Creating a contract is not typically a cut and dry process. A contract may have to complete many internal processes before completion. These processes can be based on contract status, budget, and type to trigger a workflow in a contract management system. Without automated workflows, processes can be time consuming and mistakes can be made. Forget having to manually drop off a contract or make sure it is attached to an email, automated workflows are here to do that for you.
One of the best parts of automated workflows in Contract Insight™ is that there is no need for IT support. The system admin is able to build and manage the workflow processes easily within the user interface. The wait time for an IT team to build a workflow process is taken out completely. An admin is able to quickly build an automated workflow set to whatever requirements needed. The workflow process is completely configurable to meet the needs of the users and the organization. As many workflows required by an organization can be added with as many, or as little, rules based around the processes.
Internally, organizations have established contract approval processes. There can be a maze of people and tasks or quite the opposite with only a couple steps. Regardless, these steps must be met. With automated workflow processes in Contract Insight, users are alerted when a task is triggered. For instance, a consulting agreement over $50k must be reviewed by the Finance department. Once the contract is entered into the system, the workflow will be triggered based on rules set in the system. Employees are made aware they have a task through email notifications, calendar alerts, task lists and dashboard alerts. Tasks can be completed directly from the email with approve or reject options and notes. Links to the task will also be provided in the email for the user to quickly complete the task without having to search within the system.
Having automated workflows makes the contract lifecycle more efficient within your organization. The maze mentioned above can be confusing. With an automated workflow set in place, users no longer have to worry about where, or to whom, the contract has to go next. The system sends the contract task alerts based off of the rules created to who the task is assigned to. If the contract was approved by Finance, the next step could be assigned to Legal for review of language. Once Finance approves the task, meaning they are okay with the budget, the system will trigger the next task automatically, sending Legal an alert. Other than their task, Finance does not have to worry about anything else regarding the contract.
In an advanced contract management system, every step taken by a user is logged. Audit trails are an essential part of contract accountability. The users name and time stamp are immediately logged in the system with every task an employee takes in the workflow process. Easily accessed within the system, a system admin is able to view the logs to check who has done what on any particular contract. The audit logs hold users accountable in the system. The information cannot be change. Certain areas of the system cannot be edited because they are filled in with the name of the user who entered a contract.
Automated workflow is another great tool in a contract lifecycle management system. The workflow process helps with internal approval processes within an organization. By creating automated workflows in your organization's contract management software, your team can minimize human error and create a more efficient, streamlined process that will lighten the load, reduce contract approval bottlenecks, and allow for faster processing. Eliminate any potential headaches and streamline the process easily with automated workflows in Contract Insight™.
CobbleStone has helped thousands of contract professions better manage their contracts, risk, and compliance since 1995. Learn more about Contract Insight Contract Management Software by visiting us at www.CobbleStoneSystems.com and sign up for a free demo.
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