Microsoft Scenario Library Manufacturing Supplier RFP

Available with: Microsoft 365 Copilot

Manufacturing scenario: Supplier RFP

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Scenario

Using Copilot to create a supplier RFP

Improve the RFP process from creating the RFP to awarding the contract

1. RFP preparation

A beverage company needs to source a new supplier for sustainable packaging materials and is looking to initiate an RFP (Request for Proposal) process to evaluate potential vendors.

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Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat2

Benefit: Summarize best practices of CPG packaging materials and generate initial RFP draft outlining the requirements, objectives, sustainability criteria, process, and evaluation criteria for vendor selection

Define the criteria for vendor selection, such as experience, capabilities, pricing, quality standards, and compliance requirements.

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Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat1

Benefit: Review industry benchmarks, regulatory guidelines, and best practices to inform the development of selection criteria

Research and summarize information on relevant CPG packaging suppliers based on industry knowledge.

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Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat1

Benefit: Support compilation of vendors, analyzing their profiles, capabilities, and shortlisting candidates based on the predefined selection criteria

Distribute the RFP document to shortlisted vendors and manage the individual correspondence.

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Copilot in Outlook

Benefit: Customize email drafts and the RFP for each shortlisted vendor with specific requirements and contact information

Coordinate with the evaluation team to review and analyze vendors’ responses and assess them against the predefined criteria.

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Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat2

Benefit: Extrapolate key insights from the vendor proposals and create visuals based on relevant criteria such as lead times, minimum order quantities, pricing, key differences and certifications.

Communicate the decision to the selected vendors and share the final contract terms and key details for mutual agreement.

Outlook icon

Copilot in Outlook

Benefit: Generate draft contract documents, set reminders to track negotiation progress, and ensure alignment with business objectives and legal requirements

KPIs

Opportunity to impact key functional area KPIs

How Microsoft Copilot can help improve product time to market

Use Copilot capture customer needs and then support coordination of product development activities.
Boost productivity
  • Rapidly find information
  • Diagnose problems faster
  • Check for similar issues and resolutions
  • Quickly send follow-up communications

How Microsoft Copilot can help employee turnover rates

Retain critical plant and headquarters staff by improving the work/life balance of all workers by simplifying overhead tasks. Improve skilling to provide more growth opportunities and increase internal hiring.​
Improve quality of internal materials and processes
  • Improve job descriptions for further role clarity
  • Improve company meetings with summarization and recap
  • Completely focus during the meeting

How Microsoft Copilot can help customer satisfaction

Improve customer service performance with tailored LLMs for higher first-time call resolution. Improve customer communications whether through improved writing or improved call scripts.​
Incorporate feedback
  • Rapidly analyze customer feedback
  • Quickly create recommendations
  • Swiftly update scripts and processes
  • Create communications to socialize the changes

How Microsoft Copilot can help minimize scrap rate

Quickly identify quality issues by accessing and analyzing quality logs. Reduce the cost of any recall programs that are required with effective management and tailored responses.​
Speed problem resolution​
  • Rapidly find information​
  • Diagnose problems faster​
  • Check for similar issues and resolutions​
  • Quickly send follow-up communications​

How Microsoft Copilot can help supply chain performance

Use AI to generate evaluation criteria for new materials and suppliers. Review contracts to make the most effective deals and use AI analysis to evaluate supplier performance.
Speed data analysis and reporting​
  • Quickly analyze trends​
  • Generate informative charts​
  • Create strategy presentations ​

How Microsoft Copilot can help minimize production downtime

Use Copilot to analyze information from manufacturers apps to predict and prevent equipment failures, manage inventory levels and identify training that can help staff keep machines operating. 
Speed problem resolution​
  • Rapidly find information​
  • Diagnose problems faster​
  • Check for similar issues and resolutions​
  • Quickly send follow-up communications​

The content in this example scenario is for demonstration purposes only. You should evaluate how Copilot aligns with your organization’s business processes, regulatory requirements, and responsible AI principles.