Why use Find Firms?

Find Firms helps General Contractors quickly discover certified and qualified firms that match project needs. Instead of manually searching for subcontractors, you can use keywords, capabilities, certifications, location, and other filters to narrow results and find the right firms faster.

Use Find Firms to:

  • Build targeted bid lists
  • Identify diverse and certified subcontractors
  • Review firm qualifications
  • Add firms to project bid packages

Before you start

To use Find Firms, make sure:

  1. You are logged in with a General Contractor account.
  2. You have access to the projects and bid packages you want to use (if you plan to add firms to bids).
Available dashboard options may differ depending on your account type and permissions.

Step 1: Log in as a General Contractor

  1. Enter your email address.
  2. Enter your password.
  3. Click Log In.

Alternative login options

If your account is connected, you can also log in using:

  • Autodesk
  • Procore

If you forgot your password

  1. Click Forgot password?
  2. Follow the prompts to reset your password.
Make sure you are logging in with a General Contractor account. Available dashboard options may differ depending on your account type.

Step 2: Open the Find Firms feature

You can open Find Firms in either of the following ways:

Option 1: Top navigation

  1. In the top navigation bar, click Find Firms.

Use this option to access the feature from anywhere in the platform.

Option 2: Quick Actions

  1. From the Home Page, under Quick Actions, click Find Firms.

Use this option when you’re on the dashboard and want to start searching right away.

Both options take you to the Find Firms page, where you can search for subcontractors and apply filters to narrow your results.

Step 3: Understand the Find Firms page

The Find Firms page has two main areas:

  • Recent Searches (left)
  • Search and Filters panel (right)

Step 3.1: Recent Searches

Recent Searches shows previous searches performed on the account. Each search card may include:

  • Search criteria used
  • Number of results found
  • Date the search was performed

You can click a recent search to reuse it, or delete it using the trash icon.

Recent searches are useful when you frequently search for the same trade, capability, or project requirement.

Step 3.2: Search and Filters panel

In the Search and Filters panel, you can search for firms using:

  • Company name
  • Capability
  • Keyword
  • Commodity code

Example searches:

  • painting
  • HVAC
  • electrical
  • concrete
  • solar
  1. Enter a search term and/or select filters.
  2. Click Submit to apply your search criteria.

Step 3.3: Available filter categories

Filters help you move from a broad search to a focused list of firms. You can use one filter or combine multiple filters.

1) Certification

Use this filter to search based on certification details.

Includes:

  • Certified by (certifying entity)
  • Certifications (certification type)

Common uses:

  • Find firms certified by a specific agency
  • Find firms holding a specific certification
  • Combine Certified by + Certifications for a more refined search

2) Commodity Code

Use this filter to narrow results by trade/service-related codes.

  1. Under Commodity Code, click Add.
  2. Enter one or more codes.

Use this when you know the commodity code for the work you need.

3) Location

Use this filter to narrow firms by geography.

Includes:

  • State (one or more)
  • City
  • Zip (one or more ZIP codes)

Examples:

  • Search in a specific state
  • Search within a city
  • Search near one or more ZIP codes

4) Ethnicity

Use this filter to search by business ownership categories.

Options may include:

  • Asian
  • Black or African American
  • Hispanic or Latino
  • American Indian or Alaska Native
  • Middle Eastern or North African
  • Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander
  • Other
  • Non Minority

You can select one or more categories depending on project requirements.

5) Revenue

Use this filter to narrow by company revenue size.

Options may include:

  • Less than 100K
  • More than 100K
  • More than 500K
  • More than 1M
  • More than 5M

Examples:

  • Use lower ranges for smaller firms
  • Use higher ranges for larger/more established firms

6) Labor Type

Use this filter to narrow by labor classification and wage practices.

Options may include:

  • Not Known
  • Union Affiliated
  • Non-Union
  • Non-Union, PLA
  • Pays Prevailing Wage
  • Pays Davis-Bacon Wage

Examples:

  • Use Union Affiliated when union labor is required
  • Use Non-Union when the project is open to non-union firms
  • Use Pays Prevailing Wage or Pays Davis-Bacon Wage for public/regulated projects

7) Projects

Use this filter to search based on bid package relationships.

