This article is intended for buyers. If you're a supplier, check out our supplier help articles here.
This article will cover:
What is the Contracts Hub
The Contracts Hub is an all-in-one solution to manage contracts. It allows you to easily manage your contracts and supporting documents by storing them in the Contracts Hub. As a Buyer it allows you to easily view all contracts with a single supplier using filters and sorting tools as well as customize notifications to avoid missing any contract milestones.
In the Contracts Hub you can create blank contracts, create a contract from an awarded request or upload legacy contracts.
To learn more about Legacy Contracts please click here.
Creating a Contract Template
Templates serve as pre-formatted bases for contracts, offering guidance for creating new blank contracts. They play a vital role in standardising processes, including Summary, Details, Contract, Reminders, and Review & Exit criteria.
You can locate templates within the Contracts tab in the top left hand box to expedite the creation of new contracts.
Click here to learn how to create a contract template.
Creating Blank Contracts
To create a contract not linked to an Request:
Go to the Contracts tab.
Navigate to the Sent section in the panel on the left hand side.
Click on the + New contract button in the right hand corner.
Choose Blank contract.
Work through the Summary tab > Details tab > Contract tab > Team tab > Reminders tab > Review & exit tab, filling in all required fields.
What is the Summary tab?
The information required in the ‘Summary’ tab will provide an overview of the contracts basic details including:
Contract name
Contract overview
Start date
Expiry date
It will then ask you to fill out information on:
Custom milestones: These are checkpoints that will trigger a notification to remind you as the Buyer and/or other parties that the milestone has been reached.
Counterparties: Add any supplier company on the DeepStream network as a counterparty, then select which users you wish to add.
Spend data: Select the Contract value and currency. This field is for internal purposes only and is never visible to suppliers.
Products and Services: Search for the UNSPSC code you want to attach to your contract.
Reference Numbers: There will be an automated unique reference number which cannot be changed, however, you can also enter your own option reference number associated with this contract.
You have the option to attach it to an 'awarded request' when setting it up under the counterparties tab:
✏️ Please Note: any fields marked with an *are mandatory.
What is the Details tab?
The 'Details' tab allows you to import content from the request, including line items and documents meaning you don’t have to waste time re-uploading important documents or line items from your request or eAuctions.
⚡ Top Tip: For every line item or document you import across, the complete history will be imported too, giving you an end to end source to contract audit trail.
To add a page:
Click the Details tab.
Select the + Add Page button and name the page.
Choose the blue + Add Section button.
You can either choose to add Documents or Line items.
Documents:
Enter a Title.
Fill in the Description (optional) field to provide more instructions to the supplier on what the section contains or how to complete the requirements.
Upload your desired document and enter a description.
Select what you require from the counterparty by using the dropdown menu next to Requirements:
Accept the document
Accept the document or deviate
Upload completed document
Upload document or deviate
Upload requested document
For information only
✏️ Please Note: You will have the option to Bulk Upload by clicking the Bulk Upload button in the right hand corner, or Add documents one at a time by clicking the + Add document button.
Line items:
Enter a Title.
Fill in the Description (optional) field to provide more instructions to the supplier on what the section contains or how to complete the requirements.
Select the Section Configuration drop down and choose your supplier currency.
Fill in the Description, Unit and Quantity for your Line items.
If you wish to upload line items from a CSV click the 'More actions' button.
You can choose to Download CSV or Import from CSV.
✏️ Please Note: Users will only be able to import one version of a linked line item that appears in both an RFP stage and an auction stage.
What is the Contracts tab?
The Contract tab is where you upload your contract document to share with your supplier. This will form the basis of an exchange where both parties will agree on the terms and upload countersigned versions of the contract.
To add your contract document:
Click on the Edit button
Click on the + Add button
Click Browse and locate the file you want to upload
The ‘Description’ field will auto-populate the name of your file, but you can edit this before clicking Save
⚡ Top Tip: To make full use of our AI interrogator tool Quest make sure the document is in a PDF format. To read more about Quest click here.
What is the Team tab?
This allows you to add users to the account & assign permissions to them under the 'Team' tab. Permissions can be assigned based on roles, such as Contract Owner or Contract Team Member. Choose the users permissions for Summary, Details, Contracts and Reminders.
Creating a Contract from a Template
To create a contract from a template:
Go to the Contracts tab.
Navigate to the Sent section in the panel on the left hand side.
Click on the + New contract button in the right hand corner.
Choose From contract template.
You will be directed to the Templates section.
Hover over your desired template, a click + New contract.
