How do I best speak about Intake & Orchestration?

[NMZ]

SAP Ariba Intake Management was released to market on October 24, 2025. In the many customer interactions I have lead since we have started to position our solution, I keep returning to two topics of discussion.

1. How the casual end user gets lost in a quagmire of fragmented procurement processes and guidance
2. How unique customer system and process landscapes are

The conversation on the casual end user experience is frequently about the lack of satisfaction end users have with their procurement experience. Anecdotally, we discuss the many systems end users are exposed to, the distinct user experiences they need to become familiar with, and lastly the missing process integration. I use these conversations to lead us into a conversation about our Demand Intake capability, also described as the concept of a single front door. SAP Ariba Intake Management has released a new AI-powered Demand Intake capability specifically targeting the casual end user. The intention of our Demand Intake feature is to provide clear direction and guidance, regardless of the end users procurement intent. In simple terms, our definition of ‘Intake’ is therefore two fold:

• Provide the casual end user with the ability to describe their procurement demand in natural language
• Provide the casual end user with a best fit path to their procurement need. The best fit path is ultimately a system recommendation that will guide the user to the most relevant custom process or to the relevant system.

What are the key value drivers of our Demand Intake capability?

Through effective Demand Intake, we minimise the uncertainty of which buying channel is the correct one to follow. But what happens once they are in the right buying channel? When a procurement organisation is well organised, it tends to mean well-defined categories that are underpinned by great systems and processes. For each category, there will be rules and policies that dictate the specific processes to follow. And yet, research shows that 60% of procurement categories remain without real influence from the procurement organisation. That means for many categories, end users might not be given the right guidance, or may not know where to find it. That can lead to a large volume of non-catalog requests. This becomes a burden for the procurement specialists receiving them, but is equally frustrating for the end user due to the lack of process clarity. The end-user wonders how long it will take, which activities need to be completed, and who is involved in the process.

SAP Ariba Intake Management can help. We enable customers to model their unique procurement processes using SAP Build Process Automation. By providing pre-modelled processes that considers policy nuances and industry guidelines, the customer can ensure that their end users are guided through the numerous activities often required before the Buying process is even executed. Approvals, budget checks, sourcing events, supplier management, all of these individual activities can be orchestrated pre-buying, guaranteeing that what is bought has truly been vetted for compliance purposes ultimately minimising maverick spend.

Let there be Light

Now that we have a definition of Intake & Orchestration in the context of the SAP Ariba Intake Management solution, let there be light. One last recurring theme I want to highlight is the lack of visibility given to the end user, also known as “the black hole”. No wonder when many processes look like this:

Process visibility and status transparency is key to the value of SAP Ariba Intake Management. The end user wants to see the light. To begin with, we aim to answer three simple questions:

• Where am I in the process?
• What activities remain?
• What is the status of the activity?

How do I best speak to my customers about Intake & Orchestration?

Start with the health of their organisation. As stated, research shows that 60% of procurement categories remain without real influence from the procurement organisation. Try to identify one category in which end users are particularly challenged. Engage the customer and work with them to review their procurement processes. Make it an objective to sketch out a process, perhaps in a hands-on workshop. With that foundation you will establish clarity on where end users and the procurement team feel the most pain. The closer you are to the process the easier it is to find a common understanding. It will be that common understanding that allows you to take advantage of the solution value drivers.