Architectural Development Expert (f/m/d) for Sustainable Sovereign Cloud

We help the world run better. At SAP, we keep it simple: you bring your best to us, and we'll bring out the best in you. We're builders touching over 20 industries and 80% of global commerce, and we need your unique talents to help shape what's next. The work is challenging – but it matters. You'll find a place where you can be yourself, prioritize your wellbeing, and truly belong. What's in it for you? Constant learning, skill growth, great benefits, and a team that wants you to grow and succeed.

Summary

SAP develops ApeiroRA to help strengthen Europe's digital sovereignty by providing key technology components for a common cloud-to-edge infrastructure. Together with other IPCEI-CIS participants, SAP is laying the foundation for cloud technologies that are provider-independent and rooted in European values, securing Europe's long-term competitiveness in the digital economy. In this pioneering initiative, we are developing the next generation of a sustainable data center with holistic sustainability operations. We are exploring promising approaches such as sustainability-aware scheduling, photonics chips, federated heterogeneous clouds, and heat reuse from data centers to offices. Help us define and build the sustainability layer of this open-source infrastructure platform, exploring what it means to create truly sustainable digital infrastructure in Europe.

The Role

As an Architectural Development Expert (f/m/d) for Sustainable Sovereign Cloud, you will join a technology-focused team of developers, architects, and project managers, shaping future generations of SAP software. In this role, you will work on the future of European cloud infrastructure. You'll be a key architect shaping how sustainability becomes embedded. You'll work on both technical implementation and the conceptual questions: What sustainability dimensions matter most? How do we measure them? How do we make trade-offs transparent?

What you bring

• A bachelor’s degree or higher in computer science, mathematics, engineering, or related field (or equivalent professional experience demonstrating comparable expertise)
• 8+ years of software development with proven track record of leading architectural decisions
• Experience building systems that handle massive traffic, multi-region deployments, and complex distributed consensus patterns
• Strong cloud infrastructure and distributed systems expertise, including RESTful API design and Kubernetes implementation
• Interest in new and emerging technologies with willingness to deepen expertise, especially in the area of AI, sustainability, performance, cloud infrastructure, chip designs, and beyond
• Background or demonstrated interest in sustainability and systems thinking (academic background preferred, but practical experience valued)
• Language skills: fluent in English (written and verbal), good in German (written and verbal)

Nice-to have skills

• Contributions to open-source projects focused on standards or observability
• Experience in mission-driven organizations or public-interest tech
• Experience with SAP cloud technology and GPUs

We are looking for a reliable, positive, open-minded, and collaborative personality with strong team working skills, who is determined to achieve goals on time, and possesses the ability to work independently while prioritizing effectively. We expect you to take ownership, demonstrate strong initiative, and work autonomously to drive results and architectural decisions that align with long-term business strategy. You should serve as a thought leader, communicate complex solutions to diverse stakeholders, and continuously foster innovation within the team while contributing to knowledge sharing across the company.

Your application documents should contain a cover letter reviewing your experiences and your interest, your CV, copies of your degrees (university, apprenticeship, high school) and copies of references from your former employers or managers (if available).

Meet your team

The Strategic Innovation Projects team belongs to the Strategic Projects team, where we are driving forward SAP’s development excellence by designing and implementing cutting-edge and strategically relevant solutions. In addition, we provide expertise with tech evaluations and develop proof-of-concepts for strategic technology topics. Our team consists of about 60 colleagues including students, young professionals, and experienced professionals in the areas of software development, design, project management and team/management assistance. We work in teams that are mainly located in Potsdam/Berlin and Walldorf and collaborate closely with other SAP teams to realize our mission.