The latest update for Nova Sourcing is officially here! We’ve overhauled our Supplier Discovery engine to make it easier to find best-fit suppliers, and given the Bid Request Overview a major facelift. These changes focus on one thing: getting you from "search" to "award" faster than ever. 

What’s New?

Advanced Supplier Search

When adding Suppliers to your Bid Request, you will now be able to discover Suppliers by searching their name or filtering on your pre-defined Guided Buying groups.  Once located, you can add multiple Suppliers at a time to your Bid Request.

Refreshed Summary and Documents Tabs

We have refreshed the Bid Summary and documents tabs for improved readability.

Documents

Improved Team Management

When adding members to a Bid Request, you can now select to add a 'Global Evaluator' to evaluate all request criteria. We've also made changes to make the set up of 'Roles' and 'Permissions' clearer for the user.

Improved Messaging (formerly ‘Comments’)

We've streamlined the Messages interface and added search and filtering tools to enable users to quickly locate particular records. We also updated the Messaging Groups:

• Public Messages (formerly Notifications): Broad-reach updates for all collaborators and invited suppliers. 

• Internal Messages (formerly Workgroup): Private huddles for your community only. 

• Private Messages (formerly Supplier Comments): 1-on-1 conversations between you and a specific supplier. 

Release Date: These features will be included in our release on the evening of Tuesday the 10th of March, 2026

This release brings powerful improvements to how you manage contracts, oversee evaluations, and align procurement plans with contract records in the VendorPanel platform. With structured custom contract roles, a new evaluation summary landing page, and the ability to use procurement plan numbers as contract numbers, this release is all about control, clarity, and consistency across your workflows.

Managing “who can do what” on contracts is now much clearer and more aligned to your organisation’s language. Instead of relying on free-text role names, you can configure structured custom roles that drive permissions, workflows, and reminders.

This solves a long-standing problem where contract access and notifications depended on inconsistent, free‑text labels. Now, roles are defined centrally, applied consistently, and enforced reliably across the system.

Note: All existing free text custom roles will be converted to the new structured custom roles and by default will have no permissions (to reflect current behaviour). Admins will be able to change these migrated custom roles to have read and write permissions where required.

Key capabilities include:

• Admin-defined custom roles in Settings

  • Configure custom contract roles via Contracts "Manage Module" > "Roles Configuration".
  • Define a name (e.g. “Contract Administrator”, “Business Owner”) and a permission level (Read Only or Edit) for each role.
  • Adjust roles over time with create, edit, and delete functionality supported, while still preserving roles on existing contracts.
  • Roles defined here automatically populate the role selectors on contract forms.

• Clean, guided role assignment on contracts

  • When creating or editing a contract, users now choose from the admin-defined structured roles instead of typing free-text.
  • Multiple users can be assigned to the same custom role (e.g. two “Contract Administrators” on a complex arrangement).
  • Key roles (Contract Manager, Owner, Sponsor) remain single-select and mandatory where applicable.
  • The permission level (Edit / Read) is clearly displayed alongside each role to guide assigners.

  • Legacy free-text custom role entry is removed/hidden to prevent inconsistent naming going forward.
    
    
    

    

    
    
    

• Custom roles in approval routes & reminders

  • Approval workflows can include these new structured custom roles. This article guides you through approval settings: Manage Your Approval Settings – VendorPanel
  • Contract reminders will also support structured custom roles as recipients. This article guides you through editing and creating reminders: Manage Email Reminder Settings – VendorPanel
    

In short, you can now define contract roles your way, assign them consistently, and rely on them for permissions, approvals, and reminders across your contract lifecycle.

Evaluation Chairs managing evaluations can now land on a dedicated Summary page that surfaces the most important information at a glance. Instead of dropping straight into a workflow step, Chairs first see a dashboard-style overview of status, participants, and key actions.

This addresses the pain of having to click around multiple screens just to answer simple questions like “Who has finished scoring?” or “What’s the current COI status?”.

Highlights include:

• New default landing page for evaluations

  • When a Chair opens an evaluation, they now arrive on the Summary view by default.
  • Exceptions are built in for scenarios such as ongoing setup or evaluator views, ensuring users still land where they need to be based on their role and the evaluation phase.

• Clear, phase-based status display

  • A consolidated status block shows progress across Setup, Scoring, and Review phases (Completed / In Progress / Not Started).

• Tasks & actions in one place

  • A dedicated Tasks and Actions area surfaces what needs attention for that specific evaluation.

• Key evaluation metrics at a glance

  • The summary shows:

    • Evaluation due date
    • Chair name
    • Number of evaluators and a list of their names
    • Number of responses received
  • A prominent “Go To Evaluation” button takes users directly to the detailed workflow when they are ready to dive in.

