Issue

The purpose of this Key Decision Document (KDD) is to elaborate on the recommended Sourcing tool for large capacity events with the new S/4HANA Cloud Private Edition SAP ERP system.

Decision

Keelvar integrated with SAP Ariba Sourcing is recommended as the Sourcing tool for large capacity events for Syensqo. This recommendation is based on several key factors, including seamless integration capabilities with S/4HANA, comprehensive sourcing features, and the strategic alignment within the SAP ecosystem. 

Background & Context

At the moment, large-capacity events (primarily for logistics with hundreds of items) are initiated in SAP Ariba Sourcing from where they are redirected to Keelvar. This is primarily because of the limitations on large capacity events in SAP Ariba Sourcing.

SAP Ariba Sourcing at Syensqo is a tool used to manage the whole sourcing lifecycle process and Keelvar complements this solution by providing optimisation capabilities. Users trigger the desired sourcing event in SAP Ariba Sourcing and then send it to Keelvar. Within Keelvar, the SAP Ariba-initiated event is created and launched, bids are collected and validated, cost models are built, and optimised award scenarios are analyzed.

Below is the existing process flow between SAP Ariba Sourcing and Keelvar. The final award data is not currently sent automatically to SAP Ariba; instead, buyers are expected to manually update Ariba Events, which quite often does not happen.

There is no SAP Ariba Contracts module at the moment, therefore the flow ends in Keelvar and all contracts have to be created manually.

Assumptions

SAP Ariba Sourcing will be used in the future as the preferred solution that automates and streamlines the sourcing process.

Constraints

• Ariba Sourcing does not support more than 10,000 line items. Keelvar does not have this limitation, which could lead to problems in rare cases where use of Keelvar results in more than 10,000 items. 
• Keelvar will only be used for sourcing for logistics where line items on sourcing events are not linked to material master. 

Impacts

Recommended solution, facilitated by SAP Ariba Sourcing with Keelvar, can significantly impact business operations and project outcomes by enhancing efficiency, reducing costs, improving decision-making, and fostering better supplier relationships. While there are many benefits, we should also be mindful of the challenges, such as the initial investment in infrastructure and the need for training to ensure user adoption.

Business Rules

Currently, no specific business rules have been identified. Further updates may be determined during the detailed design phase.

Options considered

When comparing the management of large capacity events in SAP Ariba Sourcing versus Keelvar, it's essential to focus on how each platform supports the execution, efficiency, and strategic outcomes of such events and what are their limitations. Both platforms are designed to enhance procurement processes, but they do so with different emphases and technological approaches.

Option A: SAP Ariba Sourcing

Kee Features:

• End-to-End Solution: Offers a complete suite of tools for managing the entire sourcing process, from supplier discovery and bidding to contract management and payment, which is beneficial for large-scale procurement activities.

• User Interface and Usability: SAP Ariba Sourcing offers a robust platform that can handle complex sourcing events. The user interface is professional and designed to manage the end-to-end procurement process, though it may have a steeper learning curve for new users due to its extensive functionalities.

• Comprehensive Integration: Ariba's seamless integration with other SAP products and external ERP systems allows for a unified procurement process, which is crucial for managing the complexity of large capacity events.

Limitations:

SAP Ariba Sourcing has limits for the number of content items.

• Standard-capacity and simple-capacity events can contain up to 2k items
• Large-capacity events with up to 10k items are supported only as non-competitive RFPs (suppliers cannot see rank when bidding). The most importantly, the contents for large-capacity RFPs can be accessed only using Excel spreadsheets and are not directly visible in the user interface. In addition, large-capacity RFPs are supported only in Classic sourcing RFPs (not in Guided Sourcing).

Option B: Keelvar integrated with SAP Ariba Sourcing

Key Features:

• User-Friendly Interface: Designed with a focus on usability, Keelvar offers an intuitive platform that simplifies the management of complex sourcing events with thousands of items. The contents of large-capacity events are visible in the user interface.

• AI and Automation: Keelvar emphasises the use of artificial intelligence and automation to streamline sourcing processes. This can significantly enhance efficiency and outcomes for large capacity events by optimising bidding strategies and analysing complex scenarios.

• Dynamic Bidding: The platform supports advanced bidding mechanisms, such as dynamic and expressive bidding, which can be particularly advantageous in large capacity events for achieving optimal cost and value.

• Comprehensive Integration: Keelvar SAP Ariba Connector provides seamless integration with SAP Ariba Sourcing.
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  • The data synchronisation between the systems:
    • Supplier data is synchronised from Ariba to Keelvar in real-time
    • Line item data is synchronised from Ariba to Keelvar only if it is defined in Ariba in the first place. Otherwise, it should be synchronised from Keelvar to Ariba
    • Bid data is synchronised from Keelvar to Ariba
    • Event state is synchronised from Keelvar to Ariba

Evaluation

Both SAP Ariba Sourcing and Keelvar offer compelling features for managing large-capacity sourcing events. Due to the SAP Ariba Sourcing limitations the recommended solution for large-capacity events is As Is solution “Keelvar integrated with SAP Ariba Sourcing” (large-capacity event initiated in SAP Ariba Sourcing and executed in Keelvar).

Recommended enhancements to the existing set up:

• Enable bidirectional integration between SAP Ariba Sourcing and Keelvar – awards from Keelvar are transferred automatically back to SAP Ariba Sourcing
• Fully integrate SAP Ariba Sourcing with the future SAP S/4HANA ERP system and with SAP Ariba Contracts and SAP Ariba Supplier Lifecycle and Performance, in order to ensure a cohesive source to pay ecosystem that supports end-to-end sourcing and procurement processes, from supplier discovery to sourcing, contract management and performance monitoring.

See also

Change log

Workflow history