SAP Ariba for ExxonMobil Suppliers: How to Avoid SAP Fees, Improve Cash Flow, and Automate Invoice Submission

Everything you need to know before ExxonMobil makes the transition to SAP Ariba. How Enter My Invoice can automate your accounts receivable invoices to save hours of work per week and cut internal labour costs by eliminating the need for an SAP Ariba Enterprise account.

Table of Contents


What is changing for ExxonMobil suppliers
What is SAP Business Network
Do ExxonMobil suppliers need to manage SAP Ariba themselves?
How does EnterMyInvoice work?
Why might this matter to ExxonMobil suppliers?
Keep the invoicing system simple
What should ExxonMobil suppliers do before the transition?
A simpler way to submit ExxonMobil invoices
Preparing for the GEP Smart to SAP Ariba transition?
Contact EMI

About This Article:

If your company supplies goods or services to ExxonMobil, you may already be preparing for a change in how you manage purchase orders and invoices.

ExxonMobil is transitioning supplier processes from GEP Smart to SAP Business Network, commonly referred to as SAP Ariba. For suppliers being onboarded to SAP Business Network, this means becoming familiar with a new platform, higher costs, and a new process for submitting invoices.

For some businesses, the transition may be straightforward. For others, it can mean another system to learn, another login to manage, and more manual data entry for accounts payable teams.

The good news is that with Enter My Invoice, you can automate your invoice submissions into SAP Ariba without needing to pay for an SAP Ariba Enterprise account.

What is changing for ExxonMobil suppliers?

ExxonMobil is moving certain supplier processes to SAP Business Network. According to ExxonMobil, suppliers who have been onboarded to SAP Business Network should use the instructions and support resources provided by ExxonMobil. Suppliers who have not been onboarded should continue following their current process.

The transition also includes the recreation of purchase orders from GEP to SAP Business Network. ExxonMobil provides specific resources to help suppliers understand this process.
For suppliers who have been onboarded, one of the most important changes is understanding how invoices will be submitted.
ExxonMobil currently states that invoices for suppliers onboarded to SAP Business Network should be submitted through SAP Business Network.

That means businesses that previously relied on GEP Smart for parts of their ExxonMobil invoicing workflow may need to adjust their process.

What is SAP Business Network?

SAP Business Network is a platform that allows companies and their suppliers to exchange procurement documents electronically.

For ExxonMobil suppliers, the platform can be used for activities including:

  • Purchase order confirmations
  • Service Entry Sheets (SES)
  • Advanced Shipping Notices (ASN)
  • Invoice submission

ExxonMobil provides instructions for these processes through its SAP Business Network supplier resources.
For a company that already has an accounting or invoicing system, however, moving to another platform can create an additional administrative step.

Instead of simply creating an invoice using your existing system, your team may now need to work with SAP Business Network to submit the invoice and make sure the required information is entered correctly.

Do ExxonMobil suppliers need to manage SAP Ariba themselves?

This is where the transition can become confusing.
SAP Business Network has different supplier account and submission options, and the setup can depend on the supplier’s circumstances and the method being used.
ExxonMobil provides onboarding instructions for suppliers moving onto SAP Business Network, so suppliers should follow the instructions they receive from ExxonMobil.

However, EnterMyInvoice provides a way for suppliers to simplify the invoice submission process without needing to pay for an SAP Ariba account, or having to manually enter their invoice information into SAP Business Network themselves.

How does EnterMyInvoice work?

EnterMyInvoice allows your supplier company to utilize the free version of SAP Ariba, eliminates double data entry and saves time and money on internal labour costs with our automated invoice and ticket submission platform:        

  • Get paid faster         
  • No setup fee         
  • No Fee for adding a new customer
  • No Enterprise SAP account required

Accounts Receivable:

  • One Dashboard for all your e-commerce portals
  • No Mapping fees
  • No setup fees
  • Error messages emailed to users of the submission for correction and resubmission

The concept is simple: You email us your PDF invoice. We enter the invoice data into SAP Business Network for you.
The process works like this:

1. Create your invoice

Continue creating your invoice using your existing accounting or invoicing software.
You don’t need to change the system you already use to create your invoices.

2. Email the PDF to EnterMyInvoice

Once your invoice is ready, simply email the PDF invoice to EnterMyInvoice.

3. We extract the invoice information

EnterMyInvoice reads the information contained in your invoice and captures the relevant transaction data.
This can include information such as the invoice number, purchase order information, amounts, line items and other required invoice details.

4. We automate the information into SAP Business Network

EnterMyInvoice takes the information from your PDF and enters the transaction into SAP Business Network for processing with ExxonMobil.
Instead of your accounting staff manually transferring information from an invoice into another platform, EnterMyInvoice handles that data-entry step for you.

