Every organization that wants to speed up its contract process should have contract management software. Contract management software can improve workflow efficiency and increase contracts’ accuracy. Organizations have seen a transformation in their business practices since the introduction of software-driven contract management.
An incorrect application could impede your contract progress and cause problems in contract management. The first step in implementing an online contract management software is to assess whether your company is ready for it. Investing in a CLM software solution might be worthwhile if your sales team is involved in complex technological and healthcare sales processes. Even if your business has a small number of products or complex processes, a CLM solution can help optimize your business operations.
Here are factors to consider when implementing a contract management software.
The Organization’s Size
It is essential to consider the size and scale of the organization when deciding on the best solution. The contractual workload will be higher if the operations are large. An organization would need multiple professionals to manage a large number of contracts.
The right contract management software can help organizations meet their contractual obligations and ensure they are covered. Small businesses can also benefit from the best contract management software. This will increase their productivity and allow them to use the solution efficiently.
Contract Generation
No matter your role, whether you are a GC, staff lawyer, paralegal, or contract manager, it’s possible to find yourself having trouble creating, editing, and publishing quality documents and agreements.
Contracts are the best way to protect and represent your company’s interests. The ability to use clauses and terms from previous successful agreements can have an impact on the development of new business opportunities. A robust CLM system should consider how you manage your contract templates. The ideal solution will include an AI-based self-service contract desk that can suggest the best language for your business situation.
Security Features
Modern enterprises face many challenges due to security flaws in advanced solutions. Contracts contain sensitive information that must be kept secret. Organizations need to reconsider their security procedures due to cyber threats. Most contract management systems are fully equipped with advanced security features that can be used to increase the security of contractual documents. The solution offers a variety of security features, which can be customized and critical.
How Complicated Is Your Sales Process?
When choosing a CLM software solution, it is essential to consider the complexity of your sales process. Implementing CLM software can give businesses with complex sales processes a guaranteed productivity increase. Companies with short sales cycles can use CLM software that is flexible and scalable. This allows them to be future-ready and will enable them to focus their time and resources on the most important tasks.
Redlining and Collaboration
As contract versions are sent back and forth between parties, many comments, redlines, and changes can become confusing. Buyers and sellers may misuse the Word native redlining function to mishandle versions of the contract as negotiations drag on. Or worse, one party might forget to turn on Track Changes and send back a copy without any mark-up.
A CLM system with a secure collaboration area allows you to invite your negotiation partners to review the contract terms live. You can speed up the process of reviewing contracts and also have the opportunity to discuss terms and avoid frustrations caused by misunderstood or versioning errors.
Product Pricing
The software’s price must be justified. The cost vs. usability issue is a significant problem for enterprise solutions enterprises. Mismatched contract management solutions can put a lot of pressure on large businesses. It is important to choose a cost-effective application that scales with your business. It is not a good idea to pick a simple solution for large contracts but a more expensive one for small businesses. This will have an impact on the ROI. The volume of contracts managed by an enterprise must be reflected in the solution’s price.
CLM Solutions Need Business Scale
Over-investing, your contract management suite can be as costly as investing in a system without key features. You can choose the right vendor and tier for your business by being realistic about its size, revenue, growth trajectory, market coverage, and contract processing volumes.
Many CLM systems are now available in today’s SaaS-based world. It is essential to determine what functionality you require for your company. Do you need detailed analytics or just the ability to store documents?
Integration with Salesforce, Workday, or SAP will you require? What number of users will work with your CLM system? Are they the only legal users, or are they enterprise-wide users? Vendors that value flexibility and growth are generally the best. This means that you start with an operational CLM platform, which allows you to add advanced workflows and deep analytics as your business grows.