Creating, managing, and using Request Templates
Many RFX questionnaires include standard questions. For example, there might be a section devoted to the vendor's operating history. The questions in this section might be relevant to every single RFX. Rather than typing them in each time, you can use a Request Template, which will load in relevant sections, subsections, and questions. In fact, you can load multiple templates into a single RFX. For example, let's say you're running an IT RFP and you have two templates that are relevant:
- Corporate Information
- Technical Support
You could create a single template that has both of those sections or simply have two distinct templates that are loaded into the RFX.
Creating and Editing Templates
To create a new template, click on Sourcing-->Request Templates.
From there, you'll be taken to a page where you can see the existing templates:
You can edit any of these templates, provided you have the appropriate user permissions in Vendorful, as well as create new ones. To create a new template, click the "Create Template" button. You'll be prompted to name the template. Enter a name that makes sense. (Don't worry, you can change it later.) Once you've completed that, you'll be taken to a page that looks like this:
If this page looks familiar, then you've probably created an RFX in Vendorful before. (And if you haven't, you can learn how do do so here.) Now that you're here, you can rename the placeholder section and subsection as well as add any additional ones you need. You can click "Add Question" to add questions one at a time or click with "Import Questions" button to bulk load via copy-and-paste or from a spreadsheet. When you're ready, click "Done" on the bottom right and the template will be saved and available for any RFX created by your organization.
Creating a Questionnaire Template from a Live RFX
Sometimes you'll be working on a sourcing event and will realize that the questionnaire might be useful for future events. If this is the case, you can easily create a Template from the RFX you're developing. Again, all you need to do is a click a button:
This will create a new Template, which can then be edited via the "Request Templates" link described in the first section.
Using a Questionnaire Template in an RFX
To load a template, click the "Load Template" button. If you want to load additional templates, just click the button and load more. Bear in mind that this is an additive process, i.e., loading a second template will add its sections and questions to the first; it will not replace it.
