Workflow Template
Request for Quote Workflow
Captures an RFQ request, issues it to three suppliers, has the buyer record received quotes and a recommendation, routes approval based on the recommended value (procurement manager for over $10,000, buyer lead otherwise) with up to two revision cycles on rejection, then awards the RFQ, raises a purchase order task, and notifies the requester.
Procurement teams handling supplier quotes need a consistent way to capture requests, issue them to multiple suppliers, and route approval decisions according to spend thresholds, without relying on scattered emails or spreadsheets. This workflow takes an RFQ from initial intake through supplier outreach, buyer recommendation, value-based approval routing between the procurement manager and buyer lead, and on to award and purchase order creation. Requesters, buyers, suppliers, procurement managers and buyer leads are each engaged at the appropriate stage, with every status change and decision captured on the RFQ record.
Business Outcomes
- Supports faster turnaround from RFQ intake to supplier award through a structured, repeatable sequence
- Helps route approval to the right person automatically based on recommended value
- Makes it easier to track every quote, recommendation and decision on a single RFQ record
- Reduces manual follow-up by handling supplier outreach and requester notifications automatically
- Improves visibility into RFQ status and revision cycles across the procurement team
Workflow Steps
Steps
- 1Create RFQ Recordcreate record
Creates the RFQ record from the submitted intake form.
- 2Set Status to Submittedupdate record
Sets the RFQ status to Submitted.
- 3Acknowledge Requestersend email
Emails the requester an acknowledgement with their RFQ reference number.
- 4Set Status to RFQ Issuedupdate record
Sets the RFQ status to RFQ Issued before contacting suppliers.
- 5Email Supplier 1send email
Emails supplier 1 the specifications, quantity and required date, asking them to send their quote to the buyer.
- 6Email Supplier 2send email
Emails supplier 2 the specifications, quantity and required date, asking them to send their quote to the buyer.
- 7Email Supplier 3send email
Emails supplier 3 the specifications, quantity and required date, asking them to send their quote to the buyer.
- 8Buyer: Record Quotes and Recommendationcreate task
Assigns the buyer a task to record the three quotes received, the recommended supplier, value and justification.
- 9Save Recommendation to Recordupdate record
Persists the recorded quotes and recommendation details to the RFQ record and sets status to Pending Approval.
- 10Route Approval by Recommended Value
Routes recommendations over $10,000 to the procurement manager and smaller ones to the buyer lead.
recommended_value: "10000"→Procurement Manager Approvalrecommended_value: "10000"→Buyer Lead ApprovalDefault→Buyer Lead Approval - 11Procurement Manager Approvalrequest approvalrequires approval
Requests the procurement manager's approval for recommendations over $10,000.
- 12Route Procurement Manager Approval Outcome
Routes the workflow based on the procurement manager's approval decision.
approval_status: "approved"→Set Status to Awardedapproval_status: "rejected"→Loop Back to Buyer Task (PM Path)Default→End - 13Loop Back to Buyer Task (PM Path)restart from step
Restarts the workflow from the buyer's quote-recording task so the recommendation can be revised, up to 2 times.
- 14Buyer Lead Approvalrequest approvalrequires approval
Requests the buyer lead's approval for recommendations of $10,000 or less.
- 15Route Buyer Lead Approval Outcome
Routes the workflow based on the buyer lead's approval decision.
approval_status: "approved"→Set Status to Awardedapproval_status: "rejected"→Loop Back to Buyer Task (Buyer Lead Path)Default→End - 16Loop Back to Buyer Task (Buyer Lead Path)restart from step
Restarts the workflow from the buyer's quote-recording task so the recommendation can be revised, up to 2 times.
- 17Set Status to Awardedupdate record
Sets the RFQ status to Awarded following approval.
- 18Create Purchase Order Taskcreate task
Creates a fire-and-forget purchasing task due in 2 days to raise the purchase order.
- 19Notify Requester of Awardsend email
Emails the requester the recommended supplier and recommended value now that the RFQ has been awarded.
