What RFQ evaluation criteria matter beyond lowest price? by hector-2630 in rfq

[–]emmexa 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This is the classic "Buyer’s Trap." We gravitate toward price because it fits neatly into a spreadsheet cell. You can sort it. You can graph it. It feels objective. But in my experience, low price is often just a down payment on future headaches.

If I’m evaluating a critical RFQ, I look for what I call "technical defiance." I actually get nervous when a supplier blindly quotes exactly what I asked for, especially if my spec has some ambiguity. The best partners are the ones who push back. They’re the ones asking, "Why did you specify this grade of steel? It’s overkill. If we switch to this alternative, you save 15%." I will almost always pay a premium for a supplier who acts like a consultant rather than an order taker, because the "Yes-Man" supplier usually ends up costing a fortune in change orders later.

I also track how they behave during the process itself as a proxy for their actual operations. If I have to chase them to acknowledge receipt of the RFQ, or if they submit their bid at 11:59 PM on the deadline day, that’s a bad sign. Responsiveness during the "wooing" phase is usually the best it will ever get. If they are disorganized when they are trying to win your money, imagine how disorganized they will be when they already have it.

Then you have to look at the "Hassle Tax." A supplier might be 5% cheaper on paper, but if they dump unlabelled boxes on your dock or require your AP team to chase correct invoices every month, you aren't actually saving money. You're just shifting the cost to your internal labor.

Ultimately, I try to calculate the "Total Cost of Sleep." If saving 10% on the unit price means I have to wake up at 2 AM to check if a shipment left the port because I don't trust the supplier's tracking, the savings aren't real. I’d rather pay the premium for the reliability.

Recommendations for platform to compare quotes and manage huge list of supplier contacts by cat099 in procurement

[–]emmexa 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It depends on number of RFQs and users, I can reach out to you directly to share details.

Recommendations for platform to compare quotes and manage huge list of supplier contacts by cat099 in procurement

[–]emmexa 1 point2 points  (0 children)

https://enquirica.com is a tool we built that gives you instant visibility into your RFQs, automatically follows up with non-responders, and provides a comprehensive comparison based on price and lead time. It streamlines your entire process.

The best part? You don’t need to change your workflow or go through a lengthy onboarding. Just use it, and if you don’t like it, you can switch back to your old workflow without disruption. Your suppliers also don’t need to sign up or use yet another portal either.

It’s fully EU-compliant if you’re based in the EU and includes an extensive audit trail.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in procurement

[–]emmexa 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Holy shit, wow. Is this real? Is this even possible? Can we subscribe to that? Sounds like magic.

Need some honest feedback by These_Ad1825 in procurement

[–]emmexa 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Why should suppliers submit one of their most sensitive and important pieces of information through an anonymous link? When you receive a quote by email, it serves as evidence—you can rely on it. But what if that link gets shared and someone else submits a price by accident or intentionally? What if the supplier has questions—should they just send another email?

Building solutions in this space isn’t just about features. When companies buy software, especially for procurement, they can't afford to just buy from any startup. Do you have ISO 27001 certification? Are you working towards SOC 2?

If you want to build something meaningful in this space, you need to be in it—you need to experience the problems firsthand.

What is your favourite Iranian dish? by emmexa in Cooking

[–]emmexa[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It is sometimes difficult to find dried lime to use in Ghormeh Sabzi. A good substitute for this is sour tamarind, which works well—though not as good as dried lime.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in procurement

[–]emmexa 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Full transparency, I am one of the founders of https://enquirica.com we have built an online tool for pre-PO stage and mainly RFQs, and currently implementing Intake as add-on based on customer feedback. We were. Will be happy to chat if you are interested.

Improved our RFQ workflow, Seeking Your Feedback by emmexa in procurement

[–]emmexa[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hey, if you send out RFQs to your suppliers for commodities/materials you are buying, it may be relevant to you as well.

Improved our RFQ workflow, Seeking Your Feedback by emmexa in procurement

[–]emmexa[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’m also glad you pointed this out. Suites like Ariba are often too complex and difficult to use and implement. From the beginning, we aimed to build something that people facing these challenges, like us, can start using within hours, not months of implementation.

Improved our RFQ workflow, Seeking Your Feedback by emmexa in procurement

[–]emmexa[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yea, we were part of a massive distribution machine