: German (Native), English (Advanced).

Bernd has at least 23 years of experience. During this time, Bernd has worked in at least 6 different roles and for 1 company. The average length of individual experience is 4 years and 11 months. Note that Bernd may not have shared all experience and actually has more experience.

Based on recent experience, Bernd would be well-suited for roles such as: Head of IT Business Applications & Partnerships, Head of IT PMO, Head of Digitalization.

Bernd's most recent position is Head of IT Business Applications & Partnerships at Software AG.

In recent years, Bernd has worked for Software AG.

Bernd is most experienced in industries like Information Technology and Professional Services.

Bernd is most experienced in business areas like Information Technology, Sales, and Project Management. Bernd also has some experience in Operations, Quality Assurance, and Strategy.

Bernd has recently worked in industries like Information Technology.

Bernd has recently worked in business areas like Information Technology, Strategy, and Project Management.

Bernd attended TU Darmstadt for Business Informatics.

Bernd has 5 certificates. Among them, these include: IT Information Library (ITIL) Foundation, Project Management Professional (PMP), and Six Sigma Green Belt.

Bernd is immediately available full-time for suitable projects.

Daily Rate Distribution

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Actual rates may vary depending on seniority level, experience, skill specialization, project complexity, and engagement length.

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Daily rate avg. 909 €

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Median rate 900 €

The median daily rate is the middle value of all daily rates — half of comparable freelancers charge less, half charge more. Unlike the average, it is barely affected by outliers.

Actual rates may vary depending on seniority level, experience, skill specialization, project complexity, and engagement length.