After more than 8 years running an SAP recruitment boutique, one thing has become impossible to ignore.
SAP programmes have moved on quickly, S/4HANA, cloud platforms, agile delivery models, faster release cycles. Hiring and onboarding, in many cases, are still operating the way they did years ago.
We speak to SAP contractors every day across FI/CO, EWM, MM, SD, PP, QM and other S/4HANA skill sets. The feedback is remarkably consistent.
Strong SAP consultants are identified and submitted, but CVs then move slowly through MSP and VMS layers. Feedback that should take days often takes weeks. Roles are described as “urgent”, yet nothing meaningful happens for long periods of time.
We also see roles that are over-engineered from the start. One consultant is expected to cover multiple specialist areas, not because that’s realistic, but because responsibilities and ownership aren’t clearly defined.
Another common scenario: weeks spent qualifying, interviewing, confirming availability and starting to onboard, only for the role to be paused or dropped entirely before day one.
Budget uncertainty plays a big part as well. Interviews continue even when budgets aren’t fully signed off. Later in the process, priorities shift, roles are put on hold, moved offshore, or quietly disappear.
From our perspective as a small specialist agency, the issue isn’t demand or access to strong SAP talent. The demand is there. The consultants are there. What’s become harder is closing roles in processes that feel disconnected from how SAP programmes are actually delivered.
When hiring stalls due to process layers, budget delays and unclear decision-making, the impact is real. Programme momentum slows. Consultants disengage. Confidence takes a hit on all sides.
SAP has evolved.
Hiring needs to catch up.
