TAFE NSW creates digital guidance for staff to use its SAP systems

TAFE NSW is using SAP WalkMe to guide its thousands of staff in using its procurement and expense management systems that are powered by technology from the same vendor.

Chief procurement officer Nicole Cutler told the SAP NOW AI Tour in Sydney that SAP Ariba and SAP Concur have “set a new standard” internally for the digitisation of key processes.

The government-owned public vocational education and training provider deployed both Ariba and Concur back in 2019 to manage procure to pay, general expenses and invoicing.

Cutler said that over time, the focus has shifted from what the SAP technology is able to digitise, to supporting staff in using the two systems.

That has led to the implementation of WalkMe, which is designed to guide users in how to interact with SAP’s various technology platforms.

“The platform can be integrated on systems such as Ariba and Concur, providing users with clear, step-by-step guidance and actions required at each stage of a process,” Cutler said.

“In an organisation of 17,000 employees, clear, consistent guidance on required actions and data inputs is essential to ensuring accuracy and efficiency.”

A case study suggests that WalkMe has been in use for about a year, with most interactions around Ariba, and a small but growing number for Concur.

The technology has led to “greater user self-sufficiency” and a 24 percent reduction in support calls and tickets being lodged, according to the case study.

“It means employees can access guidance directly within the platform, reducing the need to leave the system, contact the help desk or refer to external resources such as quick reference guides,” Cutler said.

The on-hand guidance also means fewer data entry errors.

“Importantly, the data being entered into the system has improved significantly which enhances the reliability and value of back-end reporting,” Cutler said.

During the presentation, it was also revealed that TAFE NSW is in the process of adopting Ariba Category Management, a spend classification tool that is marketed by SAP as being AI-assisted.

Edited, 29/10: The article was updated to reflect that Ariba and Concur were both deployed in 2019.