SAP S/4HANA FI/CO Functional Application Support Consultant (1 year fixed term contract)

Company Description

At Coface, we make trade happen everyday.

Our 5,200 experts representing 80+ nationalities in 58 countries are united by a shared purpose: helping companies navigate through uncertainty by empowering them to make the right decisions and trade smarter in a complex world.

With nearly 80 years of global experience, we offer companies a full range of solutions: Trade Credit Insurance, Business Information, Debt Collection, Single Risk insurance, Surety Bonds, Factoring — all driven by a unique data patrimony, cutting-edge technology, innovation and a deep understanding of the global economy.

Joining Coface means being part of a close-knit international organization, where your ideas matter.  We foster a culture of learning, collaboration and inclusion where you are given responsibilities and can see the impact of your actions.

Shape the future of trade with us. 
Join our Happeners!

Job Description

Coface is looking for an experienced SAP FI/CO Functional Consultant to provide temporary support to the central team responsible for the maintenance of CARS, its accounting solution based on SAP S/4HANA.

Deployed across 9 countries and covering the FI/CO and MM modules, the solution is now in the application maintenance phase.

The consultant will join the team and contribute directly to functional application support and maintenance activities, working closely with Finance and IT teams as well as external partners. The consultant will report to the Head of the department.

The consultant will contribute to both corrective maintenance and continuous enhancements of the solution, with the following key responsibilities:

Functional Support and Corrective Maintenance

• Provide functional support to Finance users and contribute to the smooth operation of the solution.
• Analyse, qualify and manage functional incidents and issues.
• Identify root causes and coordinate issue resolution with internal IT teams and external partners.
• Test and validate fixes before deployment to production.
• Follow up on requests through to resolution and provide regular updates to the relevant users.

Enhancements and Continuous Improvement

• Gather and analyse business requirements raised by Finance teams.
• Challenge requirements against the CARS Core Model and SAP standards to ensure sustainable and harmonised solutions.
• Design and document functional solutions addressing the identified business requirements.
• Coordinate implementation with IT teams and external partners.
• Prepare and execute functional tests and support the deployment of enhancements into production.

Coordination with Business and IT Teams

• Work closely with Accounting and Finance teams at both Group and local entity level.
• Act as the interface between Finance users, IT teams and external partners, including Accenture.
• Participate in application maintenance follow-up meetings.
• Contribute to the prioritisation and monitoring of maintenance requests.

SAP Access Management

• Manage SAP access and authorisation requests through SAP GRC.
• Review requests against existing roles and Segregation of Duties (SoD) rules.
• Support users and relevant teams in resolving access-related issues.

Documentation and User Support

• Create, update and enhance functional documentation for the solution.
• Answer users' questions regarding the functional use of SAP.
• Contribute to the preparation and delivery of training sessions on specific SAP FI/CO topics.
• Contribute to the continuous improvement of support practices and documentation to increase user autonomy.

  Activities and Expected Deliverables:

  Activity 1 – Operational Contribution to Functional Application Maintenance

  Objective

  Independently manage functional maintenance tickets, particularly those related to Master Data, from initial business requirement analysis through to production deployment.

  Expected Activities

• Analyse and qualify business requests.
• Challenge local entity requirements against the CARS Core Model and existing standards.
• Identify and propose appropriate functional solutions.
• Document the required elements for implementation.
• Follow up on implementation with IT teams and/or Accenture.
• Keep tickets up to date and ensure appropriate communication with stakeholders.
• Prepare and perform functional testing and User Acceptance Testing.
• Validate the solution prior to production deployment.

• Deliverables

• Properly documented and regularly updated maintenance tickets.
• Functional analyses and proposed solutions.
• Test scenarios and test results.
• Functional validation prior to production deployment.
• Updates to CARS documentation or configuration, where required.

• Activity 2 – SAP Access Management

  Objective

  Manage SAP user access requests in compliance with internal control requirements.

  Expected Activities

• Process access and authorization requests through SAP GRC.
• Review requests against existing roles and Segregation of Duties rules.
• Identify potential conflicts or inconsistencies in access requests.
• Follow up on requests through to resolution.
• Answer users' questions regarding their SAP access.

• Deliverables

• Processed and documented access requests.
• Follow-up and monitoring of outstanding requests.
• Compliance with access management and Segregation of Duties requirements.

• Activity 3 – Entity Support and User Assistance

  Objective

  Support Finance teams in their use of CARS and help increase user autonomy.

  Expected Activities

• Answer users' functional questions.
• Analyse issues encountered by users and propose appropriate solutions.
• Complete and improve functional documentation.
• Produce user guides and operating procedures where required.
• Contribute to the preparation and delivery of SAP training sessions on specific topics.

• Deliverables

• Functional support and solutions provided to users.
• Up-to-date functional documentation.
• User guides and training materials.
• Contribution to user training sessions.

• Activity 4 – Functional Maintenance Monitoring and Reporting

  Objective

  Provide regular visibility over functional maintenance activities and facilitate effective management of the ticket portfolio.

  Expected Activities

• Monitor tickets assigned to the functional support team.
• Identify tickets requiring action, follow-up or escalation.
• Monitor the progress of requests and identify key blocking points.
• Prepare periodic reporting on functional maintenance activities.

• Deliverables

• Functional maintenance ticket reporting.
• Monitoring of open, ongoing and closed tickets.
• Identification of blocking points and required follow-up actions.
• Management-level summaries supporting the monitoring and steering of maintenance activities.

Qualifications

• Strong expertise in SAP S/4HANA Finance, particularly the FI/CO modules.
• Solid knowledge of key accounting and financial processes, including General Ledger, Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, Asset Accounting, financial closing and Controlling.
• Significant experience in SAP FI/CO application support and maintenance, ideally within an international organisation.
• Ability to analyse business requirements and translate them into SAP functional solutions.
• Ability to analyse incidents, identify their root causes and coordinate their resolution with technical teams.
• Experience in functional testing and User Acceptance Testing (UAT).
• Knowledge of SAP GRC, access management and Segregation of Duties (SoD) principles would be appreciated.
• Previous experience in the insurance or financial services industry would be an advantage.
• Fluency in both French and English is essential for working effectively with international teams.

Education and Experience

• Higher education degree in Finance, Accounting, Information Systems or a related field.
• Minimum 8 years of experience as an SAP FI/CO Functional Consultant and/or in SAP application support and maintenance activities.
• Experience working in an international and multicultural environment is preferred.

Personal Skills

• Autonomy and the ability to take ownership of topics from end to end.
• Strong organisational skills, attention to detail and the ability to manage multiple requests simultaneously.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Strong service orientation and user focus.
• Ability to constructively challenge business requirements.
• Team spirit and ability to work effectively with a wide range of stakeholders, including Finance, IT and external partners.
• Ability to operate effectively in an international environment.

Additional Information

What’s in it for you:

• The company will provide continuous support and guidance throughout your work;
• Hybrid work model;