ABAP Technical Lead

Location: Remote (EMEA region)

Reports to: Senior Product Manager

Travel: Quarterly travel to Frankfurt or Hamburg, Germany

About Stonebranch:

Stonebranch builds IT orchestration and automation solutions that transform business IT environments from simple IT task automation into sophisticated, real-time business service orchestration. No matter the degree of automation, the Stonebranch platform is simple, modern, and secure. Using Stonebranch Universal Automation Center (UAC), enterprises can seamlessly orchestrate workloads and data across hybrid IT environments. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, with points of contact and support throughout the Americas, Europe, and Asia, Stonebranch serves some of the world’s largest financial, manufacturing, healthcare, travel, transportation, energy, and technology institutions. 

Your Part in this Growth Story:

Stonebranch is searching for an ABAP Technical Lead to own the technical direction of BatchMan, our SAP-native workload automation product. We want someone who takes full accountability for a business-critical codebase and moves it forward without waiting to be told what to build next. BatchMan runs inside SAP as an add-on. It extends SAP's native job scheduling into landscape-wide workload automation for more than 160 customers, ranging from long-established SAP enterprises to early technology adopters. The architecture decisions you make will shape how the product performs, evolves, and serves those customers for years to come.

This is a role built for where engineering is heading. We are transforming BatchMan development to an AI-first, specification-driven approach, and you'll lead that transformation. Using Claude Code as your primary AI agent, you'll write the technical specifications that drive development, then direct and verify AI-generated code with the senior judgment to catch what the AI gets wrong. That leaves your deepest focus for architecture and the hard technical decisions. On a codebase with more than 15 years of history, that judgment matters most. Knowing where classic ABAP and modern ABAP differ, and where the critical details hide, is what makes AI a force multiplier rather than a risk.

You'll join a small, focused team made up of an experienced fellow developer, AI agents, and the Senior Product Manager who owns the product. This is an individual contributor role with no people-management responsibilities. You will, however, make the high-level architecture decisions for BatchMan and set the engineering standards the codebase is built against. You'll also be the escalation point for our Customer Support team on complex technical issues, and you'll work directly with customers when an escalation calls for it. Because our customer base is largely German-speaking, business-fluent German is required.

Deep, hands-on ABAP expertise is essential. That includes experience building or maintaining a commercially shipped SAP add-on, not only customer-specific extensions. What sets you apart is ownership: the drive to make this product yours and keep it strong over the long term.

This is a remote position open to candidates based anywhere in EMEA, with a preference for candidates located near a Stonebranch office. Quarterly travel to our EMEA headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany or our Honico office in Hamburg, Germany is required. This role reports directly to the Senior Product Manager.

Your Impact on the Organization:

Technical Ownership & Architecture

• Own the technical architecture of BatchMan and make the high-level design decisions that set the product's direction within the SAP landscape
• Establish and maintain the engineering standards, coding conventions, and best practices that the BatchMan codebase is built against
• Maintain and modernize a codebase that spans classic ABAP4, ABAP OO, and Java-based agent components, keeping it stable for existing customers while the product continues to evolve
• Translate product requirements into sound technical solutions, balancing speed, quality, and long-term maintainability

AI-First Development & Code Quality

• Lead the transformation of BatchMan's development pipeline to an AI-first approach, with Claude Code as the primary AI agent
• Write clear, detailed technical specifications that serve as the foundation for AI-driven development
• Direct, review, and verify AI-generated ABAP and Java code, applying senior judgment to catch errors, enforce standards, and protect architectural integrity
• Build the documentation, context, and conventions that let AI agents work effectively and safely within a mature SAP codebase
• Take part in peer code review to hold the codebase to a consistent quality bar

Product Development & Performance

• Design and build new capabilities that extend SAP background processing and job scheduling into landscape-wide workload automation
• Develop and maintain integrations through XBP/XMI, RFC, and web technologies (OData, REST) that connect BatchMan to the broader automation landscape
• Optimize performance for high-volume job processing and large data volumes, including SQL tuning
• Package and deliver releases through the SAP Transport System and Add-On Assembly Kit (AAK), so installations and upgrades run reliably across customer SAP environments

