CS-11 · Strategic Sourcing & Vendor Selection

📊

Process Flow Diagram (BPMN)

📋

L4 Process Steps

Step	Step Name	Role / Swim Lane	System	Input	Output	KPI	Dec?	Exc?
Phase 1 1.1	Capture and validate sourcing requirement	Category Manager	SAP Ariba Procurement	Purchase requisition or strategic sourcing request from business unit	Validated sourcing request with spend category code and business justification	Sourcing request processed within 2 business days of submission	N	N
1.2	Conduct spend analysis and category benchmarking	Spend Analyst	SAP S/4HANA Finance (FI/CO) + SAP Ariba Analytics	Validated sourcing request, historical PO data from SAP S/4HANA	Category spend cube, supplier concentration report, year-on-year variance analysis	Spend data coverage ≥95% of addressable spend in category; analysis completed within 3 business days	N	N
1.3	Assess supply market and regulatory landscape	Category Manager	SAP Ariba Supplier Risk + Dun & Bradstreet Direct+	Category spend cube, procurement policy, FAA/DOT regulatory requirements	Market assessment report with supplier landscape map and regulatory constraint summary	Market assessment completed within 5 business days; ≥3 qualified alternative suppliers identified per category	Y	N
Phase 2 2.1	Define sourcing strategy and evaluation scorecard	Category Manager + Legal Counsel	SAP Ariba Sourcing	Market assessment report, category strategy template, stakeholder requirements	Approved sourcing strategy document with weighted evaluation scorecard (technical, commercial, risk)	Stakeholder sign-off on strategy within 3 business days; evaluation criteria weighted and approved prior to RFx issuance	N	N
2.2	Build and issue RFI/RFP/RFQ package to suppliers	Procurement Specialist	SAP Ariba Sourcing (RFx module)	Sourcing strategy, technical specification from business unit, approved supplier invitation list	Published RFx with Q&A forum, supplier NDA, and submission deadline; ≥5 qualified suppliers invited	RFP issued within 5 business days of strategy approval; minimum 5 qualified suppliers invited per event	N	Y
2.3	Manage supplier Q&A period and receive proposals	Procurement Specialist	SAP Ariba Sourcing	Published RFx, supplier clarification queries, potential addenda	Clarification addenda issued to all bidders; sealed supplier proposals received in Ariba	Proposal submission rate ≥60% of invited suppliers; addenda issued to all bidders within 24 hours of Q&A close	Y	Y
Phase 3 3.1	Score proposals against weighted evaluation criteria	Evaluation Committee (Category Manager, BU Technical Lead, Finance)	SAP Ariba Sourcing (Scoring module)	Sealed supplier proposals, approved evaluation scorecard	Ranked vendor shortlist with technical and commercial composite scores	Scoring completed within 5 business days of proposal deadline; inter-evaluator score variance <15% per criterion	N	N
3.2	Conduct vendor due diligence and financial health check	Supplier Risk Manager	SAP Ariba Supplier Risk + Dun & Bradstreet Direct+	Shortlisted vendor list from scoring output	Supplier risk profile covering financial stability, ESG standing, and regulatory compliance status	Due diligence completed within 3 business days; zero unresolved critical risk flags at award recommendation stage	Y	Y
3.3	Conduct best-and-final-offer (BAFO) round	Category Manager	SAP Ariba Sourcing (Auction / BAFO module)	Shortlisted vendors, scoring results, commercial baseline pricing	BAFO submissions from shortlisted vendors, updated commercial comparison matrix	Cost reduction vs. baseline ≥8% for competitive categories; BAFO round completed within 5 business days	N	N
Phase 4 4.1	Prepare award recommendation and obtain DOA approval	Category Manager + Chief Procurement Officer	SAP Ariba Procurement (Approval workflow) + SAP S/4HANA Finance	BAFO results, evaluation summary, Delegation of Authority (DOA) matrix	Award recommendation memo with financial impact analysis; spend authority approval obtained per DOA tier	Approval obtained within 2 business days for contracts within CPO authority; 100% of awards documented against DOA matrix	Y	N
4.2	Draft, negotiate, and execute vendor contract	Legal Counsel + Category Manager	SAP Ariba Contracts + DocuSign	Award recommendation, standard contract templates, BAFO final submission	Fully executed contract with SLAs, liability caps, termination clauses, and insurance requirements	Contract execution within 10 business days of award; ≤2 redline round-trips on standard contract terms	N	Y
4.3	Activate vendor master record in SAP S/4HANA	Procurement Operations Specialist	SAP Ariba Contracts + SAP S/4HANA Finance (Vendor Master)	Executed contract with payment terms, banking details, and tax classification	Active vendor master record in SAP S/4HANA; contract record linked in SAP Ariba Contracts	Vendor master activated within 1 business day of contract execution; 100% contract data accuracy confirmed in Ariba Contracts	N	Y
Phase 5 5.1	Execute vendor onboarding and EDI/API integration test	Supplier Enablement Manager	SAP Ariba Supply Chain Collaboration + EDI/API Gateway	Activated vendor master, executed contract, integration specification	Completed onboarding checklist; EDI/API test results confirming PO and invoice transaction accuracy	Onboarding completed within 10 business days of contract activation; EDI transaction error rate <1% in test phase	Y	N
5.2	Establish vendor KPI scorecard and SLA baseline	Category Manager + Vendor Account Manager	SAP Ariba Supplier Performance Management + Tableau	Executed contract SLAs, historical baseline data where available, operations KPI definitions	Published vendor scorecard template; KPI dashboard live in Tableau for operational stakeholder visibility	Vendor scorecard published within 5 business days of go-live; ≥90% of contracted SLA fields populated at baseline	N	N
5.3	Conduct 90-day post-award performance review	Category Manager	SAP Ariba Supplier Performance Management + Tableau	Vendor scorecard, invoice data, delivery records, and incident logs from first 90 days	Post-award review report; corrective action plan (CAP) issued if SLA threshold not met	90-day review completed on schedule for 100% of strategic vendors; vendor SLA achievement ≥85% at 90-day gate	Y	Y

