Carmel, IN, January 31, 2019 – Determine, Inc. (OTCQB: DTRM), a pioneering leader in global Source-to-Pay and Enterprise Contract Lifecycle Management (ECLM) Cloud Platform solutions, announced today the release of the Determine Online Store, an Open Catalog Interface (OCI) developed to allow SAP SRM customers (and other ERPs) to rapidly deploy a best-practice catalog management solution and offer users an intuitive, Google-like search experience combined with an e-commerce buying experience.

Since SAP’s official announcement of the planned end of mainstream maintenance for SRM 7.0 by December 31, 2025, SAP customers have only two options: launching a complete Procure-to-Pay vendor selection process (a complex project with high organizational impact); or deploying an Open Catalog Interface connector for catalog management. The Determine R&D team has designed the Determine Online Store to provide a safer alternative for all SAP SRM customers, allowing them to save time while organizing a new strategy for the 2025 deadline.”

— Patrick Stakenas, President, CEO and Director, Determine, Inc.

What is an OCI?

OCI is one of the standard formats used by SAP Supplier Relationship Management (SAP SRM) and other ERP/Purchasing Systems when connecting to external punch-out catalogs.

It is used to define the field mapping between supplier catalogs and the SAP SRM shopping cart to ensure accurate data transfer between the source (supplier catalog) and receiver (SAP SRM). This standard format is used instead of XML or cXML code.

This integration allows users to find items in supplier catalogs and return them to SAP SRM for workflow approval, accounting assignment and subsequent processing — invoicing, payment, receipt, etc.

Determine is a flexible and powerful tool that adapts easily to our business challenges and the complexity of our organization. It’s also an easy-to-use tool for users, with an experience like that of e-commerce sites. We were able to verify it during implementation.”

— Cécile Ballé, Head of Management Control and Purchasing, Arkema

How does the Determine Online Store work for users?

The Determine Online Store allows users to seamlessly access both internal and external “punch-out” catalogs so they have everything they need in one place. The simplicity of the Determine interface offers an intuitive, Google-like search experience combined with an Amazon-like buying experience with almost no training. Users can get the right items or services they need quickly.

The “Buying path” doesn’t change for users. The buying journey starts in SAP SRM with the option to punch-out to the Determine Online Store. They build their shopping cart from approved suppliers’ punch-out catalogs and click “save” to have the shopping cart and line items transferred back to SAP SRM.

Procurement professionals know that the easier the purchasing experience, the simpler it is to ensure users purchase compliantly and get the right items at pre-approved prices and discounts.”

— Patrick Stakenas, President, CEO and Director, Determine, Inc.

Procurement benefits

The Determine Online Store is Catalog Management made easy for Procurement and e-Commerce teams:

  • Punch-out catalogs are managed and controlled through Determine Catalog Management
  • Items can be easily imported directly into the catalogs using an Excel template provided by Determine
  • Built-in supplier collaboration tools allow managers to maintain real-time catalog content updating with a dynamic edit validation process
  • Access to catalogs can be configured in the Determine Online Store to provide users with a subset of available catalogs most relevant to their role within the company. This makes finding items much faster and easier for end-users
  • Items needed but not found in either the internal or punch-out catalogs can be automatically requested in the Determine system and procured through a subsequent sourcing event

For more information and to learn how you can have the Determine Online Store connected to SAP SRM, and up and running within a matter of weeks, contact Determine.

MEDIA CONTACT

Rob Tacey
Director, Communications & Public Relations
[email protected]
(302) 897-3094

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