Describing AI Capabilities in SAP Ariba Supplier Management

Objective

After completing this lesson, you will be able to describe the AI capabilities available in SAP Ariba Supplier Management.

Joule Overview

Joule is SAP's generative AI copilot that works directly within your business applications. Rather than navigating through multiple screens and menus to find information or complete tasks, you can simply ask Joule questions in natural language, and it provides immediate answers and assistance.

The solution is embedded into your daily workflow across SAP systems, presenting a conversational interface where you work. When you interact with Joule, it brings together relevant information about your business processes and transactions, giving you a complete picture in one place. This means you spend less time searching for information and more time making decisions and completing your work.

As you work with Joule, you can manage multiple conversations simultaneously, allowing you to have long-running tasks in one conversation while continuing with another. You can also review previous conversations, delete conversations you no longer need, and create new conversations as required.

Joule operates on both desktop and mobile devices, ensuring you have access to AI assistance wherever you need it. The system maintains conversation history and captures analytics, which helps your organization measure adoption and impact while maintaining security and compliance standards.

SAP Ariba interface with Joule chat window open.

Capability Types

Joule's capabilities can be categorized into four main types:

Capability TypeDescription
TransactionalHelps you create, retrieve, or update business data and complete day-to-day tasks.
NavigationalHelps you find and open apps or pages without navigating through multiple links.
InformationalHelps you find answers to product-related questions by searching SAP Help Portal documentation and Joule's own knowledge base.
Analytical InsightsHelps you explore your business data and gain insights through simple charts and metrics. These insights are powered by SAP Analytics Cloud.

Joule in SAP Ariba Supplier Management

SAP Ariba Supplier Lifecycle and Performance and SAP Ariba Supplier Risk are both integrated with Joule. You can ask Joule questions about your organization's suppliers and receive immediate, accurate answers through generative AI.

Note

The examples below show common ways to use Joule in SAP Ariba Supplier Management. However, Joule offers many more scenarios across SAP Ariba solutions. For a complete list of Joule capabilities, please visit Joule in SAP Ariba Solutions.

Joule Capabilities in SAP Ariba Supplier Lifecycle and Performance

Joule offers numerous capabilities in SAP Ariba Supplier Lifecycle and Performance. The following examples highlight some key scenarios:

Transactional

  • Supplier Contact Information: You can quickly display a list of supplier contacts by providing the SM vendor ID, ERP vendor ID, or full/partial supplier name. For example, you can ask, Show me contact details for supplier S12434567.
  • Suppliers in Invited Registration Status: Identify suppliers who have been invited to register but haven't responded within a specified timeframe. For instance, Show me the list of suppliers in "Invited" status for more than 100 days.
  • Pending Approval Tasks: Display a list of tasks pending your approval, with options to approve or deny them directly within Joule. Ask, Show me tasks pending approval.
  • Qualified Suppliers: Retrieve lists of suppliers based on their qualification status, whether using legacy or process qualification projects. For example, Show me "Qualification Started" suppliers (for legacy qualifications) or Show me suppliers with SM process status "Qualification in Progress" (for process qualifications).
  • My Supplier Management Projects: Display a list of projects created by you. For example, Show me supplier registrations by me.
  • Suppliers with Expiring or Expired Certificates: Find suppliers with certificates of a specified status, including specific certificate types. For instance, Show me suppliers with expired certificates or Show me suppliers with expiring certificates for IATF 16949.

Navigational

  • View a Supplier's Profile: Quickly access a supplier's profile by entering the supplier's name or SM vendor ID. For example, Show me the profile for supplier ABC or Show me the profile for supplier 12345678.
  • Create a Supplier Request: Use Joule to open the supplier request form configured for your site. Simply ask, Take me to the page for creating a supplier request.

Joule Capabilities in SAP Ariba Supplier Risk

SAP Ariba Supplier Risk also offers multiple Joule capabilities. Here are some frequently used scenarios:

Transactional

  • See Risk Exposure Details for a Supplier: Quickly view the overall risk exposure and exposure by category for a specific supplier by providing the supplier's ID. For example, Show me the risk exposure for supplier S12434567.
  • See Qualified Suppliers for a High-Risk Commodity: Identify suppliers who are qualified for supplying high-risk commodities. For example, List top five suppliers qualified to supply the commodity "Gold" with a risk classification of "High Risk".
  • See Low-Risk Suppliers for a Particular Commodity in a Specific Region: Find suppliers with low risk exposure for a particular commodity in a specific region. For example, List top five suppliers qualified to supply the commodity "Gold" with a risk classification "Low Risk" in the region "United Kingdom".

Navigational

  • Create an Engagement Request: Open the initial step of the engagement request creation workflow by asking, Open the create engagement request page.
  • See Risk Information in a Supplier's Profile: Open the Risk detail area of a supplier's profile using the supplier's ID. For example, Open the risk profile for supplier S1234567.

How to Use Joule in SAP Ariba Supplier Management

Play the video below to learn more about using Joule capabilities in SAP Ariba Supplier Management solutions.

Summary

  • Joule as AI Copilot: Joule is SAP's generative AI assistant embedded in business applications, providing natural language interaction for immediate answers and task completion.
  • Four Capability Types: Joule offers transactional, navigational, informational, and analytical insights capabilities to streamline workflows and support decision-making.
  • Supplier Management Capabilities: Joule provides AI-powered capabilities in SAP Ariba Supplier Lifecycle and Performance and SAP Ariba Supplier Risk solutions.