SAP opens Canberra Centre of Excellence to boost public sector AI
SAP has appointed Ryan Mitchelmore as the Head of its new Centre of Excellence for the Public Sector, located in Canberra. The centre will focus on supporting digital transformation initiatives for federal government agencies in Australia and New Zealand, with a team comprised solely of Australian citizens.
Specialist hiring
SAP's Centre of Excellence is set to employ 20 staff members within two years. Recruitment is underway, aiming to reach full capacity by mid-2026. The centre will maintain a core team of 12 permanent employees, with additional specialists brought in according to project demands. All personnel will be required to hold Australian citizenship and suitable security clearances, reflecting the strict data protection and sovereignty needs of public sector clients.
Digital transformation
Federal government agencies face ongoing challenges when upgrading mission-critical systems from legacy ERP environments. The new centre will offer expertise to guide agencies through adopting cloud-based platforms, artificial intelligence, data analytics, and automation. This aims to support productivity improvements and enhance the delivery of services to citizens.
Sector experience
Mitchelmore joins the centre with close to 30 years of experience leading transformation projects across government, finance, and banking. His background includes work with Defence, Services Australia, the Digital Transformation Agency, and major banks in Australia. He brings experience managing large-scale initiatives while ensuring projects stay within schedule and budget constraints.
Global network
The Canberra-based facility forms part of SAP's wider network of sector-specific teams around the world. These centres collaborate on digital transformation strategies for customers in various industries. SAP's intention is to align its expertise and offerings more closely with the needs of government organisations navigating technology change while maintaining sovereignty and security.
Agency feedback
"Federal agencies manage some of Australia's most critical systems, from healthcare delivery to defence logistics, and many already rely on SAP as their enterprise backbone. This Centre of Excellence is a direct response to feedback shared by these agencies with SAP earlier in the year. It seeks to connects the dots across these systems, helping agencies chart the clearest path to a secure digital future, while leveraging AI, data analytics and sovereign cloud capabilities," said Brian Senior, Executive General Manager - Federal Government, SAP Australia and New Zealand.
Clear pathways
The centre plans to provide practical guidance to public sector clients transitioning to modern, cloud-enabled environments. Its remit ranges from developing business cases and proofs of concept to architecture design and migration planning. The objective is to help agencies make well-informed decisions and put safeguarding controls in place as they embrace new technologies.
"Agencies need a clear, practical path from legacy environments to AI‐ready operations. Our team provides best-practice advice on the recommended journey and appropriate guardrails - from business case and proofs of concept to clean‐core architecture and migration plans to enable better informed decisions," said Ryan Mitchelmore, Head of Public Sector Centre of Excellence, SAP Australia and New Zealand.
