# Table A.1: Technology Sophistication in Sourcing

||**Manual Search**|**Computers**<br>**with**<br>**Standard Software**|**Mobile Apps or Dig-**<br>**ital Platforms**|**SRM**<br>**(not**<br>**inte-**<br>**grated)**|**SRM**<br>**(integrated**<br>**with**<br>**production**<br>**planning)**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|**Functionality**|Basic<br>functions<br>(e.g.,<br>manually fnding sup-<br>pliers in the yellow list)|Moderate features for<br>tracking supplier infor-<br>mation and managing<br>procurement database.|Good<br>features<br>for<br>discovering<br>suppliers,<br>comparing<br>options,<br>and<br>managing<br>basic<br>procurement tasks.|Extensive features for<br>supplier<br>management,<br>procurement,<br>contract<br>management, and per-<br>formance monitoring.|Comprehensive features<br>for<br>supplier<br>manage-<br>ment,<br>procurement,<br>contract<br>management,<br>and performance moni-<br>toring.|
|**Integration**|No.|Limited.<br>It requires<br>manual<br>import/export<br>functions and data en-<br>try.|Integrates<br>well<br>with<br>other digital tools, but<br>lacks customization.|Good integration with<br>other<br>procurement<br>tools,<br>but<br>not<br>with<br>production planning.|Seamless<br>integration<br>with production plan-<br>ning and other systems.|
|**Automation**|No.|Basic<br>automation<br>through<br>formulas<br>and<br>macros;<br>exten-<br>sive<br>manual<br>setup<br>and<br>maintenance<br>are<br>required.|Moderate level of au-<br>tomation for tasks such<br>as<br>supplier<br>searches,<br>basic order processing,<br>and communication.|Advanced<br>automation<br>for<br>supplier<br>selection,<br>order processing,<br>and<br>performance tracking.|High level of automa-<br>tion for tasks such as<br>supplier selection,<br>or-<br>der processing, perfor-<br>mance tracking, and de-<br>mand forecasting.|
|**Rank**|1|2|3|4|5|
|**Reason for the Rank**|Least sophisticated due<br>to complete lack of in-<br>tegration and automa-<br>tion, relying entirely on<br>manual processes.|Low sophistication due<br>to<br>limited<br>integration<br>and basic automation,<br>mainly<br>suitable<br>for<br>small-scale or manual<br>procurement processes.|Moderate<br>sophisti-<br>cation<br>with<br>decent<br>integration<br>and<br>au-<br>tomation,<br>but mainly<br>focused on task man-<br>agement<br>and<br>basic<br>procurement functions.|Sophisticated<br>in<br>sup-<br>plier management and<br>procurement with ad-<br>vanced automation, but<br>lacks integration with<br>production<br>planning,<br>limiting<br>its<br>overall<br>functionality.|High level of sophisti-<br>cation with specialized<br>integration<br>for<br>pro-<br>duction<br>planning<br>and<br>robust<br>automation,<br>though<br>focused<br>on<br>supplier<br>management<br>and production-related<br>|
||||||tasks.|
|**Technology**<br>**Exam-**<br>**ples**|Phone Calls, Personal<br>Visits, Supplier Cata-<br>logs|Microsoft Excel (1985),<br>Google Sheets (2006),<br>LibreOfce Calc (2011)|LinkedIn<br>(2003),<br>ThomasNet<br>(1898),<br>Alibaba (1999)|SAP Ariba (1996), Ora-<br>cle Procurement Cloud<br>(2010), Coupa (2006)|SAP Integrated Busi-<br>ness Planning (2014),<br>Oracle<br>SCM<br>Cloud<br>(2016),<br>Infor<br>Nexus<br>(2019)|
|**Cost**|Cost<br>of<br>phone<br>calls,<br>travel, accommodation,<br>and catalogs varies|Microsoft<br>Excel:<br>$150/year,<br>Google<br>Sheets:<br>Free<br>or<br>$6-$18/user/month,<br>LibreOfce Calc: Free|LinkedIn:<br>$59/month,<br>ThomasNet:<br>Free or<br>Custom<br>Pricing,<br>Al-<br>ibaba: Transaction fees<br>(varies)|SAP<br>Ariba:<br>Pricing<br>depends on enterprise<br>size;<br>Oracle<br>Procure-<br>ment<br>Cloud:<br>Starts<br>at<br>$625/user/month,<br>Coupa: $2,500/month|SAP<br>IBP:<br>Starts<br>at<br>$30,600/year;<br>Oracle<br>SCM<br>Cloud:<br>Starts<br>at<br>$350/month;<br>In-<br>for Nexus:<br>Starts at<br>$10,000|
|**Launch Year**|N/A|1985, 2006, 2011|2003, 1898, 1999|1996, 2010, 2006|2014, 2016, 2019|
|**ChatGPT ranking**|1|2|3.5|4|5|
|**Estimated time in a**<br>**task**|4 hours|2.5 hours|1.5 hour|1 hour|30 minutes|

Source: The table draws upon various sources of information including desk research, website of various companies including Microsoft, Google, LinkedIn, ThomasNet, Alibaba, Oracle, Coupa, InforNexus, and SAP. *CHATGPT estimates the time for selecting suppliers and managing orders, following similar characteristics of a given firm. The prompt for these estimates and CHATGPT ranking is available in the appendix.