Includes:

  • Bid Packages (add one or more)
  • Include firms in selected packages
  • Exclude firms in selected packages

Examples:

  • Use Include to find firms already connected to a package
  • Use Exclude to discover new firms not yet associated with the package

8) Flags

Use this filter to include or exclude firms based on account flags.

Options may include:

  • Include Permanently Closed firms
  • Exclude Abusive or Disrespectful firms
  • Exclude Do Not Contact firms
  • Exclude firms flagged for Other reasons

Examples:

  • Exclude Do Not Contact to avoid outreach issues
  • Exclude Abusive or Disrespectful for cleaner sourcing results
  • Include Permanently Closed only when you need historical/reference visibility

9) Bookmarks

Use this filter to search based on saved firm behavior or historical activity.

Options may include:

  • Past submissions
  • Never added to a project
  • Responsive firms
  • Reliable firms
  • Versatile firms

Examples:

  • Use past submissions to find firms with prior engagement history
  • Use never added to a project to discover new firms
  • Use responsive, reliable, or versatile to prioritize stronger candidates
The more accurately you set your filters, the more relevant your results will be.

Step 4: Use Advanced Search help

The search bar includes an information icon that opens advanced search guidance.

  1. Locate the search bar in the Search and Filters panel.
  2. Click the information icon inside the search bar.
  3. Review the Advanced Search Commands popup.
  4. Click X to close the popup.

Advanced Search commands

The popup explains how to use special search commands to make searches more specific.

(table)

Use advanced search commands when keyword search returns too many results or when you need a more targeted list of firms.

Step 5: Review search results

After you submit a keyword search or apply filters, matching firms appear in the results list.

From the results page, you can:

  • Review matching firms
  • Compare firm details
  • Select firms individually or in bulk
  • Bookmark firms for later
  • View full firm profiles
  • Add firms to project bid packages

What you can see on the results page

The results page is divided into:

  • Firm results list (left)
  • Search and filters panel (right)

Your current search term and filters stay visible so you can adjust them without starting over.

Firm result cards

Each firm card gives a quick overview of a firm, including:

  • Firm name
  • Tags and identifiers (may include location, certification status, ownership/ethnicity category, website, revenue range, labor type)
  • About (short description of services)
  • Capabilities (example: HVAC installation, ductwork, boiler installation)
  • Commodity Codes (example: NAICS, NIGP, UNSPSC)

Select firms for action

You can select firms directly from the results list before taking action.

Select a single firm

  1. Click the selection control on the firm’s card.

Use this when you only need to take action on one firm.

Select multiple firms

  1. Select firms one by one from the results list.

Use this to compare or add a specific set of firms.

Select All

  1. At the top of the results list, click Select All.

Use this when you want to act on all firms currently shown (especially after narrowing results with filters).

Unselect

  1. Click Unselect to clear the current selection.
At least one firm must be selected before using Add to Bid.

Actions available on each firm

Depending on the firm, you may see:

  • Bookmark
  • Add to Bid
  • View Profile

Bookmark a firm

Use Bookmark to save a firm and label it for future reference.

Bookmark options

You can tag the firm as:

  • Responsive (easy to contact)
  • Reliable (follows through, submits when expected)
  • Versatile (can handle multiple scopes)

Add a pinned note

Use Pinned note to save internal context (for example, communication history, fit for a project, or follow-ups).

Save the bookmark

  1. Choose one or more bookmark tags (optional).
  2. Add a pinned note (optional).
  3. Click Submit.

Add a firm to a bid package

Use Add to Bid to add a firm to a project and assign it to a bid package.

How it works

When you click Add to Bid, Tough Leaf opens a selection window that lists projects you own.

What appears in the Add to Bid window

The pop-up includes:

  • A search field
  • A list of your owned projects
  • Bid packages within each project

Add the firm to a bid package

  1. Select the destination project.
  2. Select the destination bid package.
  3. Click Add to confirm.

After you add the firm, it becomes associated with that bid package for your project workflow.

Best practices

  • Start with a broad keyword, then narrow results using filters.
  • Use certification, location, and labor type filters to match project requirements.
  • Review capabilities and commodity codes before adding a firm to a bid.
  • Use bookmarks and pinned notes to save context for later.
  • Add firms to the correct project and bid package to keep outreach organized.

Final note

Find Firms helps General Contractors move from search to action by making it easy to identify, review, organize, and add qualified firms to project bid packages.