Michael Saunders
Senior Transformation Consultant
SAP Data Migration and Systems Rationalisation | Lean Six Sigma Black Belt
Professional Summary
Senior Transformation Consultant with 10 years' experience delivering data-driven change across defence, finance, and government sectors. Specialising in SAP data migrations, system rationalisations, process automation, and operational excellence.
Proven track record of £3m+ client savings through pragmatic transformation programmes. Lean Six Sigma Black Belt with experience working embedded with client teams, leading cross-functional initiatives, and building sustainable improvement capability.
Core Capabilities
Transformation and Change Leadership
Embedded consulting in regulated environments, Business and operating model transformation, stakeholder alignment, programme-level change delivery, continuous improvement and operational excellence.
Data, Systems, and Decision Enablement
SAP data migrations and system rationalisation, data quality and governance, analytical capability building, business intelligence for operational decision making.
Process Design and Automation
End to end process discovery, BPMN mapping, workflow redesign, automation and RPA design, requirements definition, reduction of manual and fragmented processes.
Delivery and Ways of Working
Lean Six Sigma Black Belt, Kaizen and continuous improvement, structured problem solving, Agile delivery, coaching and capability uplift across business teams.
Tools and Platforms
SAP, Power BI, SQL, Python, Smartsheet, Microsoft ecosystem (Co-Pilot, Power Platform, Azure), GSuite.
Professional Experience
Senior Consultant (Data & Systems), Randstad Enterprise
June 2023 - Present | Defence Sector Client (Embedded)
Embedded transformation consultant within a strategic defence environment, supporting large-scale data and systems rationalisation programmes in a highly regulated setting. Focused on reducing technical debt, consolidating fragmented platforms, and aligning data migration activity to long-term transformation roadmaps.
- Led end-to-end system rationalisation activity across complex, legacy estates.
- Worked closely with technology and operational stakeholders to improve data quality and reduce integration complexity.
Key Achievement: Leading a system rationalisation initiative across 12 fragmented internal platforms. Mapped end-to-end data flows, designed consolidation strategies, and managed senior stakeholder engagement. Improved data quality, reduced integration overhead, and laid foundations for future automation and AI capability.
Senior Consultant (Transformation & Change), Randstad UK
September 2022 - June 2023 | Fintech Client (Project-Based)
Strategic transformation consultant delivering data-driven change across regulated fintech environments, with a focus on operational performance, analytical capability, and sustainable improvement.
- Drove transformation initiatives combining process redesign, automation, and data analysis.
- Designed and delivered training and coaching for leaders, analysts, and graduates to embed continuous improvement and structured problem solving.
Key Achievement (Barclays UK): Transformed a global candidate onboarding process serving over 15,000 applicants per quarter. Delivered a 46% improvement in candidate-to-hire conversion through process redesign, automation, and data analytics. Programme established a new operational benchmark for the business.
BI & Operational Excellence Lead, Target Group
February 2022 - September 2022
Led a multi-disciplinary team responsible for driving transformation and advancing data maturity across core business operations. Accountable for embedding lean ways of working, improving operational insight, and building sustainable improvement capability.
- Led a 12-person team delivering operational excellence initiatives across multiple business areas.
- Designed and implemented a firm-wide operational excellence framework supported by BI and performance dashboards.
Key Achievement: Pioneered an internal Kaizen programme, coaching six analysts through Lean Six Sigma Green and Black Belt certification while delivering live improvement projects. The framework became the benchmark for the firm’s global delivery teams and delivered a 30% reduction in project delivery timelines alongside improved data accuracy across client engagements.
Senior Continuous Improvement Analyst, Target Group
March 2020 - February 2022
Principal analyst leading business-wide process improvement initiatives through structured analysis, automation, and data-driven optimisation. Operated at both strategic and delivery levels to improve how work flowed across the organisation.
- Led a specialist team of six analysts focused on automation and operational optimisation.
- Developed detailed process maps, user stories, and requirements to support sustainable change.
Key Achievement (Shawbrook Bank): Delivered a full-scale transformation of asset recovery processes, achieving £800k cost avoidance over a two-year period through workflow redesign, automation, and data quality improvements.
Data Analyst (Automation)), Target Group
March 2019 - March 2020
Conducted data analysis and root cause investigations for consumer and regulatory complaints. Developed BI dashboards (Power BI, SSRS, SSIS) providing actionable insights to decision-makers. Designed automation solutions reducing manual processing time and improving data accuracy.
Key Achievement (GE Aerospace): Designed and implemented automation solution reducing manual process lead time from 10 minutes to 25 seconds. Project delivered £2.3m savings over 5-year period through efficiency gains and error reduction.
Data Privacy Specialist, Target Group
June 2016 - March 2019
Specialist team member responsible for regulatory assurance and due diligence in data privacy and protection. Contributed to critical GDPR transformation programme, ensuring compliance across client portfolio.
Certifications & Education
Lean Six Sigma Black Belt, Certified by Project Management Institute (2021)