We’re so glad you’re here!
PERSUIT is the global enterprise marketplace for legal services. We deliver data insights and an objective, defensible process for engaging outside counsel. In-house legal teams at the world’s largest companies use PERSUIT to select the right firm, team, and legal strategy.
This article will guide you through the key functionality of PERSUIT for strategic sourcing, and we offer so much more including relationship management and marketplace intelligence. Check out www.persuit.com for more!
Contents:
- Welcome Email & Account Activation
- User Profile
- Templates
- Creating a Request
- Managing and Evaluating Proposals
- Negotiating
- Completing your Request
Account Activation through the PERSUIT Welcome Email
When your PERSUIT account is set up, you may be sent an automated welcome email depending on your organization’s processes. Follow the Activate Account link to set a password and access the platform immediately at https://app.persuit.com/en/user/login/.
Note: if your organization has SSO/SAML set up for login, please view this article here for more information.
Pro Tip: bookmark PERSUIT’s login page for easy access.
User Profile
The first time you log in to PERSUIT, fill out and save the information fields on the My Profile page to complete setting up your account.
Templates
Templates allow you to draft requests efficiently so you can focus on matter-specific areas of the request that require more strategic thought and attention. We have an extensive library of 80+ pre-made templates spanning most practice areas created by our Legal Advisory team, who are the experts in legal sourcing and pricing.
You can access the template library in two different ways:
1. Use Case/Category carousels at the top of your homepage.
2. Create Request in the left hand menu - use the filters to find the most appropriate template for your matter.
You can also create and manage your own custom templates for your team that follow your company guidelines.
Creating a Request
After selecting a template, you can begin tailoring your request in the draft editor.
On the left hand side, you will see three main sections for you to complete:
Content section
Provide a summary of your matter/project, and lay out your needs and asks. Look out for the placeholder text, showing where you need to make edits.
For RFPs, use the Pricing section to define and customize a scope of work. You can ask for both a total price as well as adding individual pricing items at the bottom of the page - this will provide a clearer understanding of the cost drivers. You have flexibility with a range of pricing items and fee types.
Use the Questions section to qualitatively evaluate firms on e.g. strategy, experience, team. You should only ask questions that will influence your decision, so you may wish to edit or delete the original questions from the template. You can also choose between different answer types to guide and limit firms’ responses.
Our Diversity Module is an optional feature that enables you to capture insights into how your firm is prioritizing DE&I initiatives. It is a fixed set of four questions.
Settings and Timeline section
Timeline is for scheduling the proposal due date and (optionally) the Reverse Auction. We recommend giving providers ~5 days to submit their proposal, and using a deadline within working hours.
Note: Auctions can be added to requests that have already been published - view this article for more information.
Require Firms to clear a Conflict Check before they see the full request information.
Tracking helps your team to organize and find requests, as well as improving reporting and analytics. You'll still be able to modify the tracking fields after sending.
The Scorecard is an internal, optional section to evaluate proposals. You'll still be able to create or modify the scorecard after publishing.
Invite section
Inviting multiple providers to your request is a powerful way to create competitive tension and identify the true market value of the work, whilst also strengthening your negotiation position. This would not be possible with single sourcing.
Who do you want to send the request to? You can enter contacts here before hitting the eventual send button. Learn more about using the invite field and firm contacts directory.
When a request invitation is sent to a firm, they immediately receive an automated Invitation email including a link to the request and an Add to Calendar feature for deadline reminders. A PERSUIT account will be automatically created for any new firm users, providing immediate access to the request and our platform.
Note: it is possible to invite firms after the request has been published..
Before sending
Use the Preview button at the top right to visualize what the invited providers will see.
Share with colleagues to collaboratively draft and approve your request.
Ready to send?
Once you have reviewed the request, press Send!
VIDEO: Quick Tips to Drafting a Request
Managing and Reviewing Proposals
You can begin reviewing proposals as soon as they are submitted, even before the proposal deadline.
The Proposals tab’s apples-to-apples comparison table view allows you to comprehensively analyze the different areas of your request in one place, from pricing to the questionnaire.
This allows you to easily identify market trends, outliers, and areas of potential negotiation and cost savings to drive smarter decision making.
You can also view each proposal individually, in full detail.
VIDEO: Quick Tips for Managing a Request
Negotiating
Use the Negotiate feature to suggest changes, price reductions or revision requests through redlining. There are no limits to the number of negotiation rounds you can have on any proposal.
Completing your request
Selecting a Firm
After reviewing proposals and negotiating, you’ve hopefully found the best fit for your matter. You should then select the winning proposal(s), to notify the provider and ensure accurate data collection and insights.
Marking a firm as unsuccessful
Similarly, it is best practice and courteous to complete the process for the participating providers that did not get selected by marking them as unsuccessful. You can choose whether or not to notify them.
Sharing Proposal Feedback
Once you have selected a firm(s) or marked them as unsuccessful, you have the opportunity to provide them with feedback on their proposal. This is an important step because it supports a transparent and collaborative decision making process, provides a risk and audit log, and encourages the right mindset and practices in giving providers the opportunity to improve in future.
Note: this feedback is only accessible by you and the specific firm and can be found in both the proposal and in the Business Review feature. Firms cannot see feedback given to others.
Next Steps?
We recommend leveraging PERSUIT’s analytics tools for further insights into your adoption volume, spend and savings (including benchmarking data against peers), your firms’ performance and more! We have three main analytics tools:
If you have any questions, please reach out to your designated Customer Success Manager or our 24/7 Support Team (support@persuit.com).
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