As a buyer, one of your first steps when initiating a new procurement process is determining the correct starting point.
When you navigate to your new overview page, you will see a primary button at the top right labeled Create new. Clicking this button presents you with two distinct paths: Create new tender and Create standalone notice.
Understanding which option to select is critical to ensuring your procurement process is set up efficiently. Here is a guide on how to choose the right path for your needs.
Option 1: Create new tender
When to use it: Select Create new tender when you are initiating a competition-type notice where suppliers will be submitting bids (such as an Open procedure).
Important: Procedure Type limitations Please note that in the initial release of the simplified tendering workflow only the Open procedure is supported. If your procurement requires a different procedure type (such as a negotiated procedure, restricted procedure, qualification system, or DPS), you must still proceed through the classic creation path.
Why choose this option?
Guided Initiation Workflow: This path utilizes Mercell's new guided workflow, which is designed to make the initial setup easier and less technical for users.
Templating Features: You can significantly speed up your work by choosing to start from an Organization template or by using the Copy previous tender feature. This pre-populates existing data, leaving you with far fewer fields to fill out manually.
Deferred Notice Selection: You no longer need to know the exact technical notice type at the very beginning of the process. This option allows you to set up your basic tender details and structured documents first. You will only configure the actual contract notice type later in the process once you reach the Mercell Forms section.
Note: In the initial release, the new guided tender workflow primarily supports Open procedures. If your procurement requires a different procedure (such as negotiated, restricted, or a DPS), the system will still require you to use the standard creation path.
Option 2: Create standalone notice
When to use it: Select Create standalone notice if you have specific needs to publish a notice to a public portal that does not require a full competitive tender process to be set up.
Why choose this option?
Direct Access to Non-Competition Notices: This option filters out standard competition types and directly presents you with a list of standalone notice types based on the directives enabled in your organization's settings.
Common Use Cases: Use this path when you need to publish non-competitive documents such as:
Prior Information Notices (PIN)
Contract Modification Notices
Contract Award Notices
Design Contest Result Notices
Voluntary Ex-ante Transparency Notices
Summary
Click Create new > Create new tender for full competitive procurements where you want to leverage templates and define your competition details before handling technical notice types.
Click Create new > Create standalone notice for publishing informational, modification, or award notices that do not require an active bidding setup.
Article Ref: 030820261017