Mastering Advanced Sourcing with SAP Ariba & Keelvar - Webinar Recap

Procurement leaders understand that sourcing decisions are critical to supply chain success. By adopting integrated technologies such as SAP Ariba and Keelvar, businesses can enhance their sourcing capabilities and stay ahead in the dynamic market landscape.

In a recent webinar titled "Mastering Advanced Sourcing with SAP Ariba and Keelvar," industry experts Claudio Pinto (Senior Director, ISBN Partnership Development & Integrations, SAP Ariba), Garrett Thompson (Integration Leader, Keelvar), and Eddie McDaid (Chief Commercial Officer, Keelvar) came together to share insights and demonstrate the power of integrating SAP Ariba and Keelvar for optimizing complex spend areas like logistics, packaging, and MRO.

The webinar began with the background and evolution of Keelvar, before Claudio Pinto emphasized the importance of sourcing speed, cost savings, and operational efficiencies in procurement. He highlighted the significance of optimizing sourcing processes to meet both buyer and supplier demands effectively.

Claudio stated, "The importance of sourcing speed has changed and increased. That has changed because it's not just buyers' requirements, but it's suppliers' requirements too."

Eddie McDaid further explained that sourcing is the genesis of supply chain management, explaining the critical role that sourcing plays in defining the entire supply chain's lifecycle and value.

He said, "This is where you're making choices about who your buyers are, what you're buying, how you're buying it, how it's impacting your ESG performance, etc. So, nowhere is it more important than to get this right, and Keelvar certainly helps in that process."

"The importance of sourcing speed has changed and increased. That has changed because it's not just buyers' requirements, but it's suppliers' requirements too."

The integration between SAP Ariba and Keelvar was presented as a holistic solution for managing large and complex sourcing events. Large events tend to be complicated, Claudio said.

"They tend to have complicated award selections and allocations.

"It may occur at a time or maybe necessarily at a time when a direct spend event is occurring because there's a new product line that is coming out or you're adjusting supply because of some global events and such."

The speakers explained how Keelvar's optimizer works seamlessly with SAP Ariba to handle even the most intricate sourcing scenarios, with the help of onscreen slides.

The webinar also showed how the benefits of using Keelvar with SAP Ariba extend beyond financial gains.

Claudio shared, "If you think that an optimizer is encapsulating an excellent sourcing process, then the idea of autonomous sourcing is to take that process and make it more automated so that it becomes available to a much wider set of people within the organization."

Specific use cases for optimization were highlighted, with transportation and moral sourcing being two prominent examples. Eddie stated, "Anywhere where there's complexity is a good use case for optimization."

"Anywhere where there's complexity is a good use case for optimization"

The webinar featured a live demo from Garrett Thompson demonstrating the integrated solutions' functionality and capabilities. It concluded with a discussion on how utilizing Keelvar with SAP Ariba, organizations can pave the way for a more effective and agile supply chain, driving success in the ever-evolving business landscape.

Visit our SAP integration page for more information, or watch the webinar on demand here