The chess-like, back and forth nature of contract negotiations can create confusion and contract lifecycle inefficiencies. Without a centralized and well-organized system, organizations on both ends of the contract management chessboard become trapped, halted, and unsure of where they should move their next piece. A centralized, well-organized process can get the match moving again. Discover how contract management software can streamline contract negotiations.
The Problem with Ineffectual Contract Negotiations
Without an effective procedure for collaboration with vendors, internal users, and external stakeholders for contract negotiations, organizations can run into an array of issues.
Keeping track of appropriate clauses or sections to insert into a contract during contract writing can be a challenge when clauses are not in a centralized library, are not assigned conditions, and are not assigned to certain key stakeholders for clause ownership. Version control processes that involve parties working on separate computers in different locations and saving files locally can lead to misplaced document versions and lost edits or changes. Key dates and milestones can be missed or overlooked when organizations rely on email-based workflow processes. Signatures and approvals can be delayed without a unified location in which to perform them.
To solve the contract negotiation challenges detailed above, organizations should leverage a contract management software solution with:
• contract writing that features clause merging from a dynamic clause library as well as clause ownership.
• organized and streamlined document collaboration and document version control.
• intelligent automated workflow to stay on top of tasks, key dates, and milestones.
• efficient, centralized online negotiation and approvals.
• a streamlined, user-friendly, and highly configurable signing process.
That solution is Contract Insight - CobbleStone’s trusted source-to-contract management software. Here’s how it’s done.
Dynamic Contract Writing
Contract Insight helps organizations write documents using templates to dynamically merge contract field data and clauses from a pre-approved language library. The clause library can help produce timely, accurate, and compliant documents and contracts that are ready for collaboration with vendors, internal users, and external stakeholders.
Leverage pre-approved clause libraries for specific document templates such as those used for FAR, DFAR, and GSA contracts. Contract Insight also helps with CLIN (contract line item number) management and the addition of line-items in contract templates. Contract documents can readily be exported to standard file formats such as MS Word and PDFs.
Read our contract writing article to learn more about how you can improve your contract writing process with clause merging and MS Word integration afforded by CobbleStone’s source-to-contract management software!
Full Document Collaboration & Version Control
Document collaboration and version tracking are easy, organized, and effective with Contract Insight. A contract management process that leverages CobbleStone integrates an organization’s contract management software system with MS Word and a proprietary CobbleStone file utility tool for a centralized collaboration and version control experience.
Say, for example, an organization downloads a document version of XYZ Agreement from the agreement’s contract details page in their Contract Insight system and then reattaches it with changes they have performed and tracked. Contract Insight creates an audit trail that facilitates control of that document with version numbers.
Further enhancing the contract negotiation process is CobbleStone’s file utility. This helpful tool makes it even easier for organizations to upload new versions of a document onto that contract's corresponding contract details page. Instead of downloading up-to-date file versions from the system, saving them to their desktop, and reuploading them after further changes are made, users can simply upload new versions with a CobbleStone MS Word ribbon.
With CobbleStone Software’s contract management software suite, organizations can enjoy easy and efficient collaboration and contract negotiation and maintain document version control.
Contract Content Control & Clause Ownership
Contract Insight provides content control for when a document is being written. An organization’s system can be configured so that if somebody changes a section or clause in a contract, the clause owner will be notified using CobbleStone's Document Collaboration module. Clause ownership allows organizations to assign a clause owner. If the clause they are assigned is drafted into an agreement, and a stakeholder tries to edit that clause, the system will add the owner of the clause or section to the approval process and prompt them to approve any changes that were made. This way, people are only added into the negotiation process if they are needed according to a rules-based clause ownership process.
Centralized Collaboration
For external collaboration on negotiation and approvals between users, non-users, and external non-users, a great option to leverage is CobbleStone’s Document Collaboration module. Organizations can quickly set up a rules-based process for stakeholders that need to engage with a contract, such as employees, employee non-users, and external contract parties.
The contract negotiation portal offers a very similar process to that of internal workflow for system users. Stakeholders assigned to a contract can receive a notification that will take them to the negotiation portal, where the relevant contract documents can be accessed for review. This way, external parties and people within an organization who are non-users have access to important documents relevant to their contract, but they don’t have access to core system features. The document they need to interact with is isolated so that they can quickly access that document and make necessary changes to approve it straight from the portal.
With Contract Insight’s online negotiation portal, contract negotiations with external parties are easy and efficient.
Internal Contract Insight users can leverage CobbleStone’s standard intelligent automated workflow process for a streamlined contract lifecycle with task alerts, task escalation, key date & milestone notifications, and much more!
To learn more about intelligent contract workflow, as well as other crucial Contract Insight tools for contract management success, read our blog post about executing a contract workflow!
Speedy Signatures with IntelliSign℠
IntelliSign, CobbleStone’s proprietary electronic signature tool, can help organizations to quickly move from negotiations to signing.
IntelliSign’s rapid signing process allows for remote collaboration and electronic approvals and can cut sign-to-send times as much as 20 percent. Organizations can send documents out for signatures from contracts that have undergone the contract negotiation processes mentioned above. IntelliSign provides a secure contract document repository on the online portal for end-to-end management of partially and fully executed document signatures.
Manual processing for bulk HR documents, addendums, new agreements, and policy updates is a thing of the past. With IntelliSign, organizations can send thousands of documents for e-signatures in bulk. Documents that require signatures are easy to send and sign, and organizations and counterparties can do it from nearly anywhere at virtually any time. Signatories can easily and quickly sign documents after receiving an email that takes them right to the signing portal without downloading software!
With CobbleStone Software, the signing aspect of contract negotiations is simple, user-friendly, and fully electronic.
Transform Contract Negotiations with Contract Insight
Now that you know how to perform dynamic, easy contract negotiations with Contract Insight, it’s time to get started with a superior contract management process!
Contract Insight - CobbleStone’s renowned and trusted contract management, procurement, sourcing, and contract negotiation software solution - has assisted a wide variety of professionals. Legal teams, contract administrators, procurement professionals, and others from a myriad of industries have chosen CobbleStone to reinvigorate their source-to-contract lifecycles.
Contract insight gives organizations the opportunity to enhance their contract management process from requests to renewals. With CobbleStone’s user-friendly, scalable, and robust user interface, your organization can attain contract negotiation success.
It’s time for your organization to make a positive change for the betterment of your entire source-to-contract lifecycle with a proven contract management software solution! Take the first step - Book a free demo of Contract Insight today!
