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# System prepended metadata

title: Guide to Running a Deal

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# Guide to Running a Deal

**Last Modified**: May 24, 2022

**Authors**: Peter DiGiovanni, Mia Foster and Caroline Spertus

**Overview**: The goal of this document is to explain the general strategy of a “deal flow,” denoting at each step of the process specific goals, checklists, and common issues. Each deal is organized into a “sprint,” or a group of Farmlink members the Farms and Dealflow teams. The purpose of a deal sprint is to organize and execute the end-to-end (farm-to-food-bank) logistics after surplus produce is sourced by the Farms Team or any other internal member. A sprint structure with several participants ensures that all members participating in sourcing and placing produce have knowledge of the status and progression of a deal. 

**Table of Contents:**
[ToC]


## “Slack-Driven” Deal Flow: #thepipeline

::: success
The Farmlink Project relies primarily on Slack for all communication between and among teams, motivating a **“Slack-driven”** deal flow. A sprint is formed in the *#thepipeline* channel following these steps: 
:::

1. Once surplus is found by a member of the Farms Team or any other Farmlinker, the surplus is announced into the deals pipeline, upon which ANY Deals Team member can claim the deal by replying directly into the thread which should share the following information:
    - Farm Name
    - Farm Location
    - Produce Type + Quantity
    - Packaging information (including pallet count)
    - Shelf-life/Timeline
    - Point of Contact Farmer Name and Phone Number/Email

2. *If DT6 member does not claim the deal within a day, DT6 lead will post in #deals-team to delegate to DT6 member (DT6 lead will monitor the pipeline).*
3. As the sprint lead, the Deals team POC should create a private Slack channel containing the Farmlinker who posted the new deal, the HOT team POC, and the DT6 sprint lead. 
    
4. If necessary, other members of the Farmlink team may be added to this sprint; in particular, another HOT Team member or Luis may be helpful in organizing logistics or guiding produce placement.


## Running a Sprint  
:::success
As a sprint lead, it is the responsibility of the Deals Team member to manage the relationships between the Farms and HOT Teams’ points of contact in order to execute the deal. This includes both communicating with the farm and with the food banks as well as updating the Slack channel or private chat to keep all Farmlink members aware of the deal’s progress. <br /><br />

The following information is organized as a checklist to promote the idea that all deals can be reduced to *(roughly)* the same structure. 
:::


## **Managing the Farm Contact**  

****
At the beginning of a sprint, the Deals Team member should reach out to the farm contact (via email, text or call). For the first contact with the farmer, the Deals Team point person may ask the Farmlinker who posted the deal whether they would like to be present on the call to facilitate introduction.

****

### The First Phone Call: Confirming Interest  


- [ ] When calling the farm, ask for the person whose name was listed on the *#thepipeline* post.
- [ ] Acknowledge the Farmlinker who connected first with this contact (EX: *I work with Luis Yepiz at the Farmlink Project and he mentionned X farm is looking to donate some watermelons. My name is X, and I will be here to oversee the logistics of this donation moving forward*.)  
    - Introduce yourself as their colleague and a member of Farmlink's logistics team *("Deals Team" is internal nomenclature that does not explain well to an outside source the team's role and relationship to the contact).*

- [ ] Thank the farmer for their time and interest in working with The Farmlink Project, and ask if they have any questions about the organization. 
- [ ] Confirm the produce type, quantity, packaging, and that the produce they have available is a zero-cost donation. This information should exist in the original pipeline post.
- [ ] **Check that this produce is a donation***


:::warning
This step is **critical**! We need to ensure that we are not acting as a customer in the wholesale market for produce. Our goals are to **reduce food waste** and **address food insecurity by donating fresh surplus produce**. If a farm is on the fence about donating their produce at zero cost, we can motivate a donation by specifying that we are a 501c3 non-profit organization we are capable of arranging transporation **free of charge** for the farm. 
:::

* ***If the farmer asks for compensation, please send a message in #core_budget or notify the Deals Team Leads. We do not pay farms for produce frequently, but there may be exceptions/reasons a farm needs compensation that are worth discussing.** 


 

### The Second Phone Call: Solidifying Logistics  

- [ ] Ask whether the farmer has any shipping capability. If the farmer can ship the produce, ask what price (if any) they would charge to include shipping in this delivery.
- [ ] What are the farm's hours of operations?


