At SAP, we practice what we preach. Our Global Procurement Office (GPO) leads by example, embracing our own innovative solutions. The GPO has fully integrated SAP Ariba solutions – including our AI-assisted SAP Ariba Category Management solution – into SAP’s procurement processes from start to finish. By using our own tools, we're not just talking about innovation – we're living
In a recent webinar with Procurement Leaders on best practices for leveraging AI in category management, Nouh Abed Asaad, Chief Operating Officer at SAP's GPO, discussed why he and his team are proactively implementing digital tools across procurement, with an emphasis on AI.
Exploiting Technology to Streamline Processes and Meet Corporate Objectives
The GPO uses SAP technology to expedite procurement processes, foster close collaboration with stakeholders, and ensure alignment with corporate objectives.
Throughout the webinar, Asaad highlighted the power of digital tools to help break down data silos and build bridges across the organization. "In the past, everyone had their PowerPoint presentation, Excel files, emails, and his or her own story,” he said. “With our implementation of SAP Ariba Category Management, our goal was to bring everything to one standard to show the business units what they get when they work with procurement."
This unified approach isn't just about consolidation; it's about enhancing the decision-making process. Asaad explained, "We're bringing actionable insights and additional data to our category strategy definition, not only connecting our own data and making sure it's accurate and correct but also enriching it with external market data to make better decisions to improve our category."
Asaad also emphasized how procurement plays a crucial role in meeting real-world business needs, particularly in sustainability efforts. "We have a clear commitment toour net-zero strategy,” he said. “Our scope 3 emissions are 70-75% of our total emissions. Without procurement, you will never meet your sustainability targets."
SAP technology has been pivotal in helping the GPO achieve key corporate objectives, from data-driven decision-making to sustainability goals.
SAP Ariba Category Management with AI
The GPO operates in three regional hubs – the Americas, EMEA, and APJ – across 40 locations worldwide, overseeing the purchase of a wide range of products and services for SAP. Whether procuring IT hardware or automobiles for the car fleet, the team uses SAP’s suite of procurement solutions, including SAP Ariba Category Management with AI, and often serves as an early adopter of new technology.
Category management is implemented by sourcing champions who play a critical role in optimizing spend and driving value. This approach delivers benefits across four main areas, helping to:
- Reduce system disruptions
- Support data-driven decision-making
- Ensure transparency and buy-in
- Review progress against objectives
SAP Ariba Category Management transforms the team’s ability to collect and analyze operational data, enrich it with external market information, and use built-in frameworks to strengthen recommendations for budget owners.
Asaad explains, "I’ve always made decisions based on my expertise, but the Category Management tool allows me to support these decisions with Porter's 5 Forces and the Kraljic Matrix. I know what I'm doing, but my budget owner needs to see that. The tool shows them the deep-dive analysis of the spend and the breakdown with the Kraljic Matrix, along with the market analysis using Porter's Five Forces. I've defined an initiative to help you, the budget owner, get better value for your money. With that you will get better stakeholder buy in, really showing how professionally we can optimize their spend and drive value."
The team tracks success and progress through KPIs like cost savings and supplier performance. By measuring and reporting on these metrics, they demonstrate procurement's impact on the bottom line and justify continued investment.
The Implementation and Change Management Process
The GPO’s journey demonstrates the power of thoughtful implementation and execution. From the initial three- to four-month rollout to ongoing usage, they've seen firsthand how strategic planning can drive transformative change.
To enhance awareness and adoption of the new solution, the team hosted several training sessions and worked closely with key stakeholders and budget owners. "We started category days where we brought the GPO organization together with key stakeholders, and each category presented their key strategy,” Asaad says. “Since then, we have done this on a six-month basis, showing the changes over time for each category and getting everybody onboard."
Through SAP Ariba Category Management with AI, the GPO can easily:
- Connect processes, data, and user experiences across systems
- Share recommendations based on supplier fragmentation, price variances, tail spend, supplier diversity, and more
- Make data-driven decisions with actionable insights and enriched supplier data
- Ensure transparency and stakeholder buy-in to manage change proactively
- Review progress against key objectives and clear metrics
AI enhances the team’s efficiency in understanding market dynamics and supporting optimal pricing strategies with key suppliers.
Adopting AI: Strategic Considerations
Many practitioners are hesitant to adopt AI due to lack of understanding or trust in the technology. "In my organization, 90% are really afraid of the solution and 10% are absolutely excited,” Asaad says. “It's changing the way we have to think in the future. The earlier you adopt, the better you will manage it."
And regarding whether organizations should implement AI solutions now or wait, Asaad advises, "You should have implemented it yesterday. If you wait until the tool is more mature, the challenges of adopting AI will increase. At this point, we're still smarter than the AI advancements and recommendations, so we can correct, interact, and learn and grow with the tool. If we wait, it will overwhelm us."
By starting now, teams can gradually develop AI expertise and help shape how the technology is integrated into key processes within the organization. Delaying adoption may result in a steeper learning curve and less control or understanding for how AI works.
Conclusion
By using SAP solutions, the GPO is not only optimizing procurement processes but also sharing valuable insights that drive product development and enhance customer value. This “SAP Runs SAP” approach demonstrates the real-world impact of our AI-powered procurement solutions and sets a high bar for excellence.
Listen to the Procurement Leaders webinar on demand to learn more about, Leveraging AI for Category Management.