📋

Process Attributes

Identification

Process IDCS-11

L1 DomainCorporate Support Functions

L2 ProcessProcurement & Supply Chain

L3 NameStrategic Sourcing & Vendor Selection

L4 Steps15 across 5 phases

Decision Gates6 (all with iteration loops)

Exceptions6 documented

Swim Lanes (Roles)

Category Manager

Spend Analyst

Category Manager + Legal Counsel

Procurement Specialist

Evaluation Committee (Category Manager, BU Technical Lead, Finance)

Supplier Risk Manager

Category Manager + Chief Procurement Officer

Legal Counsel + Category Manager

Procurement Operations Specialist

Supplier Enablement Manager

Category Manager + Vendor Account Manager

Systems & Tools

SAP Ariba ProcurementSAP S/4HANA Finance (FI/CO) + SAP Ariba AnalyticsSAP Ariba Supplier Risk + Dun & Bradstreet Direct+SAP Ariba SourcingSAP Ariba Sourcing (RFx module)SAP Ariba Sourcing (Scoring module)SAP Ariba Sourcing (Auction / BAFO module)SAP Ariba Procurement (Approval workflow) + SAP S/4HANA FinanceSAP Ariba Contracts + DocuSignSAP Ariba Contracts + SAP S/4HANA Finance (Vendor Master)SAP Ariba Supply Chain Collaboration + EDI/API GatewaySAP Ariba Supplier Performance Management + Tableau

Key Performance Indicators

Capture and validate sourcing requirementSourcing request processed within 2 business days of submission

Conduct spend analysis and category benchmarkingSpend data coverage ≥95% of addressable spend in category; analysis completed within 3 business days

Assess supply market and regulatory landscapeMarket assessment completed within 5 business days; ≥3 qualified alternative suppliers identified per category

Define sourcing strategy and evaluation scorecardStakeholder sign-off on strategy within 3 business days; evaluation criteria weighted and approved prior to RFx issuance

Build and issue RFI/RFP/RFQ package to suppliersRFP issued within 5 business days of strategy approval; minimum 5 qualified suppliers invited per event

Manage supplier Q&A period and receive proposalsProposal submission rate ≥60% of invited suppliers; addenda issued to all bidders within 24 hours of Q&A close

Score proposals against weighted evaluation criteriaScoring completed within 5 business days of proposal deadline; inter-evaluator score variance <15% per criterion

Conduct vendor due diligence and financial health checkDue diligence completed within 3 business days; zero unresolved critical risk flags at award recommendation stage

Airline-Specific Risks & Pain Points

Airlines carry highly fragmented procurement across MRO, IT, fuel, catering, and ground handling — category ownership disputes between Finance and Operations delay sourcing initiation by 3–7 days on average

Fuel, MRO, and ground handling spend frequently sits in legacy cost centers not yet mapped to SAP Ariba Analytics, creating data blind spots that understate category spend by up to 20%

Aviation-specific supplier pools (e.g. FAA Part 145 repair stations, EASA-approved MRO shops) are narrow — market power asymmetry severely constrains negotiation leverage; fewer than 3 qualified suppliers in many technical categories

Flight Operations and Maintenance stakeholders frequently bypass procurement to negotiate directly with preferred vendors, undermining competitive process integrity and creating maverick spend exposure

Aviation technical specifications for avionics components and GSE routinely contain ITAR/EAR export control clauses requiring Legal pre-clearance — this delays RFP issuance by 3–10 business days and is not tracked within standard Ariba Sourcing workflow

RFx deadline extensions to accommodate late supplier queries inflate sourcing cycle time by 5–15 days; SAP Ariba version-lock on RFP documents can prevent late addenda from being distributed to all bidders simultaneously, creating legal exposure

Inputs / Outputs

Primary InputPurchase requisition or strategic sourcing request from business unit

Primary OutputPost-award review report; corrective action plan (CAP) issued if SLA threshold not met

←PreviousCS-10 · Data Engineering & Analytics Platform NextCS-12 · Fuel Procurement & Supply Chain→