Fields
Show all 30 fieldsShow fewer fields
FormRequest for Quote (RFQ) Form
- Requester Name*· Text
- Requester Email*· Email
- Buyer Name*· Text
- Buyer Email*· Email
- Approved Need*· Long text
- Specifications*· Long text
- Quantity*· Number
- Required Date*· Date
- Supplier 1 Name*· Text
- Supplier 1 Email*· Email
- Supplier 2 Name*· Text
- Supplier 2 Email*· Email
- Supplier 3 Name*· Text
- Supplier 3 Email*· Email
TaskBuyer: Record Quotes and Recommendation
- Quote 1 - Supplier*· Text
- Quote 1 - Price*· Number
- Quote 1 - Lead Time*· Text
- Quote 1 - Document· File upload
- Quote 2 - Supplier*· Text
- Quote 2 - Price*· Number
- Quote 2 - Lead Time*· Text
- Quote 2 - Document· File upload
- Quote 3 - Supplier*· Text
- Quote 3 - Price*· Number
- Quote 3 - Lead Time*· Text
- Quote 3 - Document· File upload
- Recommended Supplier*· Text
- Recommended Value*· Number
- Recommendation Justification*· Long text
Other fields
- RFQ Status· Choice
- Requester Name*
- Requester Email*
- Buyer Name*
- Buyer Email*
- Approved Need*
- Specifications*
Forms
Request for Quote (RFQ) Form
14 fields
Data Views
RFQ Management
specifications, required_date, recommended_supplier, recommended_value +1 more
Dashboard Widgets
Recommended integrations
Setup the following integrations to extend workflow capability.
Send email in the workflow
AWS SES
Similar Categories
FAQs
What does this workflow record on each RFQ?
Each RFQ is created as a record with a reference number, a status (such as Submitted, RFQ Issued, Pending Approval or Awarded) and a timeline of what happened. When the buyer completes the quote-recording task, the three quotes, recommended supplier, recommended value and justification are saved directly to the record because the workflow waits for that task. The purchase order task's Purchase Order Number is not a wait step, so it stays with that task and appears in the record's task list.
Who is involved at each stage of the RFQ process?
The requester submits the intake form and receives acknowledgement and award emails; the buyer records the quotes and recommendation and may revise it after a rejection. The procurement manager approves recommendations over $10,000, while the buyer lead approves those of $10,000 or less. A purchasing team member completes the purchase order task after the RFQ is awarded.
How does the workflow decide who approves the recommendation?
After the buyer's recommendation is saved to the record, the workflow checks the Recommended Value. Values over $10,000 are routed to the procurement manager, while values of $10,000 or less are routed to the buyer lead, so approval responsibility scales automatically with the size of the recommendation.
What happens if a recommendation is rejected?
If either the procurement manager or the buyer lead rejects the recommendation, the workflow loops back to the buyer's quote-recording task so the recommendation can be revised. This revision cycle can happen up to two times on each approval path before the RFQ proceeds further, keeping a record of each cycle in the RFQ timeline.
How do we change what the supplier emails or the request form ask for?
A workflow is changed by describing the change in plain English or by editing its steps directly in the workflow editor, and earlier versions are kept so changes can be reviewed. This means the supplier email content, the intake form fields, or the approval thresholds can be adjusted without a development project.
Do suppliers or requesters need an account to take part?
No account is required. Requesters submit the initial RFQ through a public request form and receive updates by email, while suppliers receive their specifications, quantity and required date directly by email and respond to the buyer.
What happens once the RFQ is awarded?
Once approval is granted, the workflow sets the RFQ status to Awarded and creates a purchase order task due in two days for the purchasing team to raise the purchase order. The requester is then emailed the recommended supplier and recommended value, and the award and purchase order task are reflected in the RFQ record's timeline.
How can procurement oversee RFQ activity across the team?
Table views and dashboards show RFQ records by status, making it possible to see at a glance which requests are at intake, issued to suppliers, pending approval, or awarded. Workspace activity is also logged, so the sequence of steps, approvals and revisions on any RFQ can be reviewed by admins or members with assigned tasks.
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