- [ ] What day(s) and time(s) can the produce be picked up?


- [ ] What is the Pickup Number (PU#) for the load in question? If there is not one, be sure to confirm this information. 


- [ ] What name and contact information (phone number specifically) can be listed and called on the day of the pickup? 

<br />

## **Mega Deals**  
****
There is a developing protocol for certain 'megadeals' (farms/retailers that are capable of shipping 15+ loads a week) that have a slightly different farm management process. These deals are heavily dependent on our placement abilities, so we are still figuring out the long term process. In the meantime, there may be certain deals (EX: Masters Touch in San Diego) where we are just given the pickup numbers and farm address, so initial conversations with the farmer are not required and the majority of farm-communications are handled by the Chief Procurement Officer. If you find yourself on a "megadeal" and would like more clarification, please reach out to the Deals Team Leads.  


## Managing the Food Bank Contact
**Author:** Peter DiGiovanni and Mia Foster

****
The following protocol outlines the process of the Hunger and Outreach Team. After HOT Sprints Member establishes themself as point of contact for that deal, the HOT POC’s goal will be **to provide well-informed advice and suggested destinations within the relevant region/radius (with focus starting with local food placement and growing outward).**

**REMINDER**: It is ultimately the task of the deal sprint lead to determine which location the produce will be sent to based on a variety of factors (impact, shipping cost, etc).
****


**The following steps outline the protocol of the HOT POC on a sprint:**
- [ ] Within the Slack channel and the Link Outreach subtask, the HOT member will compile a list of at least 5 recipient agencies that are potential candidates for a shipment. **The food banks & organizations that are capable of arranging transportation should be prioritized for every deal (see transportation process and protocols for more information).** 
    - Within HOT, using Link's outreach function, members will conduct outreach (via phone and email) to the agencies listed and record their responses in Link. Within Link, the Farmlink team member who intiatites contact with a given organisation can be assigned to the the subtask of outreach for that contact. It is the Deals Team member's responsibility to check Link and identify the agencies whose outreach is marked as "done" or "under review" (this indicates the agency wants the donation, but that can also be seen under "wants donation" within the agency subtask). Those marked as "canceled" were not interested in the donation. 
    - If in need of more potential candidates, Deals member search the Deals Sheet in Link for relevant regions and to check if more contacts can been identified in deal radius. If no contacts within deal radius, HOT member will consult the master Placement Sheet in google drive and/ or implement county research protocol to identify more potential candidates. **All contacts not in Link will be entered into Link as they are reached out to (including name, address, and contact).** 
    - Deals members communicate via Slack to confirm placement logisitics with the person who has been in closest communication with the receiver agency.  
    - The HOT POC for a foodbank recipient should provide the following information to the Deals member regarding logistics: 
    1. Preferred delivery Date and Time
    2. Confirmed address
    3. Contact information
    4. Any relevant information about unloading capabilities of the recipient
    - Once candidate is confirmed (both internally and confirmed with agency) HOT inputs this candiate as "recipient" in Link
- [ ] Once candidate has been confirmed, use this information to organize the appropriate method of transportation. HOT POC should communicate back and forth with the recipient as we confirm they will receive the food and confirm any transportation logistics. 



## **Transportation Processes and Protocols**
****
*Author*: Cam and Peter DiGiovanni

Farmlink was once sponsored by Uber Freight which covered all of our transportation needs and associated costs. This is no longer the case, so we use many other shipping third party logistics (3PLs) to get the best pricing when we quote our loads.

**Before booking any load it is therefore important to check both dashboard prices AND emailed quotes.** Unless the load is very last minute and needs to be booked immediately, this will always allow us to get the lowest price. Both methods are explained below.

Please note, the following information is only required if a food bank or other recipient organization **does not have the capacity to provide their own transportation.**
****
### DASHBOARD 3PL BOOKING
****
These 3PLs are those that are booked through an online portal rather than via email. The following are listed and should be bookmarked on the Deals members' computer.