This will automatically populate some of the fields with existing information from the request. However, you must still fill in any missing information.
Work through the Summary tab > Details tab > Contract tab > Team tab > Reminders tab > Review & Send tab, filling in all required fields.
Creating a New Contract from Awarded Requests
To create a contract linked to a Request:
Go to the Contracts tab.
Navigate to the Sent section in the panel on the left hand side.
Click on the + New contract button in the right hand corner.
Choose From awarded request.
A pop up will appear and ask you to select the previously awarded request you wish to use from the drop down.
Click on the request you want to use.
Select Create contract.
This will automatically populate some of the fields with existing information from the request. However, you must still fill in any missing information.
Work through the Summary tab > Details tab > Contract tab > Team tab > Reminders tab > Review & Send tab, filling in all required fields.
Line items from Awarded Requests
A linked line item is one that exists in a request and is copied from either a normal request stage or an auction stage.
To add in the linked line items click on the Import content button and select the line items you want to import before clicking Save.
In the example video below, the line items either come directly from the request details or the Auction. You cannot select both sets of line items. This allows users to select the best price from either the line item section from the request or from the eAuction.
Once selecting and importing your line items it will appear as below:
Creating Milestones and Reminders
What are milestones?
As mentioned above, within the summary tab you will be able to add custom milestones, these are used as checkpoints (e.g., a quarterly review) and will send a notification when milestones are reached. They are found in both the summary tab and in the reminders tab, however, you can only edit your milestones in the summary tab.
How to create a milestone:
Click Edit.
Select + New milestone.
Choose a name for your milestone.
Choose a date for your milestone.
Select the visibility, elect to hide your custom milestone from your counterparty by moving the toggle from Yes to No.
What are reminders?
Reminders notify you and/or your counterparties when a specific deadline or contract expiry is approaching or has arrived. You can choose when the reminder will be sent, associating it with either a milestone or an exact date and then customise how many days before or after the start date or the expiry date you would like the reminder to be sent.
How to create a reminder:
Go to the Reminders tab
Click Edit.
Select + New reminder.
Enter a name for your reminder.
Choose when the reminder will be sent: Milestone or Exact date.
If you select Exact date you can choose whether it recurs or not by switching the toggle.
Add any notes.
Click Next.
Choose who you want the recipients of the reminder to be:
Counterparty: All users on the counterparty team.
Internal: Selected users on your internal team.
Click the Create button.
✏️ Please Note: You can set up multiple reminders.
Negotiating and Agreeing a Contract
Once your contract has been sent to a supplier the Details tab will have a red exclamation mark to flag pages you need to approve.
Check you are happy with the details on each page click the Approve page button. Details of who approved the page, including the date and time will appear on each page and are logged in the audit trail.
✏️ Please Note: The supplier counterparty doesn’t see the approval flow it’s internal only, so they can still make changes to a page after it’s been approved, but don’t worry the platform will let all users know something has changed and what it is so you can re-approve it or ask any follow up questions.
Now all the pages are approved the contract document is unlocked and ready to be signed by all parties.
Go to the Contract tab and click on the contract document you want to sign.
A pop up window will appear where you can upload a copy of your unsigned contract
Click the Browse button to add your contract with any optional comments and click Upload new contract
The My Fields section of the pop up window will display the details of the file you have uploaded and in the Activity and Comments section on the left you can see any further detail including comments by clicking on the arrow to expand.
This will now send a notification to the Supplier to respond to your contract.
The supplier will have the option to upload a signed copy of the contract straight away or suggest edits.
If the supplier has suggested edits you can either Accept or Reject these within the same pop up window.
For Accept - you will need to upload the newest version of your contract based on the suggested edits
For Reject - you will need to advise reasons why you are not accepting these suggested edits
You can go back and forth with your suppliers following the same process until both parties are happy with the agreed terms.
When your supplier has uploaded a signed copy of the contract you will receive a notification to go back into the contract document pop up window to upload your countersigned contract.
In the My Fields section you have two options:
Upload signed contract - this is the final stage to complete the negotiation process on the agreed terms.
Upload new contract - if you still haven't agreed the final terms you can upload a newer version of the contract.
Once you have uploaded your signed contract the status will update to Signed.
The overall status of the contract will then change to Agreed pending start and once the start date of the contract is present, the status will change to Live.
✏️ Please Note: All of the back and forth negotiation details will be available in the ‘Activity & Comments’ section in the pop-up window as well as the audit trail.
For any further queries, please use our live chat feature or email: support@deepstreamtech.com