RFQ – New Features & Enhancements
This article covers new features we have developed to enhance the RFQ module.
If you are using RFQs, RFPs, and RFIs, you know how important is to have flexibility around your process, while still maintaining simple and intuitive rules.
To solve these challenges, we’re excited to announce the new Request module – a powerful new suite of features and enhancements to offer you the full flexibility to build your sourcing events.
Three different event types
As part of the New RFQ module roll-out, we have now 3 different event types.
Form – this type of event can be used when the buyer needs to publish a sourcing event with no end time. The Form has 6 sections: General Information, Settings, Suppliers, Documents, Items, and Questions. The user can choose when to manually close the event.
RFI – Request for Information – this type of event can be used when you need to gather information and qualify your suppliers. As compared to RFQs or Forms, an RFI has only 5 sections: General Information, Settings, Suppliers, Documents, and Questions. The items section is not available for this type of event.
RFQ – Request for quotation – this type of event can be used when you need to receive responses/quotes for the products and services you want to purchase, and also qualify suppliers through the questionnaire. An RFQ has 6 sections: General Information, Settings, Suppliers, Documents, Items, and Questions.
User experience enhancements
1. “Description” field – rich text editor added
The text from the “Description” field can now be edited. The text editor allows you to perform common text formatting like: bold, italic, change the size of text, alignment of the text, insert the numbered list or bullet list, change text color, highlight, and also add a link or insert an image.
2. “Suppliers” section – option to filter, search, and group by
You can now apply multiple filters when choosing suppliers that you need to add to your sourcing events. Also, you can “Search” and “Group by” as needed.
New features
1. Items section – manage and create new items templates
For all your RFQs and Forms, you can easily create new multiple items templates. Once you have several templates created, you can simply choose from the dropdown the one that fits best for your event.
Hyper-customizable templates, so that you can build complex templates with formulas and validation:
- Multiple types of fields are available, like: date format, dropdown, checkbox, calculated formulas
- The option to choose either field is visible to the buyer and/or supplier
- Option to allow only buyer or only supplier to edit a field
- Drag to resize columns width
- Option to quickly save a template as a “Master template
The supplier view option has been added for the items template. One click and you can see exactly how suppliers will view the Items section.
2. Conditioned question
You can use this option to either show or hide certain questions in a questionnaire. Therefore, suppliers will have to answer them only depending on their previous answers. Once a buyer adds one or more conditioned questions, on the supplier’s response page, the question list will automatically update depending on their answer.
To set up a conditioned question, follow 3 simple steps:
- Choose “Conditioned question” option
- Select the main question & answer which will trigger the condition
- Choose if this question needs to show or hide from the question list, once triggered
Please note that for the conditioned question, you can select a parent question, only Multiple choice or single choice type of questions.
3. Statement – “Questions” section
Helps you to add extra details or a headline, before the question or after the question.
4. “Pause” an active RFQ
You can choose to pause an event, in case you need to add more items or additional questions. You have the option to show an alert banner to suppliers, or not. If you choose to show the banner, the suppliers will see a pop-up on their response page and will know the reason for which the event was paused. During the pause period, suppliers will no longer be able to submit their responses.
5. “Resume” an RFQ
Once you finish editing an event, you need to resume it in order to allow suppliers to further submit their responses. Just click “Resume” and now we can move all the supplier’s answers back to draft ( applicable only for the suppliers that have already submitted their response), and choose to show them a banner regarding the event being resumed. After this process, the supplier will see a pop-up, similar to the one that appeared when Pausing the event.
You can choose to send the supplier’s response back to draft when the changes made for the RFQ will definitely have an impact on their already submitted response. After this, the supplier needs to review the changes (new items or questions), complete all the extra items & questions, and then submit his response once again.
Are you stuck somewhere? Don’t worry, we’re here for you. Drop us a mail at support@prokuria.com and we’ll get back to you.