Driving Business Agility Through Strategic Supplier Lifecycle Management: The Why, What & How for a Global Semiconductor Leader

Would you consider it an improvement if supplier onboarding time dropped from 32 days to just 4—without compromising due diligence? We successfully delivered this transformation for a global client in the semiconductor industry, and together with the client, we’re proud of the results of our work.

Value Weaver got the opportunity with a global client to completely redefine, redesign, and reengineer their SAP Ariba Supplier Lifecycle and Performance (SLP) processes. What began as a request for incremental improvements quickly evolved into a comprehensive SLP redeployment initiative, addressing deep-rooted inefficiencies in the supplier registration workflow which was becoming a bottleneck for the business taking approx. 32 days on average to onboard even a low-risk supplier in indirect procurement category.

Challenge
The client had been operating SAP Ariba SLP for several years. However, following significant organizational restructuring, the existing supplier registration process no longer aligned with their evolving business needs. Key challenges included:

1. Low Adoption of the supplier registration and onboarding process across business units and finance was creating AP suppliers in finance system as a back door process.
2. Limited Due Diligence Capabilities—users were forced to exit Ariba to perform critical analysis, disrupting workflows. The process became people dependent where no one knew the end-to-end view of the status of due diligence for suppliers.
3. Lack of Transparency—stakeholders lacked visibility into registration status, leading to frequent helpdesk escalations. It was holding business back from doing business with more competitive suppliers limiting their agility and ability causing value leakage.
4. Compliance Risks—gaps in the process enabled business units to bypass formal onboarding, especially for legacy suppliers. CFO and senior procurement directors had incomplete and limited information on supplier compliance and associated risks.

A previous redesign attempt by their Global System Integrator (#GSI) failed to resolve these core issues and was ultimately shelved during the testing phase by the procurement leadership.

Our Approach
Value Weaver was brought in to drive meaningful change. Through detailed analysis of issue logs, stakeholder interviews, and process deep-dives, we concluded that incremental fixes would not suffice. A full-scale SAP Ariba SLP redeployment was essential.

We collaborated closely with procurement leadership and process owners to co-create a new, future-ready design. Our approach balanced business process requirements with robust system architecture, resulting in a solution that addressed user pain points, enhanced compliance, and streamlined workflows addressing limitations of SAP Ariba solution.

The Outcome
The redesigned SAP Ariba SLP solution delivered tangible business benefits:

• Agility & Cultural Alignment: A flexible, scalable process aligned with the client’s evolving operational culture, reducing their supplier onboarding time from 32 days to just 4 days (for low-risk suppliers)
• Risk Mitigation: Improved supplier vetting reduced exposure to high-risk profiles, with integrated due diligence within SAP Ariba system
• Transparency: Stakeholders gained clear visibility into registration statuses even when SAP Ariba had solution limitations
• Higher Adoption: User-friendly design improved engagement across teams with clearer instructions, help text and defined supplier risk framework
• Enhanced Compliance: System-driven controls ensured policy adherence and reduced manual workarounds.

Our Commitment
At Value Weaver, we drive outcomes through process innovation, stakeholder collaboration, and deep integration between business and technology. Whether you’re struggling with legacy processes, system inefficiencies, or compliance gaps—our team is ready to help.

Let’s Connect
If you’re facing similar challenges or simply want a quick health check on your current setup, reach out. In many cases, a well-thought-out redesign can deliver faster and more sustainable results than patching existing systems.

We can also help with better solution platforms which can provide better flexibility when it comes to managing, sourcing, supplier contracts and procure to pay processes.

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