We live in a new world - a world in which companies can move beyond traditional supply chain management and leverage the power of social and business networks and advanced analytics to enhance collaboration, gain new insights, and drive new levels of productivity. Tim Minahan, Senior Vice President of Network Strategy for Ariba, an SAP Company, helped to create this world, providing the vision for a new, more connected and collaborative way of operating and the leadership to make it a reality. And for this, he has been named to the 2013 Supply & Demand Chain Executive Pros to Know.

“The number of issues that can present themselves in today’s global business environment truly run the gamut—from a dysfunctional product component found within a manufacturer’s tier three level of the supply chain to clarifying a business’s procurement strategy for reduced costs,” said Barry Hochfelder, Editor, Supply & Demand Chain Executive. “The ‘Pros to Know’ awards are designed to provide recognition for the efforts that leading executives are making to overcome these challenges by improving business functionality and in turn, progressing the global supply chain.”

Over the past few decades, companies have spent billions of dollars in personnel, reengineering, and systems to improve their internal process and information flows. They’ve made great strides in sharing information and collaborating internally between departments and employees. But these islands of efficiency remain disconnected from the outside world and often fall down where it matters most – when buying, selling, or exchanging cash with other businesses.

Industry research finds that, despite the advances business applications have made within the four-walls of the enterprise, more than 80% of POs, Invoices, and other business-to-business transactions still take place offline - involving lots of paper, people and inefficiency. By some estimates, this inefficiency costs business hundreds of billions of dollars each year in missed sales opportunities, higher operating and supply chain costs, and slower cash flow cycles. And that’s a huge problem.

But it’s one that Minahan knew Ariba could help to solve if the company could convince executives that the social tools and networks they use to manage their personal lives could drive fundamental improvements in their business.

So Minahan set about painting the vision for a new, more collaborative operating model for business – one where companies and their systems are connected to digital communities of existing and potential partners. A model through which sellers can quickly find new business opportunities with a network of prospective buyers, with budget, in the buying cycle. A model that enables buyers to efficiently discover and qualify new sources of supply and track and coordinate orders across their supply chain – all in real-time. A model where any company can have transparency into payables and receivables status to make informed working capital decisions.

And slowly, but surely, this vision began to take hold. Just as Facebook is the destination for people looking to more efficiently manage their personal networks and activities, business networks are the destination for companies looking to better manage their trading relationships and commerce activities.

Nearly one million companies, for instance, use the Ariba^® Network to discover, connect and collaborate with a global network of partners. And they transact more than $400 billion in commerce on an annual basis.

“Perceptive supply chain executives have come to understand that creating value means embracing networks of suppliers, customers, banks and other partners to gain new insights, drive new levels of efficiency, and deliver results faster,” Minahan says. “Far from your kid’s Facebook, business networks provide an ideal platform for companies to connect with employees, customers, partners, and suppliers and leverage those connections as a community to solve their most important business problems.”

Now in its 13th year, the Supply & Demand Chain Executive “Pros to Know” awards recognize both ends of the supply chain. This includes honoring the “providers,” which includes individuals from software firms, service providers, consultancies or academia who helped their supply chain clients or the supply chain community prepare to meet industry challenges. This also includes honoring the “practitioners,” e.g., those supply chain executives who demonstrated leadership by managing risk in the supply chain; provided competitive advantage; and delivered value to the bottom line.

Supply & Demand Chain Executive issued a call for entries in Q4 of 2012. Beginning in January 2013, the publication’s editorial selection committee reviewed close to 400 entries to find the applicants that best fit the criteria. The full list of 2013 “Pros to Know” awards winners is available today on www.sdcexec.com. Expanded awards coverage will appear in the March 2013 issue of Supply & Demand Chain Executive magazine and online thereafter.

About Supply & Demand Chain Executive

Supply & Demand Chain Executive is the executive's user manual for successful supply and demand chain transformation, utilizing hard-hitting analysis, viewpoints and unbiased case studies to steer executives and supply management professionals through the complicated, yet critical, world of supply and demand chain enablement to gain competitive advantage. Supply & Demand Chain Executive is a publication of Cygnus Business Media. Visit us on the Web at www.SDCExec.com and on smart phones and tablets at www.SDCExec.com/mobile.

About Cygnus Business Media

Cygnus Business Media reaches millions of professionals annually. As one of America's top business to business (B2B) media companies, Cygnus is leading the way in providing targeted content to top decision-makers and organizations. The company's corporate initiatives and organizational architecture are built with one goal: fully engaging audiences in Aviation, Building & Construction, Public Safety & Security, Agriculture vertical markets and a variety of other industries. For more information, visit www.cygnus.com.

About Ariba, an SAP Company

Ariba is the world’s business commerce network. Ariba combines industry-leading cloud-based applications with the world's largest web-based trading community to help companies discover and collaborate with a global network of partners. Using the Ariba^® Network, businesses of all sizes can connect to their trading partners anywhere, at any time from any application or device to buy, sell and manage their cash more efficiently and effectively than ever before. Companies around the world use the Ariba Network to simplify inter-enterprise commerce and enhance the results that they deliver. Join them at: www.ariba.com

About SAP

As market leader in enterprise application software, SAP (NYSE: SAP) helps companies of all sizes and industries run better. From back office to boardroom, warehouse to storefront, desktop to mobile device – SAP empowers people and organizations to work together more efficiently and use business insight more effectively to stay ahead of the competition. SAP applications and services enable more than 232,000 customers to operate profitably, adapt continuously, and grow sustainably. For more information, visit www.sap.com.

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