Principal Specialist - IT SAP Controlling and Project Systems

Energy Transfer, recognized by Forbes as one of America's best large employers, is dedicated to responsibly and safely delivering America's energy. We are driven to inspire our employees to create superior value for our customers, our investors, a sustainable future and giving back to the community where we have long-standing commitments to causes including MD Anderson Children's Cancer Hospital, The Salvation Army, The American Red Cross, Ronald McDonald House and many more.

We value all of our employees who make our growth and success possible. We are proud to offer industry leading compensation, comprehensive benefits, 401(k) match with additional profit sharing, PTO and abundant career opportunities.

Come join our award winning 12000 strong organization as we fuel the world and each other!

Summary

The Principal Specialist - SAP FICO is responsible for supporting and enhancing SAP S/4HANA Finance solutions with a primary focus on SAP Controlling (CO) and Project Systems (PS). This role serves as a subject matter expert for financial and controlling processes, partnering with business and IT teams to design, implement, optimize, and support SAP solutions.

The ideal candidate will possess deep expertise in SAP Controlling, including Cost Center Accounting (CCA), Profit Center Accounting (PCA), Profitability Analysis (COPA), Product Costing, and Material Ledger, along with strong knowledge of Project Systems and cross-functional integration with SD, MM, PP, PM, and FI modules. This position also plays a key role in solution architecture, project delivery, business process improvement, user support, and SAP S/4HANA transformation initiatives.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

SAP Solution Design & Delivery

• Serve as a key member of the SAP configuration team responsible for the functional design, configuration, testing, validation, and deployment of SAP S/4HANA solutions.
• Lead configuration and support activities across:
  • Cost Center Accounting (CCA), Profit Center Accounting (PCA), Profitability Analysis (COPA), Product Costing, Material Ledger, Internal Orders, Project Systems (PS), Financial Closing Processes, Cross-Functional Integrations (FI, MM, SD, PP, PM, and PS)
• Analyze business requirements and design scalable SAP solutions that align with organizational objectives.
• Identify solution gaps and develop functional design recommendations to address business needs.
• Lead architecture and design discussions for new initiatives, business transformations, and mergers & acquisitions (M&A).

Business Process & Functional Leadership

• Collaborate with Finance, Operations, Supply Chain, and Project Management teams to improve business processes and system utilization.
• Support enterprise-wide SAP solutions while addressing legacy system integration and innovation challenges.
• Provide expertise in manufacturing cost accounting, standard costing, actual costing, universal allocations, settlements, and profitability reporting.
• Ensure seamless integration between SAP FICO, Project Systems, and other SAP modules including MM, SD, PP, PM, and FI.

Project Execution & Support

• Support month-end, quarter-end, and year-end closing activities by resolving system and process-related issues.
• Develop and maintain functional specifications, test scripts, user acceptance testing (UAT) documents, training materials, and support documentation.
• Collaborate with technical teams on custom developments, reports, interfaces, enhancements, and data conversion activities.
• Facilitate issue resolution processes and monitor progress through completion.
• Ensure project deliverables follow established governance standards, including scope, design documentation, testing plans, cutover activities, issue logs, and project plans.

• Provide knowledge transfer and mentoring to team members and business users.

Communication & Leadership

• Demonstrate strong leadership, communication, and stakeholder management skills.
• Effectively communicate technical and business concepts to diverse audiences.
• Work independently and collaboratively across multiple teams while managing competing priorities and deadlines.

Requirements:

Education and/or Experience, Knowledge, Skills & Abilities:

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential job duty satisfactorily. The requirements for this position are listed below:

• Bachelor's degree in information technology, Computer Science, Finance, Accounting, Business Administration, or related field.
• Equivalent combination of education and relevant work experience may be considered.
  
  
• 10+ years of SAP FICO implementation and support experience.
• Minimum 4 full lifecycle SAP S/4HANA implementation projects.
• Proven experience designing, implementing, and supporting SAP Controlling and Project Systems solutions within SAP S/4HANA environments.
• Experience working in complex enterprise environments with multiple integrations and business processes.

Technical Expertise

• Deep expertise in:
  • Cost Center Accounting (CCA), Profit Center Accounting (PCA), Internal Orders, Profitability Analysis (COPA), Product Costing, Material Ledger, Project Systems (PS), Financial Closing Processes, Cross-Functional Integrations (FI, MM, SD, PP, PM, and PS)
• Knowledge of:
  • SAP S/4HANA, SAP Fiori, SAP Joule, SAP SAC, SAP Embedded Analytics and Analytical Models
• Experience with:
  • Functional design and solution architecture
  • Testing and quality assurance
  • Data migration and conversion activities
  • Custom enhancements and interfaces

Professional Skills

• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and techno-functional capabilities.
• Experience defining system strategy, gathering requirements, designing solutions, prototyping, testing, deployment, and support.
• Solid project management and organizational skills.
• Familiarity with Agile, Waterfall, and hybrid SDLC methodologies.
• Strong coordination, planning, and stakeholder management abilities.
• Demonstrated ability to work under pressure while maintaining high-quality standards.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.

Required experience is commensurate with the selected job level:

• The Senior IT Specialist level requires a Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience and 5-8 years of relevant job related experience
• The Lead IT Specialist level requires a Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience and 8+ years of relevant job related experience
• The Principal IT Specialist level requires a Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience and 10+ years of relevant job related experience.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in the Midstream Oil & Gas industry.
• SAP S/4HANA Finance and/or Controlling Certification.
• Prior experience supporting large-scale SAP transformation programs.

Working Conditions

• Position is based in the Houston, Texas office.
• This is an onsite position; remote or hybrid work arrangements are not available.
• Normal office working environment.
• Must be able to remain seated or stand for extended periods of time.
• Occasional overnight travel may be required.