SAP provides several sourcing possibilities through its various software solutions:
- SAP Ariba Sourcing
- SAP Ariba Sourcing and SAP S/4HANA
- SAP Ariba Central Procurement connected with SAP S/4HANA Public Cloud
- SAP Ariba Central Procurement with SAP Ariba Sourcing
- Sourcing in SAP S/4HANA
SAP Ariba Sourcing
SAP Ariba Sourcing integrates patented RFX technology, process workflows, commodity intelligence, and supplier discovery, resulting in a flexible comprehensive sourcing solution that enables fast, sustainable bottom-line results. When SAP Ariba Sourcing is deployed as part of our integrated strategic sourcing suite—which encompasses spend visibility, strategic sourcing, contract management, and supply base management—you can realize even greater value. SAP Ariba Sourcing is a flexible comprehensive sourcing solution that enables fast, sustainable bottom-line results by integrating
- Patented RFX technology
- Process workflows
- Commodity intelligence
- Supplier discovery
Note
SAP Ariba Sourcing has recently introduced guided sourcing capability to modernize the user experience, with the option to view projects in the classic interface.
SAP Ariba Sourcing can be deployed as a standalone application, or as part of SAP Ariba Strategic Sourcing Suite. The Strategic Sourcing Suite bundles together SAP Ariba Sourcing, SAP Ariba Contracts, SAP Business Network Discovery, and SAP Ariba Supplier Lifecycle and Performance. It also includes the ability to use direct material sourcing.
Customers adopting the solution for their sourcing needs can:
- Discover new sources of qualified suppliers to improve competition
- Standardize processes and track sourcing activities
- Reduce sourcing cycle times
- Drive sustainable savings to increase profitability and growth
SAP Ariba Sourcing capabilities:
- Improved bid competitiveness with sourcing program and category management for multiple spend categories
- Informed decisions and compliance with RFX and auction management, plus decision support
- Standardization with integrated customer and sourcing support, event management, and best practices
- Immediate savings with built-in integration for spend visibility, discovery, and contracts
- Faster adoption with rapid event creation, enhanced search, and contextual help
- AI-based assistant to provide users with recommendations
- Integration with public procurement portals and advanced features for compliance with public sector requirements
Note
To learn more about the SAP Ariba Sourcing Solution, explore the "Discovering Ariba Sourcing" course on learning.sap.com.
SAP Ariba Sourcing and SAP S/4HANA
Let’s take a look at the key process flow in SAP Ariba Sourcing and SAP S/4HANA:
- Create a request for quotation (RFQ) for SAP S/4HANA Cloud purchase requisitions that don’t automatically find a single source of supply.
- Send the RFQ to the SAP Ariba Sourcing application to trigger a sourcing request.
- Access your worklist and convert sourcing requests into sourcing projects.
- Monitor sourcing projects that result in (reverse) auctions or requests for quotation, and provide these to suppliers on SAP Business Network.
- Monitor suppliers' responses.
- Award one or more bids in SAP Ariba Sourcing.
- Send awarded bids automatically to SAP S/4HANA Cloud where forwarded bids, purchase orders, or operational contracts are created.
SAP Ariba Central Procurement Connected with SAP S/4HANA Private Cloud
Central Sourcing provides centralized access and visibility into the sourcing process across industries with deep integration into the system landscape. It is connected to the customer's ERP systems and exchanges purchasing documents (such as purchase requisitions, purchase orders, and contracts) between the connected systems.
This business scenario offers one platform where a procurement specialist can work centrally on purchase requisitions from multiple ERP systems to identify the ideal source of supply. A request for quotation (RFQ) can be created for multiple requisitions from different ERP systems. The supplier quotations received can be maintained and an RFQ can be awarded. Follow-on actions (like creating a central contract or purchase order in the corresponding ERP system) can be centrally controlled in the hub system.
Strategic procurement tasks, including supplier management, benefit from transparency and the possibility to initiate strategic activities from a central digital procurement control center.
SAP Ariba Central Procurement Connected with SAP S/4HANA Private Cloud
Key process flow:
- Create and approve purchase requisitions.
- Create central request for quotation.
- Manage central request for quotation.
- Create supplier quotations and award requests for quotation.
- Create the corresponding central contracts or purchase orders.
- Update the purchase requisition process status electronically while processing the goods receipt and the supplier invoice.
SAP Ariba Central Procurement with SAP Ariba Sourcing
Central Procurement offers buyers a central sourcing scenario, enabling them to create, change, and display RFQs in a centrally located hub system in SAP S/4HANA Cloud. This helps buyers consolidate items from multiple requisitions into a single requisition, enabling purchasers from various parts of a company, in different locations, to take advantage of bulk negotiations and reduced costs. Buyers negotiate the purchase requisitions centrally in SAP Ariba Sourcing to achieve better savings.
The central hub offers a centralized RFQ process with a deep integration into the customer's landscape. It connects SAP Ariba Sourcing to the customer’s SAP ERP or SAP S/4HANA system (on-premise or cloud). With this setup, you can pool or aggregate purchase requisitions created in multiple connected back-end systems to create a single central RFQ and thus get support for better scale pricing.
SAP Ariba Sourcing provides access to intuitive RFX tools (for requests for information, requests for proposals, and reverse auctions), connections to more than two million companies, quick and easy supplier discovery, and automated and adjustable negotiation procedures.
Once the award process is complete in SAP Ariba Sourcing, the supplier contract that is created in SAP S/4HANA generates either purchase orders or contracts in the respective connected back-end system.
Key process flow:
- Create a central RFQ in the SAP S/4HANA centralized system for purchase requisitions that are created in the connected back-end systems.
- Send the central RFQ to the SAP Ariba Sourcing application, which triggers a sourcing request in SAP Ariba.
- Access your worklist and convert sourcing requests into sourcing projects/events (sourcing manager).
- Monitor sourcing projects that result in RFI/RFP/auctions, discover suppliers via SAP Business Network, and monitor suppliers’ responses.
- Award one or more bids in SAP Ariba Sourcing (sourcing manager).
- Send awarded bids automatically to the central hub in SAP S/4HANA to create a central supplier quotation.
- Use central supplier quotation to create operational purchase orders or operational contracts in the respective connected back-end ERP systems of SAP S/4HANA.
Sourcing in SAP S/4HANA
The material sourcing process allows the central purchaser to get an overview of all the material requirements across various plants and carry out the sourcing of the material requirements appropriately.
In this process, the central purchaser can create a sourcing event (sourcing project) to conduct sourcing with the competitive suppliers. The central purchaser can evaluate them to finally award the business to one or more capable suppliers, and create relevant documents such as purchase orders or central contracts to enable operational procurement of direct materials.
Key process flow:
- Create a sourcing project.
- Add competitive suppliers to provide competitive bids.
- Add the right set of supporting documents.
- Negotiate with select suppliers in multiple rounds as needed.
- Create and manage awarding scenarios.
- Create a purchase order or central contract.