An ERP decision is really two decisions: the software and the implementation partner. Most ERP RFPs spend nine pages on features every vendor ticks and one line on implementation, which is where projects actually go over budget. This template gives equal weight to both and ends with scripted demo scenarios built on your own transactions. Pair it with our software category guides to see which tools fit your team. Once you have a shortlist, check the vendor profiles and the finance glossary for unfamiliar terms, then use our head-to-head comparisons before your first demo.
Built for: CFO, Controller, Finance systems lead, IT lead
+2 more inside
Complete the company profile honestly. Entity count, currencies, transaction volumes, and user roles drive both licence price and implementation effort. Understating complexity to get a lower quote guarantees change orders later.
Trim requirements to what differentiates. Delete requirements every ERP meets. Keep those specific to your business, such as your revenue contracts, intercompany flows, or inventory costing.
Require the partner to respond with the vendor. Ask for a joint response naming the implementation partner, the team members, and their recent similar projects.
Run scripted demos on your data. Send the demo scenarios with sample data two weeks ahead. Score each scenario on the weighted sheet immediately after the session.
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Response options: Native / Configuration / Partner add-on / Custom / Roadmap. Anything other than Native or Configuration needs a cost and owner.
| ID | Module | Requirement | Priority | Vendor response | Notes / cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GL-01 | General ledger | Dimensions for entity, department, location, project on every line | Must | ||
| GL-02 | General ledger | Period close lock by module and entity; recurring and reversing journals | Must |
More free templates finance teams use alongside this one.
Software selections go wrong when the team scores whichever vendor demoed best last. A weighted scorecard agreed before the first demo, scored against written definitions, keeps the decision tied to what the business needs. Price stays out of the weighted score and is compared separately as three-year total cost, so a cheap tool cannot hide a missing must-have.
AP automation vendors look alike in a demo: every one captures invoices, routes approvals, and pays suppliers. The differences show up in capture accuracy on your invoices, how PO matching handles exceptions, how the ERP sync behaves when it fails, and how the vendor actually makes money. This RFP is built to expose those differences.
The date that matters in a SaaS contract is not the renewal date. It is the notice deadline, often 30 to 90 days earlier, after which an auto-renewing contract rolls over at whatever price the vendor sets. This tracker calculates that deadline for every contract and pairs it with seat utilisation, so the renewal conversation starts with data and time to act.
A company profile with volumes and complexity, functional requirements by module, technical and security requirements, implementation and partner questions, pricing questions, a timeline, and scripted demo scenarios. It should also explain how responses will be scored.
It depends on scope and how quickly the team can make decisions. A structured process with a shortlist, written responses, scripted demos, and references often runs over two to three months before contract signature. Implementation is a separate timeline.
Scenarios you write, based on your own processes and sample data, that each vendor must follow during the demo. They make vendors show how the system handles your transactions and exceptions, and let you score vendors on the same tasks.
Yes. Implementation quality has a large effect on cost, timeline, and whether the system works at go-live. Ask for a joint response with named consultants, references for similar projects, and a clear fee structure for changes.
