A cheaper SAP Ariba alternative for small companies

SAP Ariba is a full procurement suite for large companies. It has separate parts for each stage of buying:

• Sourcing. Requests for quotes and reverse auctions, where suppliers compete on price.
• Contracts. Drafting, approving and storing supplier contracts.
• Buying and invoicing. Purchase requests, approvals, purchase orders and supplier invoices.
• Supplier management. Registering, checking and rating suppliers.
• The supplier network. Where suppliers sign up to trade with Ariba buyers.

A large company uses many of these together. A small company rarely needs all of them. So a search for "a cheaper Ariba" often ends at a smaller suite. It can still do too much overall, and too little of the part you need.

Start with the problem you're trying to fix, not the product you're replacing.

• "We pay too much, and we don't ask enough suppliers." You need sourcing: one request to several suppliers and prices you can compare. A sourcing tool does this on its own.
• "Nobody approves spending, and invoices don't match orders." You need purchasing (procure to pay, or P2P): requests, approvals, purchase orders and invoice matching. Look at smaller purchasing tools, not sourcing tools.
• "We need both, across many buyers and sites." That's when a suite starts to make sense, or one tool for each job.

Most small manufacturers and distributors start with the first problem. Their buying already runs through email, a spreadsheet and their accounting software. What's missing is a fair, quick way to get several suppliers to quote on the same thing.

Here's the sourcing step done well, with or without software.

1. Write the request as lines. One line per item, with quantity, unit and any spec your suppliers need.
2. Ask the right suppliers. Include the ones who quote regularly, plus one or two new ones for the lines you overpay on.
3. Send the same request to everyone. Same lines, same deadline, same currency. Otherwise the prices can't be compared.
4. Compare line by line. The cheapest supplier overall is often not the cheapest on every line.
5. Choose, and tell everyone. Give the order to one supplier or split it by line. Let the others know, so they keep quoting next time.
6. Keep a record. Note who quoted, who won and who never replied. Over time, that record tells you who to ask first.

Our guide on getting quotes from suppliers goes through each step in more detail. If you want suppliers to see where they stand and lower their prices before the deadline, read reverse auction software for small businesses.

• A free start without a sales call. You should be able to sign up and run a real request yourself. Large suites usually start with a demo and a quote.
• Suppliers quote without registering. A link in an email gets far more replies than a portal. Large suites usually ask suppliers to join their network first.
• Prices on the website. You should know what it costs before you talk to anyone.
• Your own suppliers first. The tool should work with the suppliers you already buy from, not push you toward a marketplace.
• A record of how each supplier behaves. Who quotes, who wins and who never replies. This is what makes the next request faster.
• Line-by-line comparison. With the option to give each line to a different supplier.
• An export you can use. A comparison report in Excel or PDF, so the result fits into the way you already buy.
• A setup measured in minutes. Large suites usually need a setup project. A sourcing tool shouldn't.

A smaller tool isn't always the answer. A suite is worth it when:

• You need one system from request to payment. Approvals, purchase orders, invoices and contracts, all linked.
• Many buyers across several sites buy from shared contracts. A suite keeps everyone on the same terms.
• Your suppliers already trade on the Ariba network. Your customers or your industry may expect it.
• You score suppliers on more than price. Some formal tenders weigh quality, delivery and terms in a set formula. Suites are built for that.
• Your ERP has to connect on day one. Suites come with those connections. A smaller tool usually starts with a file export.

If none of these fit, you're probably paying for parts of a suite you'll never use.

SourcingHQ is a sourcing assistant for small and mid-sized buyers. It covers the sourcing part of what SAP Ariba does.

Like Ariba's sourcing tools, it:

• runs live reverse auctions across many line items, with open or blind bidding
• extends the clock when a late bid takes the lead
• lets you give the whole order to one supplier, or split it line by line
• turns a plain-language request into a draft
• suggests suppliers from your own history, and finds new supplier candidates
• runs each auction in the currency you choose
• keeps an audit trail and gives your team shared access
• produces a comparison report you can export

SourcingHQ focuses on the sourcing step. Purchase orders, invoices and approvals stay in the tools you already use.

SourcingHQ is built around your own suppliers and what they've done before.

• Who to ask. It suggests suppliers from your own history, including the ones who never bid. Suppliers who bid often and recently come first among those who carry the item. A new account has no history yet, so the suggestions get better as you run auctions. You can import your supplier list from Excel to start.
• New suppliers. It can suggest new supplier candidates from the web, based on your location. Your company and supplier names are kept out of the search. Nothing goes into your supplier list unless you add it.
• From request to draft. Describe what you're buying in a chat, or forward an inquiry email. You get a draft auction with the line items filled in from the text. The AI doesn't invent line items or price limits, and you review everything before it goes out.
• Sending. Invitations go out in your company's name, and you can see the delivery status of each one. Suppliers bid from an email link without creating an account, and they never pay.
• Bidding. You choose the bidding rule for each auction. With free quotes, the default, each supplier quotes any price under the maximum you set and can change it before the deadline. With strict bidding, each new bid must beat the current lowest. A new lowest bid in the final 2 minutes resets the clock to 3 minutes, so the other suppliers have time to answer it.
• Choosing. When it closes, you get a comparison report in Excel and PDF, with an AI summary you can accept, edit or discard. You can give the whole auction to one supplier or split it line by line.
• Your record. You can ask the assistant who you invited, who bid, who won lines and who never bids.

The AI never sends, awards or contacts suppliers on its own. No other customer can see your data.

SourcingHQ has a free plan with 3 auction events and 1 seat. It isn't a trial and it doesn't expire, and the 3 events are a total, not a monthly allowance. Paid plans are a one-time payment that covers 12 months. Suppliers never pay, and every auction can have as many suppliers as you like. One auction you schedule uses one event, and if you cancel it before it starts, you get the event back. See plans and pricing.