--- title: Strategic Sourcing Software, Request to Contract | Aavenir url: https://aavenir.com/solutions/strategic-sourcing-software/ description: Strategic sourcing software that ties pricing rounds, savings and awards to the contract. RFPflow benchmarks prices and compares split award scenarios. updated: 2026-11-07 --- [Home](https://aavenir.com/) / [Contract suite](https://aavenir.com/solutions/aavenir-contract-suite/) / [RFPflow](https://aavenir.com/solutions/rfp-management-software/) / Strategic sourcing RFPflow · Strategic sourcing # Savings you can trace from benchmark to contract. RFPflow runs pricing rounds against historical benchmarks, tracks savings against the item master, and compares best value, lowest cost, top two and split award scenarios. The award becomes a contract, so the negotiated price follows into invoicing. Definition ## What is strategic sourcing software? Strategic sourcing software supports the planned buying of a category over time: understanding price history, running competitive events, negotiating in rounds, choosing award scenarios and carrying the agreed terms into contracts and payment. [RFPflow](https://aavenir.com/solutions/rfp-management-software/) covers the event and negotiation on one record, from the ServiceNow Sourcing and Procurement Operations request to the award. Contractflow drafts a contract for each winner, and Invoiceflow later checks invoices against the negotiated rates, so savings agreed at award are not lost at payment. - Multiple pricing rounds in spreadsheet style tables - Historical benchmarks beside every line, savings against the item master - Best value, lowest cost, top two and split award scenarios - Negotiated rates follow the contract into invoice matching Our customers ## Procurement, legal, IT, finance, and sales teams run their contracts on Aavenir. American Seafoods Group T.D. Williamson Thrive Express Employment Professionals MUFG State of Utah How it works ## From benchmark to signed price. - Historical benchmarks beside every line Savings tracked against the item master One pricing sheet so every bid lines up. - Run another pricing round for the shortlist Spreadsheet style tables suppliers already understand Savings shown line by line against the benchmark. - Award by line item, or share one line between suppliers Contractflow drafts a contract for each winner The Sourcing and Procurement Operations request and its line items update on award. Watch ## See it in the product. [0:37 Demo Highlight a payment mismatch between the RFx and the contract](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FGHjW0R4sII) Where savings leak ## A saving is real only when the invoice honors it. Strategic sourcing loses value at three points: the first price, the handoff to contracting, and payment. ### The first acceptable price Without structured comparison, teams take the first acceptable price. Rounds and benchmarks show what is left on the table. ### Awards that never became contracts A mining company's tender awards did not flow into contracts. On Aavenir it reported a [5x faster contract cycle](https://aavenir.com/case-study/accelerate-sourcing-cycle-by-25-source-to-contract/). ### Rates lost at payment A rate agreed at award matters only if invoices honor it. Invoiceflow checks billed rates against the signed contract. Results ## What customers report after moving to Aavenir. 25%faster sourcing cycle at a leading mining company [Case study](https://aavenir.com/case-study/accelerate-sourcing-cycle-by-25-source-to-contract/) 100%digitized and automated RFx at a global premium petfood manufacturer [Case study](https://aavenir.com/case-study/rfp-rfq-management-solution-with-digitized-sourcing-servicenow/) 80%increase in efficiency at the same manufacturer [Case study](https://aavenir.com/case-study/rfp-rfq-management-solution-with-digitized-sourcing-servicenow/) “ We always had to manually create, edit, deliver, organize, and evaluate our RFx process. Aavenir has saved us countless hours of administrative work. Everything is organized in one place now, and we can respond to suppliers twice as fast. **Procurement Manager**A global premium petfood manufacturer Aavenir and the alternatives ## How Aavenir compares with the other ways teams do this. | What matters | Aavenir RFPflow | Sourcing suites | Email and spreadsheets | | Where RFx events run | On ServiceNow or standalone, from templates and a question library | Their own platform | Attachments in email threads | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Scoring | AI bid scoring and evaluation summaries, and a person decides | Weighted scoring, AI support varies | Manual scoring sheets | | From award to contract | The award becomes a Contractflow draft with the scoring attached | Often a handoff to a separate contract lifecycle management platform | Terms retyped into a contract | | Supplier onboarding and risk | Onboardingflow on the same record, with data from third party or vendor risk management tools | Often a separate module or product | Questionnaires by email | | Where others can be stronger | Focused on source to contract on one record | Broad suites also cover catalogs and more spend categories | No setup at all | Comparisons describe categories of tools, not named products. For named comparisons, see [Aavenir compared](https://aavenir.com/compare/). ## Further reading [Sourcing How to run an RFP Read the article](https://aavenir.com/blog/how-to-run-an-rfp/)[Sourcing RFI, RFQ and RFP: what is the difference? Read the article](https://aavenir.com/blog/rfi-rfq-rfp-difference/)[Procurement What is source to contract? Read the article](https://aavenir.com/blog/what-is-source-to-contract/) Questions ## Talk to a contract expert Bring a few sample agreements. We will show you Aavenir AI reading them, on ServiceNow or standalone. Schedule a demo ## From sourcing to payment [RFPflow RFIs, RFPs and RFQs from request to award Learn more](https://aavenir.com/solutions/rfp-management-software/)[RFx management Run many events from one dashboard Learn more](https://aavenir.com/solutions/rfx-management-software/)[Supplier evaluation Performance beside every bid Learn more](https://aavenir.com/solutions/supplier-evaluation-software/)[Invoice to contract compliance Are we paying the negotiated rate Learn more](https://aavenir.com/use-cases/invoice-to-contract-compliance/)[Invoiceflow Every invoice checked against the contract Learn more](https://aavenir.com/solutions/accounts-payable-automation/)[For CFO, CPO, GC and CIO Portfolio answers for leadership Learn more](https://aavenir.com/solutions/contract-intelligence-for-executives/) Frequently asked questions (FAQ) ## Common questions ### ### What is strategic sourcing? Strategic sourcing is the planned buying of a category over time: studying price history and suppliers, running competitive events, negotiating, choosing an award scenario and making sure the agreed terms carry into the contract and into payment. [See RFx management](https://aavenir.com/solutions/rfx-management-software/). ### ### How does RFPflow track sourcing savings? RFPflow shows historical benchmarks beside every line in the pricing sheet, runs multiple pricing rounds, and tracks savings against the item master line by line. Award scenarios compare best value, lowest cost and top two. [See RFPflow](https://aavenir.com/solutions/rfp-management-software/). ### ### What is a split award? A split award gives different line items, or shares of one line item, to more than one supplier. RFPflow compares it with best value, lowest cost and top two scenarios, then drafts a contract for each winner in Contractflow. [See source to contract](https://aavenir.com/use-cases/source-to-contract/). Have a question we have not answered? [Ask the Expert](https://aavenir.com/contact/) Schedule a demo ## See your contracts run on one record. - **1****A 30 minute walkthrough**Built around your team, whether that is procurement, legal, IT or finance. - **2****Your contracts, not ours**Bring a few sample agreements and watch Aavenir AI extract and review them. - **3****ServiceNow or standalone**We show the deployment that fits the systems you already run. Prefer to talk first? [Contact the team](https://aavenir.com/contact/). The form did not load. [Contact the team](https://aavenir.com/contact/) instead, or refresh the page.