Shalabh K.-SAP Programme Director · 20 Years · Global Implementations · Rollouts · AMS · CIO Advisory · ASTRA Methodology
Check rate
Experience
Founder & Principal
SK SAP Advisory
Following the Vaillant engagement, established independent practice focused on senior SAP advisory and building ASTRA — a methodology, not a tool. ASTRA is independent and unbiased: the same four pillars serve CIO / Business Leadership, SI / SAP Practice, and Programme Director / Principal with equal weight. No audience is primary.
ASTRA serves three audiences with equal weight — CIO / Business Leadership · SI / SAP Practice · Programme Director / Principal. ASTRA is independent and unbiased — it does not sit inside any SI practice and does not serve any single audience as primary customer. Each audience receives a role-calibrated output from the same analysis.
One methodology, two outcomes:
OUTCOME 1 — SAP TRANSFORMATION GOVERNANCE:
Any active SAP programme: ECC→S/4HANA Greenfield, Brownfield, Global Rollout, AMS. The four pillars answer the four questions that determine whether a transformation succeeds — for any of the three audiences.
- Are business requirements clean — or is the SI building what SAP standard already covers? (Functional Auditor → all three audiences)
- Is the custom object inventory healthy — or accumulating debt that blocks upgrades? (RICEFW Auditor → Director and CIO)
- Is the SteerCo reporting accurate — or is leadership seeing a Watermelon? (Truth Engine → CIO and Director)
- Are people ready for the system they are receiving? (Human Signal → CIO and Director)
OUTCOME 2 — AUTONOMOUS ENTERPRISE READINESS:
Any programme deploying Joule, pursuing RISE, or planning an AE migration. The same four pillars answer the questions SAP does not — again, calibrated per audience.
- Which custom objects block the 224 Joule AI agents? (RICEFW Auditor → SI gets remediation paths, Director gets verdicts, CIO gets financial impact)
- Is the Fiori deployment complete enough to activate Joule? (Truth Engine → all three audiences)
- Is the workforce trained for AI-native working? (Human Signal → CIO and Director)
Four pillars (each serves all three audiences):
- Functional Auditor: Clean Core Score 0–100. Section A (CIO): KG fidelity risk in €. Section B (Director): SI challenge questions, man-day saving. Section C (SI): Language Translation Ledger, SAP alternatives.
- RICEFW Auditor: Joule API Pathway Audit, Clean Core Level A–D, Technical Debt Index 1–10. Section A: financial impact of blocked AI agents. Section B: RETIRE/MIGRATE/REDESIGN/KEEP verdicts. Section C: BTP remediation paths.
- Truth Engine: Watermelon Detection, Fiori Deployment check, Programme Truth Score 0–100. Section A: 3 SteerCo questions. Section B: 48-hour action list. Section C: vendor friction map.
- Human Signal: three-stage Fiori adoption model, HITL Policy readiness, Human Signal Score 0–100. Section A: GUI training weight, AE adoption financial risk. Section B: go-live recommendation, stakeholder resistance map.
On-Demand SAP Advisory:
- SAP Programme Management — end-to-end governance, factory management, multi-stream delivery, vendor oversight, SteerCo reporting for Greenfield, Brownfield, Rollout and AMS programmes.
- Delivery Management — RICEFW oversight, Data Migration governance, Release & Cutover management, Hypercare, SLA/KPI management.
- Due Diligence & Landscape Assessment — SAP landscape review, AS-IS/TO-BE roadmap, RFP structuring, SI selection advisory.
- IT Strategy & CIO Advisory — transformation roadmap, Clean Core strategy, Autonomous Enterprise readiness planning.
- Programme Recovery — distressed programme assessment, rapid governance setup, escalation resolution.
Operating through senior professional networks across EMEA.
Central Factory Lead IT
Vaillant Group
Digital Process World — full S/4HANA Greenfield implementation and EU rollout. Sole integration point between six technical stream leads and business/CIO level.
- Six streams: RICEFW · Data Migration · Basis & Infrastructure · UX/Fiori · SolMan/CHARM · Authorisations & QA. Eight vendor partners: TCS · NTT Data · CBS · AP-Solut · DXC · RED Global · InPeek · Feisio.
- Budget and resource planning, external audit compliance, technical sign-off across all streams. Primary escalation authority for all cross-stream issues.