The result:

Your workflow can be as simple as:

Create invoice → Email PDF to EnterMyInvoice → EnterMyInvoice handles SAP Business Network submission

Rather than:

Create invoice → Log into SAP Business Network → Enter invoice information → Submit invoice

Save Hours Each Week By Automating Your Invoice Submissions

No need for an enterprise-level SAP Ariba account

Looking to cut costs in SAP Ariba and save hours each week? EnterMyInvoice automates your data entry into SAP Ariba.
Schedule a demo to view the platform and to learn how many hours your supplier company could be saving each week

Schedule A Demo

Why might this matter to ExxonMobil suppliers?

Invoice submission involves more than simply entering an invoice number and dollar amount, and SAP Ariba costs can add up.

The cost of an SAP Ariba enterprise-level account, added up with the cost per submission and percentage taken, can cost companies thousands of dollars. EnterMyInvoice removes these costs and allows your organization to utilize the free version of SAP.

ExxonMobil’s published invoice requirements include information such as the relevant purchase reference, ExxonMobil affiliate and bill-to information, invoice number and date, net and tax amounts, currency, purchase order line information where applicable, descriptions, quantities, unit prices and supplier information.
ExxonMobil also states that invoices with missing or incorrect information may be returned to the supplier unpaid.
For businesses that submit invoices regularly, manually transferring this information into another system can become repetitive and time-consuming.

That’s especially true for smaller suppliers where the same person may be responsible for invoicing, bookkeeping, operations and other administrative tasks.

Keep your invoicing system simple

One of the biggest advantages of EnterMyInvoice is that you don’t have to completely change how you create your invoices.
If your company is switching to SAP Ariba, EnterMyInvoice sits between your existing invoice process and SAP Business Network.

PDF invoice → EnterMyInvoice → SAP Business Network → ExxonMobil

This allows your team to continue creating invoices the way they already do while avoiding the need to manually transfer the invoice information into SAP Business Network.

What should ExxonMobil suppliers do before the transition?

If your company is an ExxonMobil supplier preparing for the move from GEP Smart to SAP Business Network, there are several things worth doing now.

1. Confirm whether you’ve been onboarded

ExxonMobil says suppliers who have not been onboarded to SAP Business Network should continue following their current process. If you have been onboarded, review the SAP Business Network instructions provided by ExxonMobil.

2. Review ExxonMobil’s invoice requirements

Make sure your invoices contain the information required for processing.
This can include your purchase order or other applicable purchase reference, correct ExxonMobil bill-to information, invoice details, goods or services information and supplier details.

3. Decide how you want to handle invoice submission

You can manage the SAP Business Network process internally, or you can use a service such as EnterMyInvoice to handle the invoice data-entry and submission process for you.

4. Test your workflow

Don’t wait until your first invoice needs to be submitted through the new system.
Make sure your team knows what needs to happen once an invoice is created and who is responsible for getting it submitted.

5. Consider how much manual work you want to take on

If your company only submits a small number of invoices, managing SAP Business Network internally may be relatively simple.
If you submit invoices regularly, however, manually transferring invoice information into another platform can quickly become another administrative task for your accounting team.

A simpler way to submit ExxonMobil invoices

The move from GEP Smart to SAP Business Network doesn’t mean your entire invoicing process needs to change.

EnterMyInvoice is designed to make the invoice submission process simpler for ExxonMobil suppliers.
Instead of manually entering the information from every invoice into SAP Business Network, you can simply send your PDF invoice to EnterMyInvoice.
We extract the relevant information from the invoice and enter the transaction into SAP Business Network for you.

You continue creating your invoices the way you already do. We handle the SAP Business Network data entry and submission.
EnterMyInvoice also does not require the supplier to set up an SAP Ariba Enterprise Account in order to use the service.

For businesses that don’t want to spend time learning another procurement platform or manually entering invoice information, this can provide a much simpler way to adapt to the transition.

Preparing for the GEP Smart to SAP Ariba transition?

If you’re an ExxonMobil supplier preparing for the move from GEP Smart to SAP Business Network, now is a good time to review your invoice submission process.
You don’t necessarily need to change the invoicing system you already use.
Simply email your PDF invoice to EnterMyInvoice, and we’ll handle the SAP Business Network data entry and submission for you.

Learn more about EnterMyInvoice and see how you can simplify invoice submission, cut submission costs, and improve cash flow for your business.

Automate Invoice Submissions Into SAP Ariba

Ready to get started? Connect with a team member to learn more about how your organization can streamline data entry into SAP Ariba using EnterMyInvoice.

Let’s Talk