Ariba introduces the Networked Enterprise

Telecom Lead America: Ariba, a provider of collaborative
business commerce solutions, has unveiled the Networked Enterprise a new,
connected way of operating that will drive the future of business commerce
at Ariba LIVE 2012.


The company said that inefficient commerce costs hundreds
of billions of dollars each year in missed sales opportunities, higher
operating and supply chain costs, and slower cash flow.


The company’s business networks provide an easy way to
link and coordinate a virtual ‘extraprise’ of partners into a shared community
executing improved and coordinated processes in a more informed way than in the
past.


At its core, the Networked Enterprise is all about
relevant connections and efficient collaboration. Businesses realize that they
can no longer be competitive on their own. With supply chains that stretch
around the globe, they are more reliant on external partners. And as a result,
sharing information and coordinating processes is critical,” said Bob
Calderoni, chairman and CEO of Ariba.


The company added that companies are looking beyond the
traditional view of IT to extend their procurement, sales, and finance
processes and systems outside their four walls.


Furthermore, companies want to discover, connect, and
collaborate more efficiently with their trading partners, and they want to do
it all as easily as they do in their personal lives.


When shopping on Amazon, you don’t worry about
connecting to each individual merchant. When it comes time to pay, you don’t
worry about integrating into each individual bank or Credit Card Company. It’s
all done for you within the Network. Whether you’re buying a book or a blender,
you get the same simple shopping experience. It’s all transparent and easy for
the end user,” Calderoni added.


By combining cloud-based applications for collaborative
commerce with the Ariba Network, Ariba enables companies to do just this – anywhere, at any time from any
device.


The Ariba Network is the largest business trading
community, used by companies around the world to transact more than $300
billion on an annual basis.


Ariba acquires b-process, France’s electronic invoice network

Last year, Ariba closed the acquisition of
b-process, a privately-held provider of France’s largest electronic invoice
network and one of the largest e-invoicing networks in Europe. 


[email protected]