Applied Science Manager (f/m/d) for Multi-Modal Industry Foundation Models

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 you'll do

At SAP Business AI, we are exploring the next frontier of AI for structured business data such as graphs, tables and more. Foundation Models on structured data, like SAP-RPT-1.5, have ushered in the GenAI era for business-relevant scenarios. Now, we are pushing further. We want to enable companies across industries to collaboratively train foundation models that extend beyond just tabular structured data to additional modalities and to build knowledge graphs.

As Applied Science Manager (f/m/d), you will build and lead the applied science team for our Multi-Modal Industry Foundation Models (MMIFM). You will hire, develop and grow a team of AI Scientists and Engineers; you set the bar for technical quality and scientific rigor; and you turn an ambitious research roadmap into shipped models. During the initial phase you will partner closely with the overall project leads to prepare and drive hiring across the project; as the team matures you focus on the MMIFM area. You move easily between leadership and scientific depth - supporting your team scientifically when needed, while spending most of your time growing the team, removing blockers, and aligning with peer leaders across the program.

The Role

• Build, lead and mentor a new applied science team of highly skilled AI Scientists and Engineers.
• Drive cross-project hiring during the project start-up phase, then take primary responsibility for staffing and steering the MMIFM team.
• Provide scientific and technical thought leadership across the team and broader organization, shaping the strategy and research direction for multimodal foundation models and world models for business data.
• Be accountable for the success, quality, and delivery of models and benchmarks, as well as scientific publications that showcase SAP’s key research questions and approaches at top tier conferences.
• Partner with peer leaders across MMIFM, IKG, and OP4I, as well as product incubation experts, and partnering teams, to align research direction with business value and deliver outcomes.
• Act as a problem solver to address organizational and process challenges, leveraging your technical expertise to bridge gaps, streamline operations, and facilitate smooth execution of partnership initiatives.
• Maintain up-to-date knowledge of Research trends, and jointly with the team apply this expertise to continuously revise and refine the research roadmap.

What you bring

• PhD or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence, or other relevant disciplines, combined with a strong scientific track record through publications at top-tier ML/NLP/AI venues, or equivalent applied research achievements.
• Experience delivering foundation models at scale, including familiarity with training pipelines, evaluation, and productization, ideally on multi-modal or structured data.
• Proficiency in Python and modern ML frameworks such as PyTorch, TensorFlow, or similar, enabling you to contribute credibly to technical discussions and reviews even though most of your time will be dedicated to leadership rather than coding.
• Familiarity with SAP business processes, ERP data, or industry verticals is a strong plus as the team grounds MMIFM in real industry use cases.
• Demonstrated exceptional leadership, interpersonal and organizational skills, with responsibilities including setting and achieving team goals, mentoring team members, and effectively managing and communicating within large, diverse teams. Must demonstrate a track record of delivering results.
• Strong communication skills for technical and non-technical audiences. You can defend a model architecture in a deep technical review, brief executives on its impact, and represent your team’s work externally.

Meet your team

SAP's AI organization is dedicated to seamlessly infusing AI into all enterprise applications, enabling customers, partners, and developers to enhance business processes and generate remarkable business value. Join our international AI team where innovation thrives, opportunities for personal development abound, and exceptional colleagues collaborate globally.