SAP S/4HANA MDM Consultant

Role Overview

We are seeking an experienced Product Data Taxonomy & Classification Consultant to lead the assessment, design, and standardization of enterprise product taxonomies for an automotive parts trading and distribution organization.

Key Responsibilities

• Taxonomy Assessment & Discovery
• Assess existing product classifications, hierarchies, attributes, and product master data.
• Conduct workshops with procurement, sales, supply chain, product management, and IT.
• Identify inconsistencies, duplicate classifications, missing attributes, and gaps across enterprise systems.
• Evaluate relevant industry classification standards.
• Taxonomy Design & Standardization
• Design standardized product category hierarchies and classification structures.
• Define product families, subcategories, attribute dictionaries, and classification rules.
• Establish naming conventions, mandatory attributes, and product data standards.
• Develop product taxonomy and classification blueprints.
• Define relationships between product categories, vehicle fitment, OEM references, and aftermarket equivalents.
• SAP & Enterprise Application Alignment
• Map the proposed taxonomy to SAP ECC/S/4HANA material master structures.
• Evaluate SAP classification, characteristics, material groups, and product hierarchies.
• Align the taxonomy with PIM, MDM, eCommerce, and supplier catalog systems.
• Define cross-system mapping and integration requirements.
• Data Quality & Classification
• Profile existing product data and assess classification accuracy.
• Define cleansing, enrichment, deduplication, and normalization requirements.
• Develop classification and attribute-mapping rules.
• Support representative SKU classification pilots and business validation.
• Data Governance & Operating Model
• Define taxonomy ownership, stewardship responsibilities, and approval workflows.
• Establish processes for new category creation, attribute changes, and product onboarding.
• Define governance KPIs and ongoing taxonomy maintenance procedures.
• Project Delivery
• Prepare assessment findings, taxonomy blueprints, mapping specifications, and implementation roadmaps.
• Facilitate business validation workshops.
• Coordinate with SAP functional consultants, PIM specialists, data engineers, and business SMEs.
• Support testing, deployment planning, and knowledge transfer.

Required Qualifications

• 8+ years of experience in enterprise product data management, master data management, or data governance.
• Hands-on experience designing product taxonomies and classification frameworks.
• Experience with SAP material master, product hierarchy, and classification functionality.
• Strong understanding of automotive parts distribution, aftermarket catalogs, or complex industrial product catalogs.
• Experience working with PIM or MDM platforms.
• Proficiency in SQL, Excel, data profiling, and data mapping.
• Strong business consulting, workshop facilitation, and documentation skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Knowledge of automotive aftermarket standards, including ACES, PIES, VCdb, and PCdb.
• SAP MDG-M experience.
• Experience with SAP Commerce Cloud, Stibo STEP, Informatica PIM, Akeneo, or comparable solutions.
• Familiarity with AI-assisted product classification and attribute enrichment.
• Experience supporting SAP S/4HANA transformation or enterprise data harmonization programs.
• DAMA CDMP or relevant data management certification.

Expected Deliverables

• Current-State Product Taxonomy Assessment
• Product Classification Gap Analysis
• Standardized Taxonomy & Attribute Blueprint
• Product Classification Rules and Data Dictionary
• SAP/PIM/MDM Mapping Specifications
• Representative SKU Classification Pilot
• Taxonomy Governance & Stewardship Framework
• Implementation Roadmap and Effort Estimates

Success Measures

• Approved enterprise product taxonomy blueprint.
• Improved product classification consistency.
• Reduced duplicate and ambiguous classifications.
• Improved completeness of critical product attributes.
• Successful classification of representative pilot SKUs.
• Business approval of taxonomy ownership and governance processes.