Fractional SAP CPO Chief Product Officer Service

SAP programmes rarely fail because the platform lacks capability. They fail when ownership of SAP as a product is unclear, priorities conflict and no one is accountable for how SAP should evolve to support the business.

The Fractional SAP CPO Service from Cogent2 provides senior, part time product leadership for organisations running SAP as a core ERP platform. This role owns the product vision for SAP and connected enterprise systems, ensuring enhancements, configuration and change are driven by business outcomes rather than technical preference or internal politics.

It is designed for organisations where SAP is business critical, but where responsibility for ERP direction is fragmented across IT, operations and finance.

Cogent2’s Fractional SAP CPOs work inside the business, partnering closely with executive leadership and delivery teams. Alongside senior product leadership, you gain access to a joined-up technical and integration team that can execute and refine what is defined at a product level.

When to hire a Fractional SAP CPO

This service is particularly well suited to organisations that:

• Run SAP as a core ERP or enterprise platform

• Have large or growing SAP backlogs

• Struggle to prioritise SAP change effectively

• Lack a single owner for SAP product direction

• Need senior product leadership on a part time basis

Hiring a Fractional SAP CPO brings clarity, focus and accountability to enterprise ERP evolution.

What the service delivers

Cogent2 Fractional SAP CPOs operate at a senior product leadership level with a strong commercial mindset.

This typically includes:

• Acting as a Fractional and Part Time SAP CPO

• Owning the product vision for SAP and connected systems

• Defining SAP roadmaps aligned to business priorities

• Prioritising backlogs based on value, risk and impact

• Aligning stakeholders around clear product decisions

• Acting as the single owner of SAP product outcomes

Because Cogent2 combines product leadership with delivery capability, decisions turn into delivered improvements.

SAP product strategy and roadmap ownership

SAP delivers most value when treated as a long-term product, not a series of projects.

The Fractional SAP CPO Service focuses on:

• Defining how SAP should support the business over time

• Translating operational and financial needs into clear priorities

• Preventing reactive customisation and roadmap drift

• Improving visibility of what is being delivered and why

• Ensuring SAP evolves in a controlled, value-led way

The emphasis is enterprise-grade product thinking grounded in delivery reality.

Governance, prioritisation and value control

Enterprise ERP backlogs quickly become unmanageable without ownership.

Cogent2 Fractional SAP CPOs help by:

• Establishing clear prioritisation frameworks

• Balancing finance, operations and commercial requirements

• Ensuring SAP change delivers measurable outcomes

• Reducing low-impact or unnecessary initiatives

• Improving confidence in executive decision making

This keeps SAP focused on outcomes rather than internal noise.

Integration and enterprise ecosystem product oversight

SAP rarely operates alone.

Cogent2 Fractional SAP CPOs:

• Own the product view of integrations and data flows

• Ensure connected systems support the SAP roadmap

• Reduce duplication and overlapping functionality

• Improve consistency across the enterprise tech ecosystem

• Align integration priorities with business outcomes

Product ownership extends beyond SAP modules alone.

Cross-functional product leadership

SAP product decisions touch the entire organisation.

Cogent2 Fractional SAP CPOs work closely with:

• Finance and controlling leadership

• Operations and supply chain teams

• Ecommerce and commercial stakeholders

• Technology and integration specialists

This ensures SAP product decisions reflect how the organisation actually operates.

Programme support and product stabilisation

Fractional SAP CPOs are often engaged during periods of complexity.

This can include:

• Supporting SAP S/4HANA or major upgrade programmes

• Bringing order to fragmented SAP backlogs

• Improving confidence ahead of large-scale change

• Reducing friction between stakeholders

• Protecting operational stability during ERP evolution

Cogent2’s joined-up delivery capability allows change to move forward with control.

Ongoing advisory and trusted product leadership

Many clients retain this role as an ongoing advisory relationship.

This can include:

• Acting as a sounding board for SAP product decisions

• Reviewing plans before major investment

• Supporting capability and governance design

• Helping leadership teams avoid costly SAP mistakes

This model provides executive-level product thinking without building a permanent function.

The Cogent2 Difference

Cogent2 works alongside SAP and best-in-class enterprise platforms so our Fractional CPOs can focus entirely on product leadership and value delivery. We do not sell software. We take ownership of how SAP evolves within the wider enterprise tech ecosystem.

By combining Fractional SAP CPO leadership with a joined-up technical team, Cogent2 removes the gap between product intent and delivered ERP outcomes.

Own SAP as a product, not a programme

Enterprise ERP evolution fails when ownership is unclear.

Hire an SAP CPO from Cogent2 on a Part Time, Fractional basis to bring structure, focus and confidence to your SAP product direction.