Uber Freight: https://www.uber.com/freight/platform/home

Coyote Logistics: https://go.coyote.com/

Choptank: https://orbit.choptanktransport.com/login

TQL Trax: https://trax.tql.com/loads

These portals require login that we will not provide here but will give each Deals member access to while active on the team. Loads can also be traced through these dashboards for updates on transit.


Below are a few details outlined specifically on when it is possible (or not possible) to use Uber given that they tend to have stricter guidelines to follow.



:::

### Dashboard Shipments

Uber Freight **MUST** be booked **3 business days before pickup**. All other shipments should be quoted and confirmed at least 48 hours in advance. 

When you schedule a load via portals, please ensure the following information is inputted accurately: 


| :truck: Shipment Details :truck: |
|:----------------------- |
| *Pickup* date and time interval / exact appt. time | 
| *Pickup* organization name | 
| *Pickup* point of contact name and phone number | 
| *Pickup* special instructions|
| *Drop-off* date and time interval / exact appt. time | 
| *Drop-off* organization name| 
| *Drop-off* point of contact name and phone number | 
| Does *drop-off* location have a forklift + pallet jack OR a loading dock? | 
|Special instructions for *delivery* | 
| Produce type |
| Number of pallets |
| Total number pounds |



****
**Everyone is responsible for monitoring their own loads and checking the dashboard and Farmlink Transport email account.**

*Find login information in the Deals Team Slack channel.*

:::warning
**What to do in case of issues:**
- Proactive: 
    - Monitor the 3PL Dashboard 
    - Monitor the Farmlink Transport email 
    - Monitor texts with 3PL brokers (if applicable)
- Reactive: 
    - Respond to any email to the Farmlink Transport address regarding your load 
    - If you are concerned about the status of your load on the Uber Freight Dashboard, call Uber Support: **+1 (877) 289-8237** (You may also "Request a Call" by pressing that button on the Dashboard and entering your phone number.)
    - In the case of very serious issues, escalate the problem to Mia Foster (call at +1 (310) 906-6293), Sophia Harvey (call at +1 (949) 613-1747), or Luis Yepiz (call at +1 (206) 402-7428). 

:::


****



### Email 3PL Method

****
After checking the dashboard prices with the 3PLs listed in the Farmlink Transport email, you should cross reference the pricing with each of the third party logistics (3PL) transporter options via email. Once you have sourced the best quote across both methods, it is time to move forward with that company. 

We have tried to make sending email quotes very simple! The steps are detailed below.
1. In the shared Farmlink email add from the template the 3PL emails into BCC
2. Next title the email with the following: "Quote Request: INITIALS, Pickup City, Date, #1", so for instance I would write: "**Quote Request: MEF Salinas 5/25 #1**"
3. Next apply the template for the body of the email and fill in the empty spaces. This information is synonmous to the information portals require to book a load. 
4. Copy the emails from the template labeled: "Current Emails to BCC on Quote Requests," and paste into **BCC**. 
5. You're all set to send the email and await the responses!
6. Wait for the majority of 3PLs to respond before locking in the most efficient rate. To confirm your load with a 3PL, you may write "Let's go ahead and lock this load in with X company for $X. Please let me know once a driver has been assigned to this load." 

###  Monitoring a load with a 3PL
- [ ] Send a note to the 3PL confirming that a carrier has been assigned to a load 24 hours before the scheduled pickup time
- [ ] Confirm the driver's ETA to the shipper the night before a morning pickup or the morning of an afternoon pickup
- [ ] Confirm the driver has arrived at the shipper (send a note to the farm as well!)
- [ ] Confirm the driver has been loaded and is en route to the reciever (again, send a confirmation note to the farm)
- [ ] Confirm the driver's ETA to the receiver
- [ ] Confirm the driver has arrived at the receiver (communicate via Slack once confirmed so the HOT POC can confirm with the food bank)
- [ ] Confirm the truck was unloaded and the produce is in acceptable condition
- [ ] Collect POD/BOL from 3PL contact and ensure HOT has asked the food bank for the Confirmation Receipt (upload appropriate documents based on protocol below).