The new Evaluation Summary page lets Chairs instantly understand progress, spot bottlenecks, and jump straight to the actions that matter.

For organisations that want tight alignment between procurement plans and contract records, this release introduces an option to use the procurement plan number as the contract number when a contract is awarded from a plan.

Previously, procurement plans and contracts used entirely separate numbering sequences, making it hard to track which contract came from which plan without additional cross-referencing. The new configuration improves data integrity and reporting by aligning these sequences.

Key behaviours:

• Configurable linkage between procurement and contracts

  • A new setting can be found in Procurement Planning "Manage Module" > "Procurement Number Generation" > “Use Procurement Number on Contracts”
  • When enabled, the procurement module’s number generation also drives contract numbers.

• Consistent numbering on award

  • When a contract is created from a procurement plan, the contract number is the same as the plan’s procurement number, providing immediate traceability.

  • Special cases are handled intelligently:

    • Head agreements use the procurement number as their base contract number.
    • Subcontracts from head agreements use the head agreement number as a prefix and add a '-1', -2', '-3' ... , preserving existing behaviour while aligning with the primary number.
    • If a procurement number matches an existing contract number (e.g. a contract was entered into the system with this number prior to enabling this setting), when creating the contract that links to this plan, a suffix will be added to ensure all contract numbers are unique (e.g. Plan number is "PP123", contract number will be "PP123 (2)")

• Unified sequencing when enabled

  • When the setting is turned on:

    • Generating a procurement number (including manually specified numbers) advances the sequence for both procurement and contracts.
    • Contracts created without an associated plan do not pre-populate a number; generating a number uses the procurement sequence so numbering stays consistent across the two modules.
    • The "Contract Number Generation" area in Contracts "Manage Module" will have most options disabled as this configuration is managed within Procurement Planning. The option to allow manual contract number input can still be configured here.

• Preserved independence when disabled

  • With the setting off (default behaviour):

    • Procurement and contract numbering function independently, as they do today.
    • Contract number generation follows the existing contract settings, including standard prefixes for head agreements and subcontracts.
    • Generating or manually specifying a number in one module only affects that module’s sequence.

By linking procurement and contract numbering, this feature delivers clearer traceability from initial planning through to executed contracts, especially in complex head agreement and subcontract structures.

This release focuses on improving visibility within your existing workflows. We have introduced targeted updates to our Analytics and Evaluations modules to provide better insight into open public tenders and outstanding evaluation tasks.

NOTE: Data Warehouse Data Drop clients will see these changes from Saturday 31st January 2026 and Embedded clients will see these changes over the coming week

📊 Improved Visibility for Open Tenders in Analytics

While the existing Match Request and Responses report in Analytics is effective to investigate select RFxs and closed tenders, we have received feedback from customers that the visibility into Public Tenders could be improved; specifically regarding which suppliers are viewing them or intending to respond.

To address this, we have added a 'View Tenders' toggle to the top of the report.

• Track Pre-Submission Activity: Switching to this view allows you to see activity on open tenders, such as who is viewing the opportunity, who is following it, and who intends to respond.
• Context Switching: You can easily toggle between the standard Match Request view and the Tenders view depending on the stage of your procurement.

Gain insight into supplier interest and activity while your public tenders are still active.

🎯 New Dashboard Report in Advanced Evaluations

For Advanced Evaluations, we have introduced a new report widget that can be added directly to your Module Dashboard. This is designed to help Chairs and evaluators track process bottlenecks.

• Action Tracking: The report displays outstanding actions, such as pending COI declarations, incomplete individual scorings, and pending approvals.
• Oversight: It filters to show actions required by you, as well as actions required by others for any evaluation where you are the Chair.

Quickly identify who has tasks to complete to keep your evaluations moving forward.

💾 Data Warehouse Updates

For clients using our Data Warehouse Data Drop, we have added new datasets and standardised column naming.

• New Datasets:

  • SupplierComplianceStatus: This report provides a list of compliances of each supplier.
  • PanelMemberships: This report provides a list of suppliers that belong to a panel regardless of whether they have posted a Response.
  • PublicTenderInteractions: This report serves the same purpose as OpportunityInvitee but is specific to Public Tenders. It provides a summary of supplier interactions for each Public Tender.
  • SupplierTenderSummary: This report serves the same purpose as SupplierAlertSummary but is specific to Public Tenders. It provides a summary of the individual interactions for each Public Tender.
    
