UK employers urged to rethink SAP hiring for skills
Eursap has urged employers to change hiring and retention strategies as skills shortages tighten the UK labour market and candidates move faster between roles.
The recruitment and consultancy firm said competition for skilled workers has intensified beyond senior positions. Mid-level and specialist vacancies now attract several employers at the same time, often soon after a role is posted. It cited a 2025 survey that found 76% of UK employers reported difficulty filling roles because of skills shortages.
Daniel Patel, Director at Eursap, said employers now face a different set of candidate expectations as technology adoption changes the mix of skills that command premium pay.
"It is undeniable that the world of work is undergoing significant change in 2026, driven by accelerated technology adoption across every business function, which has shifted the hiring market's focus to higher value on transferable skills. This shift has resulted in high worker confidence and changing remuneration expectations, necessitating entirely new strategies to attract and retain the best talent in a market facing acute skills shortages," said Daniel Patel, Director, Eursap.
Skills over tenure
Patel argued that employers should place more emphasis on learning and development as a core part of their offer. He linked this to a market where demonstrated ability now carries more weight than length of service when employers price roles.
He said professionals in technology-related fields are increasing their employability through skills development. He pointed to areas such as AI, cross-functional leadership, and data literacy. Patel also said ring-fenced budgets for professional training have become a more important factor in attraction and retention, including for employers operating with tight budgets.
Well-being has also shifted up the agenda in recruitment, according to Patel. He said access to mental health resources and stress-reduction initiatives has become a deciding factor for many candidates.
SAP market squeeze
The company focuses on SAP recruitment and consultancy, and Patel highlighted specific pressures in that segment. Demand for SAP specialists has remained high as organisations modernise core systems and move to cloud-based platforms. That has increased competition for candidates with experience in newer SAP products and programmes.
Patel said the nature of the work on offer increasingly determines whether experienced SAP professionals engage with an employer. He described growing interest in roles tied to modern SAP architectures and to programmes that limit extensive customisation.
"In the SAP niche, attracting elite talent demands a hyper-focus on the future technology stack and genuine innovation opportunities. Top professionals, such as those mastering SAP BTP (Business Technology Platform) development or leading S/4HANA Cloud transformations, are primarily drawn to projects that guarantee a Clean Core Strategy, ensuring their work creates long-term value and avoids becoming trapped in legacy customisation.
Companies must explicitly advertise roles that involve embedded Artificial Intelligence tools like SAP Joule and offer dedicated time and sandbox access for experimentation with the latest cloud architecture, signalling a commitment to maintaining technical edge and enabling continuous mastery," said Patel.
He added that pay still matters, but he framed it as one part of a broader package that includes training and certification pathways.
"Compensation, while competitive, must be augmented by targeted professional development that provides clear pathways to highly scarce certifications in areas like Cloud Security, GRC, or Data Migration, confirming that the organisation is willing to invest significantly in the skills that define the next decade of the SAP landscape," said Patel.
Credibility test
Patel also warned against broad claims in employer branding. He said candidates want evidence in areas such as career progression and workplace support.
"Companies must differentiate their Employee Value Proposition (EVP) through authenticity, demonstrable purpose, and a commitment to employee well-being," said Patel.
He said the bargaining position of candidates has strengthened because shortages span sectors and disciplines. Employers, he argued, should show what employees receive in return for their skills, including development investment and recognition for capability.
"Due to rampant skills shortages across all sectors, fueling worker confidence, the challenge for employers is less about simply meeting salary demands and more about demonstrating value in return through willingness to invest in career development and creating environments where capability is immediately recognised and rewarded. This includes embedding physical and mental health benefits into the core offering, which is now considered a vital component of an effective talent strategy, not just a "nice to have" extra. By focusing on creating a culture that actively addresses work-life balance and burnout through stress-reduction initiatives, businesses can gain a competitive edge over those that still fail to offer this kind of essential support," said Patel.
Patel also argued that SAP employers should set out the strategic relevance of projects more clearly. He said organisations should explain how transformation work connects to business priorities, including environmental, social and governance goals, and he called for a shift away from generic messaging.
Team performance
Beyond hiring, Patel linked retention to management practices and working culture. He said leaders need to build trust and psychological safety alongside performance standards.
"Building truly high-performing teams requires a leadership model that prioritises empowering individuals and fostering a culture of vulnerability and continuous learning. With the growing influence of workers who understand the market value of their expertise, leaders must focus on creating environments where trust is the primary currency.
This is achieved by actively cultivating psychological safety, the essential belief that team members can take interpersonal risks, suggest unfinished ideas, ask questions, and admit mistakes without fear of punishment or embarrassment.
This safety, when paired with high-performance standards, allows for the creativity and candid communication necessary for innovation. Successful managers must adopt a coaching mindset, providing continuous, development-focused feedback rather than waiting for an annual review cycle, which ensures skill progression and immediate course correction necessary for agility," said Patel.
He said SAP transformation teams face particular challenges because projects can run for years and require scarce combinations of functional and technical expertise. He argued that team design should reflect the end-to-end nature of business process change rather than traditional module siloes.
"For SAP teams engaged in complex, multi-year transformations, high performance is anchored in a clear, unified purpose and cross-functional autonomy. Teams must be deliberately constructed with a blend of scarce functional and technical expertise, such as pairing an AI-aware Finance Consultant with an Integration Specialist, and then granted the autonomy to execute their clear, ambitious mission without micromanagement.
The leadership's role is to ensure all team members understand their specific contribution to the end-to-end business process enabled by the S/4HANA solution, breaking down traditional module-based siloes," said Patel.
Patel said long-term performance depends on continued skills development, internal mobility and greater use of automation for routine work.
"High performance is sustained by continuously investing in the team's ability to develop new, highly specialised skills, promoting internal mobility, and eliminating "meaningless toil" by automating tasks, ensuring that the team's collective intelligence and energy are directed exclusively towards high-value design, problem-solving, and innovation," said Patel.