## Link

Any sprint that you run **must** be accurately and completely logged in Link. This represents the heart of our operations and is crucial to our everyday processes. It will be your best friend and you will know it well.



Among other things, Link is used to track total poundage and total $ spent on loads.  After booking a load, enter all relevant food bank and farm information via Link.  Additionally, if you incur late fees for a certain load, make sure to update the costs under the appropriate subtask. 

Please be sure to closely watch the Link tutorials provided by your team leads. 

### Steps To Follow:
- [ ] Click the Green Create button at the top of the screen
- [ ] Fill in the Epic Name & Summary using the uniform format: *Farm Name - Pickup Date - #*
- [ ] After clicking create, a pop up with appear at the bottom left. Click View Issue to open your deal 
- [ ] Click on the Supplier Subtask
    - [ ] Fill in the produce sub-task. Once complete, transition to "Done" via the dropdown in the upper right corner
    - [ ] Go back to the main supplier subtask by clicking the previous FLP-XXXX on the top of your screen
    - [ ] Fill in the remaining mandatory information and transition the Supplier to done
- [ ] Click on the Recipient Subtask
    - [ ] Fill in the mandatory information
    - [ ] Attach a Confiramtion Receipt via the link icon directly under the bold **Recipient**
    - [ ] Add the appropriate label to the attachment under "Smart Attachments" located in the right column
    - [ ] Transition the recipient subtask to done
- [ ] Click on the Transportation Subtask
    - [ ] Fill in the mandatory information on the left
    - [ ] Attach a BOL via the link icon directly under the bold Transportation*
        - [ ] **If the recipient provided transportation, you can select "YES" for skip documentation on the right side.*
    - [ ] Add the appropriate label to the attachment under "Smart Attachments" located in the right column
- [ ] Be sure to mark "Yes" under Food Delivered? After a (hopefully) successful delivery
- [ ] Once all the subtask have been transitioned to done, transition the entire epic to done in the upper right hand corner. 

If the recipient or supplier in any given deal does not exist in the dropdown menu, please be sure to create a new organization by clicking on the blue buttons directly underneath each section. If you have questions about supplier/recipient creation, please reach out to your team lead. 


    


****


| :truck: Freight Shipment Details :truck: |
|:----------------------- |
| Pickup **Location**|
| Pickup **time frame**   | 
| **Special Instructions for pick up** location (does pick up location have a dock? Forklift needed? Liftgate needed? Load locks needed/if yes, number of load locks needed? Pallet jack needed?)  | 
| Does the farmer require truck **washing** inside and out (or just inside) before pickup?  | 
| **Delivery location** (if more than one, list all of them. Make note of whether order of delivery matters. If not, the shipper will go with the most time-efficient route. IMPORTANT—as you plan deliveries, make sure that they’re possible. Check on google maps to be sure that the routes fit with the farm and food bank time frames. Generally leave an estimated two hours for unloading/loading full truckloads. Consider traffic in large cities.)  | 
| **Delivery time frame** (again, if more than one, list all of them. Make sure it’s clear which time frame is for which food bank/delivery location)  | 
| **Special Instructions delivery** location (does delivery location have a dock? Forklift needed? Liftgate needed? Pallet jack needed? Be sure to check with all delivery destinations)  | 
| **Date of pick up**  | 
| **Equipment** (type of truck): Reefer (always)  | 
| **Temperature controls (Precool temp + Maintenance range)** | 	
| **Type of produce**  | 
| **Total weight** of produce  | 
| How is the produce **packaged?**  | 
| Packed on pallets? If so, **number of pallets**| 





#### Reefer Temperature Protocols
:::warning
***Bill of Lading and Vehicle Inspection forms must be filled out!*** 
:::

| Produce Type          | Temperature Instructions               |
| ----------------- |:----------------------- |
| Potatoes  | Precool to 45F, maintain 39-50F |
| Milk  | Precool to 38F, maintain 37-43F during transportation (preferably 38F)|
| Eggs   | Precool to 40F, maintain 38-43F during transportation |
| Onions        | Precool to 34F, maintain 32-36F during transportation | 
| Broccoli   | Precool to 32F, maintain at 32F during transportation |
| Apples | Depends heavily on type -- check link for species specifications... usually precool to around 32F, maintain 30-34F during transportation| 
| Lettuce   | Precool to 32F, maintain at 32F during transportation |
| Summer Squash (soft rind)   | Precool to 45F, maintain 43-50F during transportation |
| Winter Squash (hard rind)   | Precool to 50F, maintain 50-55F during transportation |