    

• Column Renaming: We have renamed a selection of columns to improve consistency. Please check your existing queries against the changes below:

  Dataset	Previous Column Name	New Column Name
  DedupedRFxData	No. Successsful Suppliers	Num Successful Suppliers
  FinalizedRFxData	No. Successsful Suppliers	Num Successful Suppliers
  Successful Responses	Enterprise (Affilate Business Name)	Enterprise Affilate Business Name
  DataGenerated	QDG Version	Version
  DataGenerated	DataGeneration_Started	DateGenerated_Started
  DataGenerated	DataGeneration_Started	DateGenerated_Finished
  SiBadgeV2_ValueLookup	AgentId	_AgentId
  SiBadgeV2_ValueLookup	Status	_Status
  SiBadgeV2_ValueLookup	Reason	_Reason

  We hope these updates improve your day-to-day reporting and management. As always, we welcome your feedback.

At Unimarket, our mission has always been to deliver powerful, intuitive, and future-ready Source-to-Pay solutions for organisations across the public and private sectors.  

Today, we’re excited to share the next major step in that journey: Nova, the name of our next-generation Source-to-Pay platform. 

What Is Nova? 

Nova is the foundation for the future of our product suite. It’s a modern, intelligent, and unified platform designed to support the evolving needs of procurement and finance teams. 

Built on advanced technology and informed by years of customer insights across ANZ and the US, Nova represents an evolution, not a revolution. It elevates the strengths that our customers rely on today while opening the door to new, cutting-edge capabilities. 

Nova is designed to bring you: 

Elevated Capability 

Enhanced depth and performance across core modules - including Sourcing, Contract Management, Procurement and Payments - to support complex procurement scenarios, drive organisational efficiency and deliver a scalable, modular solution to support you into the future. 

Modern Technology at the Core 

Nova weaves Artificial Intelligence and modern architecture into everyday processes. From intelligent automation to deeper analytics and smarter insights, Nova helps teams move faster, reduce manual effort, and make better decisions. 

A Seamless, Connected Experience 

Built as a unified platform, Nova brings Sourcing, Contracts, Purchasing and Payments together in a single, intuitive workflow. The result: greater consistency, less friction and a more efficient end-to-end experience that can be deployed in a modular fashion. 

Why ‘Nova’? 

As our platform evolves, we want to provide clarity and confidence about what’s coming next. 

The name Nova clearly identifies our most modern, future-focused technology. When you see references such as Contract Management on Nova or Sourcing on Nova, you’ll know you’re looking at the next generation of capability built on our new platform foundation. 

This naming also allows us to introduce new features and modules over time without confusion - keeping you informed, prepared, and excited for what’s ahead. 

Who Is On Nova? 

For customers who have original Unimarket products (Sourcing, Contracts, Procure-to-Pay, Expenses, Payments) you are already on the Nova platform. This means Nova updates (paid or unpaid) will be communicated to you and will be available on your applicable modules.  

What’s Next? 

Over the coming months, we’ll share more details about the platform, including specific product releases, enhanced features, and early customer rollout plans. 

Nova is more than a new name - it’s the beginning of a faster, smarter, more connected Source-to-Pay experience. We’re excited to partner with you on this journey and look forward to showing you what’s ahead. 

🚀 Exciting News: VendorPanel is getting a new look!

• VendorPanel Products Update: The login screens and application footers for Go to Market, Advanced Contract Management, and Advanced Evaluation will be updated to display: “Unimarket, Powered by VendorPanel”.

• No Login Changes: Your URLs, login credentials and access paths remain exactly the same. No action is required
• No User Retraining: All functionality, workflows, and navigation remain unchanged
• No UI/UX Changes: Aside from minor branding updates, the application will look and work as it does today

We're excited to share a focused but important update to our Advanced Evaluations module. This release sharpens the scoring workflow to uphold the highest standards of accuracy and fairness in your consensus process. Based on client feedback and best-practice insights, we've adjusted a core behaviour to ensure only fully completed individual evaluations contribute to the final consensus score - boosting the reliability and rigor of your decisions. 

We are thrilled to announce a significant update to Advanced Evaluations, designed to give you even greater flexibility and control over your procurement process. This upcoming release introduces a new scoring methodology, the Cost Effective Ratio, providing you with more options to tailor your evaluations to the unique needs of your organisation.

This release also include UI/UX changes to the shortlist and final decision stages to streamline decision making. 

Please note that this change will come into effect on Wednesday the 24th of September. 

🚀 New Feature: The Cost Effective Ratio

Every organisation has different priorities. This release introduces a new scoring methodology, the Cost Effective Ratio (CER), as an alternative to our existing Weighted Cost Scoring. This approach is inspired by procurement guidelines that treat price as a variable of the overall value, allowing you to choose the method that best aligns with your objectives. 

• You now have two distinct scoring methods available that can be configured at an organisation level: the new Cost Effective Ratio and the existing Weighted Cost Scoring.
• Admins can change this from Weighted Cost Scoring to Cost Effective Ratio under the General Advanced Evaluations settings. 
• When using the new CER method, the cost criterion will no longer have a weight assigned to it, as the ratio inherently accounts for its impact on the overall value.
• On the Shortlist and Final Decision screens, a new column will dynamically appear. It will display either the Cost Effective Ratio or the Weighted Cost Score depending on the method you've selected for your evaluation.
• We've updated the visual reports and mail merges to seamlessly accommodate the new Cost Effective Ratio data, ensuring all your documentation is comprehensive and accurate.

