SAP Biller Direct Buy Side 2 
Technical Name of Business Function |
FIN_FSCM_BD_3 |
Type of Business Function |
Enterprise Business Function |
Available As Of |
SAP Enhancement Package 5 for SAP ERP 6.0 |
Technical Usage |
Central Applications |
Application Component |
Accounts Receivable Accounting Process Integration (FIN-FSCM-BD-AR) |
Directly Dependent Business Function Requiring Activation in Addition |
SAP Biller Direct Buy Side (FIN-FSCM-BD) |
You can use this business function to allow vendors self-service access to information about your accounts payable procedure and the status of open invoices. By implementing the business function you can also allow vendors to raise inquiries in the Biller Direct Buy Side portal. These inquiries can be linked to a particular invoice and are automatically stored as service requests in the CRM system, where they are processed.
By affording more information to vendors, and allowing them to create inquiries online, you reduce the need for calls to your accounts payable department. Where communication is required, the enhancements provide a streamlined and standardized workflow. Vendors are happier with the improved transparency, and demands on your accounts payable department are reduced.
Integration
Prerequisites
You have installed the following components as of the version mentioned:
Type of Component |
Component |
Is Needed Only for the Following Features |
|
Software Component |
SAP_APPL 605 BBPCRM 701 SAP_BS_FND 702 |
Features
Invoice Status
On the Open Bills page of the SAP Biller Direct Buy Side portal, there is a new column in the open invoices list which shows information on the status of each invoice. The values displayed in this column are customizable and are based on the payment blocking status or posting status (posted, parked) of the FI document concerned.
In addition, there is a new text field in the header area of the same page. This text field displays more general information on your accounts payable procedure and is customizable per company code. A typical entry in this field could read 'We pay bills on the last Thursday of each month'.
By displaying this information to vendors, you improve clarity and reduce the need for invoice-related inquiries.
Inquiries by Vendors
Vendors have two options for creating inquiries. In the first instance, on the Inquiries tab page of the SAP Biller Direct Buy Side portal, a vendor can create an inquiry directly, without reference to a particular invoice. A customizable dropdown menu gives a list of predefined reasons for the inquiry. After assigning their inquiry to one of these, the vendor can insert text in the Comment field and then send the inquiry. Once they have created an inquiry, a vendor can return to this page to check the status of the inquiry over time, or to add additional comments.
A vendor can also create an invoice-related inquiry from the Open Bills tab page by selecting an invoice from the list of open bills and then clicking Create Inquiry.
In both cases, the inquiry automatically initiates a service request in the CRM system, where it can be dealt with by an operative in your Shared Service Center.