**If you have any questions about the temperature specs for a specific type of produce, you can also check the archive sheet of past deals and keyword search before asking the Deals Team Lead**

## **Deal Document Protocol**  

Author: Mia Foster

:::danger
A bill of lading (or proof of delivery) is a document ensuring that the produce was transported safely and correctly. A confirmation receipt is a signed form from the recipeint organziation, confirming they how much and when they received the donation. A CR reflects **the most accurate poundage, so please be sure to update the "total pounds" in Link within the produce subtask after obtaining this document.** These two documents are **required** the be collected for every deal,. **Please** do this correctly and reach out with any confusion or issues. 
:::

### From the Food Bank* 
**The HOT POC will typically be responsible for collecting this document but it's your responsibility to track it down and upload it to Link*
- [ ] **Confirmation Receipt (i.e. Donation Receipt)**
    - **Please upload this document into the "Recipient" subtask in Link.** Please choose the *Confirmation Receipt* label and mark the subtask complete. *More detailed instructions to be shared via onboarding Link tutorial videos.*
### From the 3PL or Independent Driver
- [ ] **Bill of Lading (i.e. Proof of Delivery)**
    - [ ] **Please upload this document into the "Transportation" subtask in Link.** Please choose the *BOL* label and mark the subtask complete. *More detailed instructions to be shared via onboarding Link tutorial videos.*



## Media
****
The following section outlines the ways in which the deals process should be documented to ensure that the  and Impact Team are well-informed of all deliveries for potential publication use. 
****

- #successfulshipments
    - The Media & Impact teams (along with the rest of the organization) have access to *#successfulshipments* Slack channel. In tangent with pushing volunteer sign-ups, this team is working to get local media coverage of deals considered priority.
    - High impact deals should be announced in this channel alongside any photos, positive emails or texts, etc. that accompany the deal you have successfully run. 

- If the Media or Impact team contacts you to publicize any content, please get consent from Farmers + Food Banks! [WiP]

 


## Finances

Everything explained to this point in the document assumes that you are approved to run a deal. We must remember, however, that we have a budget. **Therefore, transportation prices and lanes should be strategically chosen and carefully monitored to ensure we are staying within our budget.** If you ever have questions about pricing please reach out to the Deals Team Leads. 
****
**How we deal with payment:**

Ask the agency (farm / transport company) to send an invoice to your email listing the following as our **Billing Address**: 

**The Farmlink Project**
**325 Arno Way**
**Pacific Palisades, CA 90272**

You can tell inquiring agencies the following: 

*"As soon as I receive an invoice, I will submit it to our finances team. They will review our payment registar, consolidate invoices, and finalize all payments on the morning of the following Friday."*
****
#### After the Deal 
- Once you receive an invoice, confirm it is for the correct amount 
- After you've confirmed the invoice, email it to invoices@farmlinkproject.org with the following information (most of which can be found on the invoice): 
            
    -    Deals lead name, farm name, farm address, invoice number, invoice date, farm contact, farm contact email 
- Please look at the invoice and, if you see **Net10** anywhere, please include NET10 in the subject line of the email to alert finaces of the shorter payment timeline. (In general, invoices will be Net30, which means that we have 30 business days to pay the invoice.)

If you have any questions you can also reach out to finances@farmlinkproject.org or #finance-legal for more info.

#### Other Helpful Finance Tips
- We do not do any deals where we have to pay *before* picking up any produce. 
- We have a credit card, but in order to use it, the transaction must be approved by the finances team.
- We can wire money in *extenuating circumstances only*. As a general rule, we do not wire money. 
- Contact Sasha Lascar and Cerina Corrigan with finance questions.