The digital contract management workflow’s main purpose is to facilitate the whole approval procedure of previously drafted documents.
A digital contract management workflow from Nectain makes the processes of contract preparation, negotiation, validation, and collecting signatures significantly simpler and more efficient and notably enhances Contract Lifecycle Management or CLM.
In addition, the management workflow helps to minimize expenses connected with memory space usage and allows the user to have papers at hand in no time by building a reliable and secure digital library with a fast search option.
At the same time, Nectain provides assistance during the whole lifespan of a contract: from the creation of a legal agreement (using a relevant template) to the implementation of amendments and to the collection of signatures in both the traditional and the digital ways.
After the digital version of a contract is saved in the digital repository it is easily available for users with authorization. And the connection to ERP systems allows it to be used in the process of cost allocation.
Starting to make a draft of an agreement. Very often this stage is initiated by a user that has the required authorization. In some cases, the procedure begins automatically: when it is a consequence of business operations executed inside some other IT system. For example, a client approves an offer or one of the sides stops taking part in an agreement).
Establishing the exact form of an agreement and filling the form with its parameters. According to the kind of agreement, various kinds of data will be extracted. For example. for the cost agreement, it is the data about the different stages and schedules of payments, for NDAs, it will be the contractual penalty for a breach). That information could then be transformed into reports (for example, they could define the median value of contracts for a chosen type of document).
Creating an agreement using a template. The program takes parameters directly from the template and this data is automatically transferred into the agreement. According to the form content, specific parts and clauses of the document could be conditionally created. For example, the beginning of the document is filled with client information from the CRM or other relevant sources. (Alternatively, following the business standards, parts of the text concerning confidentiality are created only if the sides had no individual NDA before.)
Deviations from the sample and approval of the agreement content are made according to the specific validation algorithm. It could be an ordinary approval by an authorized user or by a whole department. The draft agreement may require permission from, for example, line managers that are completing the contract conditions. At this point, the program could generate a redline of the agreement that was based on a template and then identify the derogations that were agreed upon during the negotiations. Simultaneously, there is also an option to use a risk register ( that includes both business and legal risks) connected with the process of concluding a contract. It is also useful to check the total time passed during the verification of the documents).
The process of collecting signatures may contain signing papers with well-known handwritten signatures, as well as signatures made with smartphones (not unlike taking delivery from a courier) or through e-signatures, which includes the so-called qualified signatures that one can make with specific tools like Autenti, Adobe Sign, Skribble, Docusign or any other). Signatures can be collected in any available way. The program will always inform the relevant groups about the needed actions and show the status of a signature transparently.
Starting tasks that need performing after the conclusion of the agreement, could be partially or fully automated. As long as it is mandatory to execute certain actions after the signing of an agreement (like, for example, leaving an entry in the system, holding a group meeting, or notifying certain people), the program sends an email message, sends tasks to the user to be executed and confirmed, or enter data to the relevant system through web service. This way, the whole process of closing a contract stays directly linked with the business processes of a company, because it initializes and finalizes them.
The process of archiving digital documents. In particular cases, quick ways to register a document that was signed before are accessible to authorized users. They allow the user to fast-forward the stages of making a document, negotiating and leaving signatures (rarely the confirmation phase can be skipped – for example, when a user wants to digitally archive agreements that were concluded before). The system can do OCR, as well as mass scanning. This feature facilitates the search inside the digital archive and this process involves the usage of phrases and keywords that are to be found in the agreement. For this type of agreement, it is also allowed to complete the metric of a document. This means entering metadata that informs about the contract’s terms, according to the preexisting form template for a chosen type of contract)
One can effortlessly enhance and change the digital contract management workflow in the processes of system realization and system maintenance. This includes the possible situation when the company modifies the organizational structure and the procedures (before or after the solution’s production starts)
Automatic contract creation saves a lot of time. The contract sample becomes filled with information (contract terms, conditional causes) that is taken from different IT systems or a form.
Business and legal risks record makes the procedure clear and simple. At the same time, it is important to keep a clear idea of who is responsible for decisions made during negotiations.
The data about the time that has passed at different stages of creating, modifying, and filling a document help to use the resources more efficiently and ensure better optimization of the whole procedure.
The data about the time that has passed at different stages of creating, modifying, and filling a document help to use the resources more efficiently and ensure better optimization of the whole procedure.
These functions of the low-code platform from Nectain are fundamental for the realization of the digital document management workflow and, more specifically, the contract management workflow.
Taking care of barcodes to enhance the process of making a scan of an agreement.
The possibility to construct a custom document confirmation workflow. This includes complex conditional approval, which bears in mind the company’s unique organizational structure and the individual parameters of a chosen agreement type.
The capacity to enter the program and execute the operations that are connected to the document confirmation process through a browser or relevant mobile application on Android or iOS.
The effective approach to work delegation and short-term substitutions.
Intuitive and quick change of a workflow each time when document approval algorithms are modified is achievable through the Change BPM technology.
The potential to continue improving the digital contract management workflow through the incorporation of new connected processes like payment processing, counterparty validation, registration, and invoicing orders.
Connection with the company’s IT systems to put into use different dictionaries and to complete the agreement parameters.
Clear and accessible reports on the agreements that are in process, including records of modifications and approvals.
With the assistance of active reporting, it is much easier to find and solve inefficient parts in the contract approval process and to offer and realize relevant changes.
Scalability is incorporated into the system. This allows the program to manage the processing of big amounts of information and immense amounts of employees.
Automation of industrial and office workflows with low code and maximum freedom