🎯 Enhanced Decision-Making Tables

We've completely overhauled the tables on the Shortlist and Final Decision screens to provide a cleaner, more intuitive user experience. While the core functionality remains the same, these visual improvements will make it even easier to analyse and compare offers at a glance.

• The refreshed table design provides a cleaner, more modern interface for reviewing and comparing respondents.
• You can now sort any column in the table, giving you the flexibility to organise data however you need whether by score, cost or respondent.
• New badges now highlight the respondents with the highest score and the lowest cost, making it simple to quickly identify top performers and budget-friendly options.

We believe these updates will significantly enhance your ability to run fair, transparent, and effective evaluations. Your feedback is what drives our progress, so please don't hesitate to let us know what you think of the new features!

We're delighted to present a new release focused on optimising your analytics experience. This update delivers key enhancements to your analytics platform, including the introduction of Global Filters and other powerful improvements. We've also made a crucial refinement to the evaluations module to further streamline your procurement process.

🚀 New: Global Filters

We're pleased to introduce a fundamental feature to our Analytics platform: Global Filters. Previously, you could only apply filters to individual reports, which made it challenging to analyse your data holistically. Now, you can filter across all reports at once, making it easier to gain a complete view of your data.

• Filter Across All Reports: The new Global Filters button at the top of your Sourcing and Contracts Analytics page allows you to apply filters across your entire reporting suite.
• A Clearer View: Once you apply your filters, every report on the page will automatically update, ensuring you can quickly and easily analyse a specific data set.
• Customise Further: While the Global Filters provide a great starting point, you still have the flexibility to apply additional filters on individual reports if you need to drill down further.

This new feature is a core component of a modern analytics tool, built to give you effortless control over your data.

🎯 Enhanced: Analytics & Evaluations

We’ve also made several other key enhancements to improve your overall experience:

• Searchable Dropdowns: All dropdown menus within the Analytics module are now fully searchable, saving you time and effort when looking for specific values.
• Match Requests & Responses Report: The filter section in this report is now expandable, providing you with more space and a better user experience for interacting with the filters.
• Refined Evaluations Logic: We've updated the logic for creating requests from Procurement Planning. If you select Advanced Evaluations during planning, the system will now automatically set this as the default evaluation method with Go To Market, saving you a manual step.
  • UPDATE: An issue was found with this update and was rolled back. It will be re-released in a future release

🛠️ Other Enhancements & Fixes

• Resolved an issue that caused discrepancies in cost avoidance values
• Resolved an issue that caused validation errors to persist after unlocking a stage in Procurement Planning
  
  

Manually validating a high volume of supplier TINs is a time-consuming and expensive process. It can lead to compliance issues and potential delays in procurement and payment to the supplier. 

Our new TIN Validation feature addresses these challenges directly. With a single click, users can verify the TIN of any supplier, ensuring the information is accurate and legitimate. This functionality integrates seamlessly into the procurement workflow, allowing for real-time checks as new suppliers are onboarded.

The Benefits

• Mitigate Risk: By automatically verifying supplier TINs, the feature helps prevent fraud and ensures compliance with US tax and government regulations. 🛡️
• Enhance Efficiency: It eliminates the need for manual, time-intensive checks, freeing up procurement staff to focus on strategic tasks. ⏱️
• Improve Data Accuracy: The automated system reduces the risk of human error, ensuring a clean and reliable supplier database. ✅

Click here to find out more, or book a demo. 

We've released a new update to help you gain more insight and accountability in your evaluation process. While this may seem like a small change, it's designed to bring greater clarity to how scores are provided and a more transparent evaluation journey.

💬 New! Mandatory Comments for Evaluators

Based on valuable feedback, we've added a setting to the advanced evaluations that allows you to require evaluators to provide a comment for each score they give. This ensures that every score is backed by a clear rationale, giving you the context needed to justify final decisions during consensus scoring.

This setting is off by default. If you want to use it for your evaluations, you will need to enable it in the advanced evaluation module settings.

🛠️ Other Enhancements & Fixes

We've also included a number of other improvements and fixes to enhance your experience across the platform.

• Mail Merge Codes: We've updated the mail merge codes for evaluation document generation to accurately show both initial and consensus scores.
• PDF Generation: We've resolved an issue where KPI labels were overlapping other text when generating a PDF document, ensuring a cleaner layout.

We hope these updates help to make your evaluation process more effective. As always, we appreciate your feedback on how we can continue to improve.