Southern Company Sourcing – Supplier Instructions for Documentation Template Response

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Southern Company Sourcing

This instruction document is designed to provide a step by step process to respond to an RFP

using Southern Company Sourcing – Documentation Template. Please note that required fields

have a red asterisk beside the field.

An extensive Supplier Tutorial can be found by clicking on Utilities-Tutorials option located in

the upper left corner of the screen after you have logged in to the system.

If you’ve forgotten your password, please utilize the 'Forgot your Login Name or Password?'

links available on the login screen, additional questions relating to your user id and\or password

can be directed to the Emptoris Customer Support.

Questions on how to use the Southern Company Sourcing System can be directed to Emptoris

Customer Support:

• Please contact support by sending an email to support@mainspringcg.com

• You may also report issues by phone: 484-791-2826

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Contents I. Accessing the Bid .......................................................................................................................................

3

1. Login to Southern Company Sourcing

................................................................................................... 3

2. Terms of Use

......................................................................................................................................... 3

3. View RFX

................................................................................................................................................ 4

4. Download Documentation

.................................................................................................................... 4

5. Accepting Bid

........................................................................................................................................ 7

II. Submitting Questions ................................................................................................................................

7

III. Submitting Proposal .................................................................................................................................

9

1. View/Respond to RFX

............................................................................................................................ 9

2. Adding attachments

............................................................................................................................ 10

3. Indicate Response Completed

............................................................................................................ 11

4. Submit the Bid

..................................................................................................................................... 11 IV. Revising or

Cancelling a Proposal .......................................................................................................... 12

V. Additional Instructions............................................................................................................................

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I. Accessing the Bid 1. Login to Southern Company Sourcing i. Enter your user name in the Name field. ii.

Enter your password in the Password field.

2. Terms of Use Please review Southern Sourcing Terms of Use Agreement and Click I Agree if you wish to accept the

Terms of Use. Southern Company Sourcing – Supplier Instructions for Documentation Template

Response

iii. Click the Login button.

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From the main menu select Bids > View RFx(s) and locate the RFx Name in the list of RFx(s)

a. Click on the Summary icon next to the RFx Name.

3. View RFX

4 . Download Documentation

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b. Click 'View General Attachments' at the bottom of the Summary screen.

Southern Company Sourcing – Supplier Instructions for Documentation Template Response

c. Review\print\save attachments to your computer and close the Summary screen.

d. Click on the file to download. Click Save to Save File to your local drive.

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e. Select Location where you with to save the document, then click Save.

Southern Company Sourcing – Supplier Instructions for Documentation Template Response

f. Once all the documents have been downloaded and saved, click close.

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Click on the RFx Name in the list of RFx(s) and indicate whether you accept or decline to participate

by clicking on the corresponding button.

Complete the required documentation outside of the Southern Company Sourcing system. Once you have completed the documentation, saved it on your computer, and it is ready to be attached and submitted for consideration.

II. Submitting Questions 1. From the main menu select Bids > View RFx(s). Southern Company Sourcing – Supplier

Instructions for Documentation Template Response

2. DO NOT USE THE MESSAGES TAB: unless you are intending on communicating with the users on

the system from your (Supplier) organization\company. Event specific messages need to be sent

using the 'RFx Messages' with the envelope icon.

5 . Accepting Bid

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3. Locate and click on the RFx Name in the list of RFx(s)

6. Click “Please Select”, Select All Hosts, Type in Subject, Type Question(s) in Message Section, Click

Send

4 . Click on RFx Messages

5 . Click on Create

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If additional space is required, you may attach a separate document with your questions.

1. View/Respond to RFX Access the RFx as indicated above in steps 1-4 within “Accessing the Bid” Instructions and click

‘View/Respond to RFx’.

III. Submitting Proposal

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2. Click on Place Response

Attach as many files as required per the inquiry package instructions, click ‘Save’ and then click

‘Close’. The limitation of the single file size is 50 MB.

2 . Adding attachments

Click on the paperclip icon.

Click on the ‘Add’ button .

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Notice the number next to the paperclip icon, this number should match the total number of

documents that you uploaded as part of your bid submittal. Indicate your answer to having

attached all of your responding documentation, click ‘Save’ and then click ‘Close’.

You must then click ‘Submit all Draft Bids’ to complete the bid submission process. Southern

Company Sourcing – Supplier Instructions for Documentation Template Response

3 . Indicate Response Completed

4 . Submit the Bid

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Click Close. Southern Company Sourcing – Supplier Instructions for Documentation Template Response

1. If your screen shows a Revise Bids/History Response button and an icon with an ‘R’ or ‘B’

then you have successfully submitted your bid.

Click OK.

IV. Revising or Cancelling a Proposal

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The number next to the icon represents the number of responses.

2. If you need to revise your bid, click the green Revise Response button, you are presented

with the Edit Response screen which is just like the Create Response screen. Click the

paperclip icon to make changes to your attachments.

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3. Click the Add Attachment button to add additional documents. You cannot change an

attachment directly in the system. If you have the file saved to your local computer, you

need to first delete the attachment by clicking the box on the right hand side of the screen

and then selecting the trashcan icon. Make your necessary changes on your local computer

and then repeat the Add Attachment process to put it back into the system. If you do not

have a copy of the attachment on your local computer, before you delete the attachment

make sure that you export the attachment first, by clicking the box on the right hand side of

the screen and then selecting the Export button. After you have saved it to your local

computer, you can then follow the directions above for deleting and adding the attachment

back.

After you finalize your attachment changes, Close the window.

Note: Please see the Created Date and time to verify your last update.

4. Select ‘Save’ to see the message ‘Changes Saved Successfully’ and then Close the window.

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5. You can also select the View History button from the event screen to see the time that you

last submitted the bid.

6. If you have successfully submitted your bid, it will have a status of ‘Submitted’.

7. If you want to remove your bid prior to the event close, you can do so from this screen by

clicking the box on the right hand side of the screen and selecting the trashcan icon. You are

asked ‘Are you sure….’

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8. If you select ‘OK’ the bid is removed and the status is changed to ‘Cancelled’. You may need

to change the screen filter to ‘All’ or ‘Cancelled’ to see the cancelled response on the

screen.

9. If you decide later, before the event closes that you do want to submit a bid, you can just

begin the process over.

If you would like to change your Accept response to a Decline response, or perhaps you

originally Declined and now you would like to participate in the event, from the Bids menu,

select ‘View Invitations’ to bring up a panel of both accepted and declined invitations.

10. From the ‘Accepted’ tab you are able to select the event you want to withdraw from and

then click the ‘Withdraw’ button.

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11. From the ‘Declined’ tab you are able to select the event you want to accept and then click

the ‘Accept’ button.

Keep in mind that this is just an overview of some of the features within Southern Company

Sourcing. You also have access to a very extensive tutorial available on the Supplier Home Page.

There are two ways to get to it, 1) click the computer icon next to the logoff icon in the right hand

corner of the screen or 2) highlight the Utilities menu and select ‘Tutorials’. Southern Company

Sourcing – Supplier Instructions for Documentation Template Response

From the Tutorial menu you can choose from an entire host of subjects.

V. Additional Instructions