Preparing for an interview at Main Sail requires a balanced approach. You must demonstrate both deep functional expertise and the polished communication skills of a trusted advisor.

Role-Related Knowledge – You must possess a comprehensive understanding of your specific SAP module or consulting domain. Interviewers will drill down into your configuration experience, system integration knowledge, and familiarity with best practices. Be ready to explain the "why" behind your technical decisions, not just the "how."

Problem-Solving & Business Architecture – Consultants at Main Sail do not just implement technology; they solve business problems. You will be evaluated on how you analyze complex processes, identify bottlenecks, and architect solutions that improve efficiency, reduce costs, or increase visibility.

Client Advisory & Communication – As a consultant, you are the face of Main Sail to the client. Interviewers look for structured communication, active listening, and the ability to explain complex technical concepts to non-technical business stakeholders.

Adaptability & Resilience – Consulting environments are fast-paced and subject to rapid change. You will be assessed on your ability to navigate ambiguity, manage shifting client priorities, and maintain a calm, professional demeanor under pressure.

The interview process at Main Sail is designed to evaluate both your technical proficiency and your consulting fit. It is structured to ensure that you possess the practical, hands-on skills required to deliver value to clients from day one, while also ensuring you align with the firm's collaborative and client-centric culture.

The process typically begins with an initial conversation with a recruiter to discuss your background, career goals, and general alignment with open client engagements. This is followed by one or more technical and functional deep-dives with senior consultants or architects, where your specific module expertise and problem-solving methodologies will be put to the test. The final stages focus on scenario-based discussions and leadership alignment to assess your client-facing capabilities and consulting soft skills.

This visual timeline outlines the typical progression of the Main Sail hiring process from initial contact to the final decision. Candidates should use this sequence to pace their preparation, focusing first on high-level functional storytelling before diving deep into technical configuration details for the middle rounds. The structured flow ensures that both technical competency and consulting soft skills are thoroughly vetted before an offer is extended.

To excel in the Main Sail interview process, you must understand the core areas where candidates are evaluated most rigorously.

SAP Module Expertise & Integration

Whether your expertise lies in financial controls (FICO), supply chain management (SCM/APO), sales and distribution (SD), or workforce management (WFM), you must demonstrate absolute command over your functional domain. Interviewers want to see that you understand how your module behaves under different business scenarios and how it interacts with the broader ERP ecosystem.

Be ready to go over:

• Configuration Pathing – The specific IMG paths, document types, and master data structures required to support core business processes.
• Cross-Module Integration – How data flows seamlessly between modules (e.g., how an SD billing document posts directly to FICO general ledgers).
• S/4HANA Evolution – The key differences between legacy ECC environments and S/4HANA within your functional domain.
• Advanced concepts (less common) – Custom user exits, BAPIs, BADIs, and leveraging standard SAP APIs for external system integrations.

Example questions or scenarios:

• "Walk me through the end-to-end integration flow from a sales order creation in SD to revenue recognition in FICO."
• "How would you configure SAP WFM to handle complex union shift rules and compliance tracking?"
• "Describe how you have used SAP APO to resolve a critical supply chain bottleneck for a manufacturing client."

Business Process Mapping & Blueprinting

A great consultant does not start configuring the system until they fully understand the business process. You must show that you can analyze a client's "AS-IS" state, identify inefficiencies, and design a streamlined "TO-BE" process that leverages standard SAP best practices to minimize custom coding.

Be ready to go over:

• Requirement Gathering Frameworks – How you structure workshops and interviews to extract meaningful requirements from business users.
• Standard vs. Custom Analysis – Your decision-making process for recommending standard SAP functionality over custom developments.
• Functional Specification Writing – How you document business requirements, logic, test cases, and error handling for the technical delivery team.
• Advanced concepts (less common) – Utilizing SAP Signavio or other process mining tools to visualize and optimize business workflows.

Example questions or scenarios:

• "If a client insists on a highly customized process that deviates from SAP best practices, how do you advise them?"
• "Describe a time when you successfully mapped out a complex supply chain process and identified a major bottleneck."
• "What is your step-by-step methodology for writing a functional specification for a custom financial report?"

Client Stakeholder & Scope Management

Consulting is as much about managing people as it is about managing systems. You will be evaluated on your ability to build trust with clients, guide them through change, and keep projects on track when challenges arise.

Be ready to go over:

• Change Management – Strategies for helping client employees transition to new SAP systems and processes.
• Expectation Management – How you establish realistic timelines and deliverables with client stakeholders early in the project lifecycle.
• Conflict Resolution – Your approach to resolving disagreements between different client departments regarding system design.
• Advanced concepts (less common) – Handling multi-vendor environments where you must collaborate with other consulting firms or system integrators.

Example questions or scenarios:

• "How do you handle a situation where a key client stakeholder refuses to attend design workshops or provide feedback?"
• "Describe a time when a project's scope began to expand rapidly, and how you managed the situation with the client."
• "How do you build credibility quickly when stepping into a troubled project with a frustrated client?"

As a Consultant at Main Sail, your day-to-day activities will vary depending on the project lifecycle phase, but your core focus remains delivering exceptional value to clients.

You will lead client workshops to analyze current business operations, identify pain points, and design optimized future-state processes. This involves translating complex operational requirements into detailed functional specifications and configuring the SAP system to support those designs. You will work closely with developers to guide custom technical solutions, ensuring they align perfectly with the functional architecture.

Collaborating across teams is a constant in this role. You will partner with project managers, client business leads, and other functional consultants to ensure seamless end-to-end system integration. Additionally, you will drive testing phases—including system integration testing (SIT) and user acceptance testing (UAT)—and design and deliver training programs to ensure smooth client adoption post-go-live.