- Cutover planning and regression test governance for EU country rollouts — single sign-off authority before each go-live.
Key outcome:
- S/4HANA go-live delivered across multiple EU countries on schedule. Unbroken CIO confidence throughout.
Senior IT advisor and Key Account Manager
VW Group subsidiaries
Senior IT advisor and Key Account Manager for VW Group subsidiaries across 15+ markets. IT landscape analysis aligned to VW Group Strategy 2025.
Central IT Project Lead — Rollouts | IT Strategy & Key Account Manager
Volkswagen AG
CRM@VWG (2013–2016): Central IT Project Lead for all country Rollouts · Data Migration Product Owner · Central QA Lead · Central Release Manager. SAP CRM live across VW, Audi, Skoda, Seat in EU, Asia, Americas. BARC Benchmark: 'state-of-the-art, ready for roll-out'.
IT Strategy & KAM (2016–2018): Senior IT advisor and Key Account Manager for VW Group subsidiaries across 15+ markets. IT landscape analysis aligned to VW Group Strategy 2025.
SAP Cluster Lead / Onsite Delivery Manager
Daimler AG
- designed and established Daimler's first offshore SAP delivery model.
- 15 SAP applications, 60+ member team.
- Single point of escalation for all SAP P1/P2 incidents (24/7).
Team Manager / Technical Lead
British American Tobacco
- 35-person ALM team across Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, UK, Poland, Switzerland.
SAP ABAP Developer
Samsung India Electronics / IBM Global Services
(India HQ) Credit Limit Automation System.
- Designed Credit Limit Automation System at Samsung — 1st place Samsung e-Oscars Best Practice in System Development.
- SAP career foundation
IT Due Diligence
Infineon AG
- onsite SAP landscape assessment, transformation scoping and RFP development.
IT Due Diligence
LEGO Group
- onsite SAP landscape assessment, transformation scoping and RFP development.
Industry experience
See where this freelancer has spent most of their professional time.
Experienced in Automotive, Information Technology, Professional Services, and Manufacturing.
Business area experience
See which departments and functions this freelancer has contributed to most.
Experienced in Information Technology, Project Management, Sales, Quality Assurance, Audit, and Strategy.
Summary
Senior SAP transformation leader with 20 years of end-to-end programme delivery across EMEA. Most recently Central Factory Lead IT at Vaillant Group — managing a 60–100 person team, six parallel workstreams, eight implementation partners, and a programme running account of €500,000+ per month, reporting directly to the CIO and steering committee. Experienced across S/4HANA greenfield and brownfield transformations, Selective Data Transition and Bluefield approaches, big-bang go-lives, multi-vendor governance, and business case development with executive stakeholders. All career engagements anchored at client HQ level.
Most SAP transformations encounter predictable governance risks at predictable points in the programme lifecycle. The difference between programmes that absorb those risks and those that don't is rarely technical — it is structural: whether governance is empowered proactively, with the right checkpoints, business case anchoring, and independent oversight in place from the start, or activated only when the cost of correction has already compounded.
Over twenty years across automotive, manufacturing, consumer and energy industries, I have observed that transformation risk operates in two distinct phases. The first is pre-programme: whether the strategy is sound, the deployment model is right, the SI selection was rigorous, and the investment envelope reflects reality — most organisations delegate this to the very parties they will later struggle to hold accountable. The second is in-programme: whether governance tracks, challenges, and escalates from the first checkpoint to the last, not activated only when the cost of correction has compounded.
People are at the centre of both. Business users who feel unheard become the programme's greatest risk. Consultants under commercial pressure make decisions that serve the engagement, not the client. Local market teams protecting their ways of working carry institutional knowledge the programme needs. Governance that cannot read these signals fails before the technology does.
Since 2023, I have structured this thinking into a rigorous checkpoint framework — seven stages from pre-programme strategy through post go-live value realisation, each with defined deliverables, independent scoring, and cross-checks against a locked baseline. Organisations preparing for Autonomous Enterprise — AI-driven process execution, intelligent automation — need governance foundations built in from the start, not retrofitted after go-live. This is not a methodology I impose. It is the lens through which I lead every engagement — as a Director, a Programme Manager, or an independent advisor.
