Describing SAP Ariba 2511 Release Features

Objective

After completing this lesson, you will be able to describe new or changed features for SAP Ariba Contracts in the SAP Ariba 2511 release.

AI Copilot Joule in SAP Ariba Contracts

Business Details

Joule, SAP's generative AI copilot, is now available in SAP Ariba Contracts. Joule uses a conversational interface to help users complete tasks efficiently. It leverages generative and other AI technologies to understand natural language requests, identify intent, perform actions, and provide insights. Using generative AI, it can execute tasks, deliver tailored responses, and summarize information effectively.

Joule can assist you with your product-related questions by finding answers in the product documentation published on the SAP Help Portal. Along with the answers, it provides direct links to the relevant source documents, allowing you to explore the details further. You can also perform tasks such as viewing the details of a document or approving a document from within the Joule interface. For the list of tasks that you can perform using Joule, refer to the topic Joule Capabilities in SAP Ariba Contracts.

Note

To access Joule within SAP Ariba Contracts, an additional entitlement and authorization may be required. Please consult your account executive for more information.

Changes to the User Interface

The Joule icon (a diamond) is now available in the top right of the shell bar. Selecting the icon brings up the Joule panel, where you can ask your questions.

Joule Capabilities in SAP Ariba Contracts

The following capabilities are available in Joule for SAP Ariba Contracts.

Use CaseDescriptionExample
Retrieve contract workspaces

Retrieves the contract data based on the following attributes:

  • Contract ID
  • Contract status
  • Contract terms
  • Title
  • Last modified date
  • Creation date
  • Expiration date
  • Effective date

Get me a list of contracts in the draft status.

Show me the details of 'Joule_Document_1'.

Extend contract expiry date of a contract workspaceExtends the expiry date of a contract workspace.

Extend the expiration date of the contract with ID CW12341001 by 10 days from today's date.

Set the expiration date of the contract with ID CW12341001 to '31-12-2025'.

Update the start date of a contract workspaceUpdates the start date of a contract workspace.Update the start date of a contract with ID CW123411 to 'December 10, 2025'.
Update the contract owner of a contract workspaceUpdates the owner details in a contract workspace.Update the owner of contract ID CW11212 to a new owner, with the username 'adavis' and the password 'PasswordAdapter.'
Create contract workspaceCreates a contract workspace.Create a contract workspace.

Implementation Details

General Prerequisites

Joule must be integrated with SAP Ariba Contracts. See Integrating Joule with SAP Ariba Solutions.

Technical Details

Product

SAP Ariba Contracts

SAP Ariba Strategic Sourcing Suite

EnablementCustomer-managed
CategoryAI
Reference NumberSCONTR-1279
User TypeBuyer

Supplier Eligibility Validation in Contract Workspaces

Business Details

This feature enables buyers to set supplier eligibility criteria using supplier registration and qualification statuses from SAP Ariba Supplier Lifecycle and Performance. It ensures that only suppliers who meet the specified eligibility criteria are included in a contract. These criteria can be validated during various stages, such as during contract creation, publication, or when transferring contract data and line items to integrated external systems like SAP ERP.

The supplier qualification status is maintained in SAP Ariba Supplier Lifecycle and Performance for a specific region and commodity combinations. Buyers can use this data to ensure that the supplier that they choose to include in a contract for a given commodity and region meets the specified eligibility criteria as defined in the project template.

Changes to the User Interface

A new section, Supplier Eligibility Criteria, is added to the contract workspace project templates. Administrators can set the supplier eligibility criteria in a template by navigating to Advanced Options→Supplier Eligibility Criteria.

Screenshot of the Advanced Options in a Contract Workspace template displaying the Supplier Eligibility Criteria options.

Implementation Details

General Prerequisites

Your solution package must include SAP Ariba Supplier Lifecycle and Performance.

Authorizations

You must be a member of the global Template Creator group or the template project’s Templates Creator team to create and edit templates.

Business End User Tasks

Depending on the supplier eligibility criteria in the contract workspace project template, you can validate supplier eligibility by performing one of the following tasks:

Effects on Existing Data

Existing data remains unaffected because applying supplier eligibility criteria requires creating a new version of the template.

Configuration

Context

As a template administrator, you can set up supplier eligibility criteria in contract workspace project templates to ensure that contracts created using these templates validate supplier eligibility, allowing those who meet the specified criteria to be included.

Procedure

  1. If you want to add supplier eligibility criteria to an existing template, you must create a new version of the template first.
  2. Go to Advanced Options→Supplier Eligibility Criteria and select Edit.
  3. Determine the stage where you want to apply the supplier eligibility criteria:
    • Eligible supplier statuses for contract creation: To apply supplier eligibility criteria while creating contracts, select the applicable statuses from the list.
    • Eligible supplier statuses for contract publish: To apply supplier eligibility criteria when publishing contracts, select the applicable statuses from the list.
    • Eligible supplier statuses for contract integration with ERP: To apply supplier eligibility criteria when sending contract data and line items to integrated external systems, such as SAP ERP, select the applicable statuses from the list.

    Note

    You can select the Show Warning checkbox for a chosen status. This will allow buyers to include a supplier with that status but with a warning regarding their eligibility.
  4. Navigate to the Overview section of the template. Under Properties, select Actions→Publish.

Results

The template is published with the supplier eligibility criteria. Contracts created using these templates validate supplier eligibility, allowing those who meet the specified criteria to be included.

If a supplier doesn't meet the required criteria, they are not added to the contract.

Hint

If a template contains the eligibility criteria for contract creation as Registered, buyers creating contracts using this template are not allowed to include suppliers that are not registered.

If a template contains the eligibility criteria for contract creation, buyers cannot proceed until they add a supplier.

If a template contains eligibility criteria with multiple statuses, the process continues if the selected supplier meets any of the status criteria.

Technical Details

Product

SAP Ariba Contracts

SAP Ariba Strategic Sourcing Suite

SAP Ariba Supplier Lifecycle and Performance

EnablementAutomatically On
CategoryConfiguraton
Reference NumberSCONTR-1445
User TypeBuyer

Learning

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