Customer Escalation & Collaboration

• Serve as the technical escalation point for Customer Support, diagnosing and resolving complex issues beyond their scope
• Engage directly with customers, in German or English, when an escalation requires hands-on technical involvement
• Partner with the Senior Product Manager on roadmap feasibility, effort estimates, and technical trade-offs, and communicate technical direction clearly to both technical and business stakeholders
• Collaborate closely with the team's other developer and share knowledge so that critical product expertise is not held by a single person

What You Will Bring to the Team:

Education and Experience

• Degree in computer science or a related field, or completed vocational IT training (e.g., Fachinformatiker für Anwendungsentwicklung) with equivalent professional experience
• 10+ years of professional experience in software development
• 8+ years of hands-on ABAP development experience, including substantial work in classic procedural ABAP (ABAP4)
• Proven experience building or maintaining a commercially shipped SAP add-on or product, not solely customer-specific extensions or module customizations
• Track record of owning a technical area and making the architecture decisions that shape it

Technical Skills

• Expert-level command of ABAP4 and ABAP OO, including Dynpro UI, ALV, and the SAP Control Framework
• Deep knowledge of SAP background processing and job scheduling:
  • SM36/SM37 for job definition and monitoring
  • SM50/SM66 for active work process analysis
  • ST22 for dump analysis on failed job steps
• Hands-on experience with the XBP (External Batch Processing) and XMI interfaces
• RFC programming and debugging, including configuring RFC connections in SM59
• Strong understanding of core ABAP concepts, including authorization objects, lock objects, and LUWs
• SQL optimization for large data volumes
• Working knowledge of the SAP Transport System
• Hands-on experience with AI coding agents (e.g., Claude Code) and a strong interest in building an AI-first, specification-driven development workflow; experience writing specifications that drive AI-generated code is a strong plus
• This is a hands-on technical role: day-to-day work combines writing specifications, directing AI agents, and reviewing and verifying code, with direct ABAP development where it's needed

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience packaging and delivering add-ons with the SAP Add-On Assembly Kit (AAK)
• Java development experience, particularly with agent- or service-based architectures, including:
  • File I/O and protocols such as SFTP and SSH
  • JKS keystore management and TLS/SSL configuration
  • Reading and debugging multithreaded Java service code (Windows service / Linux daemon)
• Experience with web technologies and data formats, including OData, REST, XML, and JSON
• SAP Basis knowledge, including authorization configuration
• Background with workload automation or enterprise job scheduling products

Ownership & Collaboration

• Strong architectural thinking, with the judgment to make sound technical decisions and the accountability to own the outcomes
• A driver's mindset: self-directed, proactive, and able to move a product forward without handholding
• A methodical troubleshooter, able to diagnose complex issues in customer SAP environments and bring them to resolution
• Ability to understand business needs and translate them into technical solutions
• Effective written and verbal communication, with the ability to explain technical direction and trade-offs to colleagues, customers, and non-technical stakeholders
• A collaborative team player, comfortable working in a small, focused, international team
• Business-fluent German (C1 minimum) and fluent English (C1 minimum), both written and verbal, are required. German is the team's primary working language, including code documentation, technical discussions, and customer support cases

Why You’ll Love Stonebranch:

At Stonebranch, you’ll be part of a team that’s passionate about innovation, collaboration, and making an impact in the world of IT automation. We believe great work starts with a great workplace – one that values people, supports growth, and celebrates success.

• Collaborative Culture: Join an international team of experienced, high-performing professionals who value teamwork, knowledge sharing, and mutual success.
• Growth & Development: Take advantage of continuous learning opportunities and professional development to advance your career.
• Work-Life Balance & Flexibility: Benefit from a flexible work environment with hybrid or remote options, designed to support balance and productivity.
• Impact & Innovation: Be part of a high-growth company at the forefront of IT automation, where your contributions directly influence customer success and business outcomes.
• Competitive Compensation & Benefits: Receive a competitive compensation and benefits package aligned with local market standards and employment regulations.
• Community & Connection: Participate in regular team and company events that foster connection and a strong sense of belonging.