Since November 2023, I have operated as Founder & Principal of SK SAP Advisory, building ASTRA — an independent SAP governance methodology serving CIO / Business Leadership, SI / SAP Practice, and Programme Director / Principal with equal weight. My career spans the full SAP arc from ABAP Developer and Team Lead through Project Manager and SAP Cluster Lead to Central Factory Lead / Programme Director, across automotive, manufacturing, energy, consumer, semiconductor and FMCG industries. Awards include Trendmacher Employee of the Quarter, Best Project Team, and 1st place Samsung e-Oscars Best Practice in System Development.
Skills
- Programme Governance And Delivery Ownership At Cio And Steerco Level
- Building And Leading Large International Sap Programme Teams (60–100 People, 6 Streams)
- Multi-Vendor Governance: Cbs, Tcs, Ntt Data, Ibm, Mhp, Sap And Others
- Business Case Development And Validation With Country Cios And Business Heads
- Programme Setup And De-Risking: Proactive Governance Before Issues Surface
- S/4hana Transformation Strategy, Selective Data Transition And Bluefield Approaches
- Steerco Reporting, Budget Accountability And Cross-Functional Alignment
- Hq-Level Stakeholder Management Across Business, It And Executive Leadership
- Transformation Strategy Definition Before Programme Initiation — Deployment Model, Si Selection, Investment Envelope Validation
- Deployable Immediately Into Active Or New S/4hana Programmes
- Programme Setup, De-Risking And Governance Framework Establishment From Day One
- Business Case Health Check And Financial Impact Assessment At Any Programme Phase
- Independent Oversight Of Implementation Partners And Workstreams
- Brownfield, Greenfield, Selective Data Transition And Bluefield Experience
- Big-Bang Go-Live, Cutover And Hypercare Management
- Data Migration Leadership — Selective Data/Transition Governance
- Programme Health Assessment: Setup, Mid-Programme Or Pre-Go-Live
- Pre-Programme Transformation Readiness Assessment — Independent Of Si, Applicable At Any Erp Landscape
- Stakeholder Dynamics Assessment — Identifying Where Silence And Misalignment Create Programme Risk
- Sap S/4hana Greenfield, Brownfield & Rollouts
- C-Level / Cio Stakeholder Management
- Programme & Delivery Governance
- Multi-Vendor & Multi-Stream Factory Management
- Data Migration Strategy & Execution
- Release, Cutover & Hypercare Management
- Ricefw & Clean Core Governance
- Astra Methodology (Ai-Augmented Governance)
- Btp & Autonomous Enterprise Architecture
- Sap Activate · Prince2 · Agile · Kanban
- Budget, Resource & Steerco Reporting
- Offshore-Onsite Delivery Model Design
Languages
Education
Visva-Bharati University
Master of Computer Applications (MCA) · Computer Applications · India
MDS University
Bachelor of Science (BSc) · Science · Ajmer, India
Statistics
Experience
Global experience
Expertise
Qualifications
Profile
Frequently asked questions
Have questions? Find more information here.
Shalabh is based in Berlin, Germany and can operate in on-site, hybrid, and remote work models.
Shalabh speaks the following languages: Hindi (Native), English (Advanced), German (Intermediate).
Shalabh has at least 17 years of experience. During this time, Shalabh has worked in at least 7 different roles and for 7 different companies. The average length of individual experience is 3 years and 6 months. Note that Shalabh may not have shared all experience and actually has more experience.
Based on recent experience, Shalabh would be well-suited for roles such as: Founder & Principal, Central Factory Lead IT, Senior IT advisor and Key Account Manager.
Shalabh's most recent position is Founder & Principal at SK SAP Advisory.
In recent years, Shalabh has worked for SK SAP Advisory and Vaillant Group.
Shalabh is most experienced in industries like Automotive, Information Technology, and Professional Services. Shalabh also has some experience in Manufacturing.
Shalabh is most experienced in business areas like Information Technology, Project Management, and Sales. Shalabh also has some experience in Quality Assurance, Audit, and Strategy.
Shalabh has recently worked in industries like Information Technology, Professional Services, and Manufacturing.
Shalabh has recently worked in business areas like Information Technology, Project Management, and Audit.
Shalabh holds a Master in Computer Applications from Visva-Bharati University and a Bachelor in Science from MDS University.
Shalabh is immediately available full-time for suitable projects.
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