Software Overview

This guide will introduce the concepts used throughout the software. We recommend reading this overview completely prior to diving in and using the software.

Special note about terminology

The terminology we use throughout this guide is appropriate for a reverse auction. The software is capable of running forward auctions as well. In these cases, the auction originator and bidder roles are reversed:

  • Reverse Auction
    • Originator: Buyer
    • Bidder: Seller
  • Forward Auction
    • Originator: Seller
    • Bidder: Buyer

Events

Events are the container for everything that happens during the sourcing process. They provide a mechanism for managing who will participate in the process, publishing documents and receiving responses, and collecting pricing in reverse auction format, as well as electronic price collection without reverse auction rules.

Above we see a visual representation of all the components within an event. Let's look at each component and understand what it means within an event.

Members

Members are the people who will interact with the software throughout the sourcing event. What a member sees is determined by what role they will play in the sourcing event.

Bidders: Bidders will read and reply to document packages and place bids.

Team: Buyer staff who will have the ability to make changes to the event.

Guests: Individuals who will have read-only access to an event.

As you progress through the sourcing event, bidders will move through "stages". These stages are used to control access to document packages and the price submission interface.

Document Packages

Document packages provide a means for buyers to publish information and files, and for bidders to respond by completing tasks and uploading files. An important aspect of document packages is their access level. Access to document packages can be limited to bidders of a particular stage. This allows you to progressively release documents to groups of bidders as they pass through from stage to stage.

Bidders interact with document packages by completing tasks and uploading attachments. Observers are able to see bidder responses, and editors are able to "flag" tasks that are not compliant. These flagged items will be reflected on the bidder's interface, indicating to them that they need to address deficiencies.

Lots and Line Items

Line items are the things you intend to purchase, which are organized into lots. You create lots and line items either through the web interface, or by uploading them using an auction layout spreadsheet.

When bidders submit pricing, they log in to the bidding interface, and select a lot. From there, they can submit prices on individual line items, or they can upload a spreadsheet with all their bids at once. The bids placed are validated against the auction rules, and bidders receive feedback in real time.

Lots

  • Provide a basic unit of organization
  • Have many line items
  • Auction configuration is set at a lot level
    • Timer parameters
    • Ranking algorithm
    • Auction type
    • Bidder screen layout

Line Items

  • Provide details about what is being purchased
  • Some line item specific auction rules are set at the line item level
    • Bid required
    • Ties allowed
  • Weighting is configured per line item

Running the Reverse Auction

During the reverse auction, buyers use the observer interface to monitor the bid. This interface provides a means to monitor and control an auction. From this screen, buyers are able to pause the auction, see which bidders are logged in, and monitor the time remaining.

The observer interface provides a number of different views into the bidding event, including a bidder overview, line item overview, and line item detail view.

  • Bidder Overview: Sums all baseline and bid information for each bidder, displaying overall rank, bid, and savings information.
  • Line Item Overview: Shows the 1st place bid for each line item, with bid and savings information.
  • Line Item Detail: Detailed information for a specific line item, including each bidder, bid amount, and savings information.

Together, these views provide a comprehensive, live-updated view into auction performance.

Reporting

Reports provide information about auction activity and bidding results. Once the bid has closed, buyers can run reports in several formats. Each format provides a different level of detail, with some reports focused on statistical auction performance, and others focused on providing a comparison of pricing submitted by suppliers.

  • Event: An overview report that provides information about auction activity.
  • Lot: Ranked bid tabulations and an audit log of all bids placed during the auction for a specific lot.
  • Line Item: Ranked bid tabulations and audit log for a specific line item.
  • Bidder: A comprehensive, side-by-side report of all bidders and all line items.

Tying It All Together

A typical reverse auction event workflow might look something like the list below.

  • Invite vendors to register
  • Interact through document packages
  • Build your auction (lots & line items)
  • Train vendors
  • Run the auction
  • Analyze results
  • Follow-up with vendors