For years companies have been using conventional spreadsheet programs to manage their contracts. So why rock the boat when things have always been done this way? Quite simply because today’s contract management solutions make your day-to-day work easier. They replace time-consuming manual data maintenance in multiple systems with largely automated processes in a single application. Deadline management, customized settings, seamless traceability, and automated allocation of the documents to the contract data are all built right into the system. Thanks to these features, you reduce the potential for errors and minimize risks, and you benefit from convenient user-friendly advantages that extend far beyond what spreadsheets can deliver.
Manual vs. digital contract management
For many companies, spreadsheet software is the tool of choice for managing the entire contract portfolio. Frequently, several people – oftentimes scattered throughout different departments and locations – manually enter or update the relevant data using exhaustive lists. They insert links that lead to documents stored elsewhere, make extra calendar entries, and coordinate processes and deadlines by e-mail or telephone. With so many moving parts, maintaining an overview of the situation is a major challenge. Because the familiar procedures “work," the people in charge see no need for change. But this approach is labor-intensive – and error-prone.
With its distinctly high degree of automation – that integrates deadline management along with customizable settings and seamless traceability – an all-in-one digital solution for handling sensitive contract data is a compelling choice.
All-in-one: Digital contract management creates a central database
Once the documents have been scanned, modern contract management software bundles all the data and documents in one place. Dashboards display an overview of all contracts in the digital files. Artificial intelligence (AI) automatically extracts relevant details such as contracting parties, terms, and duration periods and inserts them into lists. Thanks to the intelligent full-text search function, users quickly find the information and documents they need. This eliminates the potential for errors associated with manual entries, system interruptions, and time-consuming searches. AI makes sure that those responsible can stay on top of things, even when the number of contracts keeps rising.
A clearer overview thanks to individualization and deadline monitoring
When it comes to editing lists, custom column arrangement and filtering and sorting options are crucial. In contrast to standard spreadsheet programs, a digital all-in-one solution retains the user’s own settings. Even when other users modify data and the way it’s visualized. On top of that, a comprehensive range of analysis functions allow users to generate and share reports at the touch of a button.
The integrated calendar that includes automatic deadline reminders is yet another advantage of digital contract management. Convoluted efforts to coordinate processes and deadlines by e-mail or phone are a thing of the past, along with all the risks and additional costs that arise when contract provisions aren’t adhered to. Individualization and automation are the key to efficient and transparent contract management.
Complete transparency based on traceability and revision security
As part of intelligent contract management programs such as Fabasoft Contracts, automatic versioning ensures complete transparency: Authorized persons always have access to the most up-to-date information and can use the timeline to seamlessly trace who has modified which content or documents and when.
This revision-secure documentation also fulfills all compliance requirements, a capability that puts it in a class of its own compared with spreadsheets.
Effective contract management takes more than a spreadsheet
In addition to digital signatures, which I discuss in terms of their legal security in a separate blog post, clarity and oversight, deadline monitoring, and traceability are decisive criteria for successful contract management. Conventional spreadsheet programs have their limitations in this regard. Intelligent software is based on the functionalities of a spreadsheet. By means of extensive automation, it minimizes the potential for errors and risks and offers a level of convenience that makes day-to-day work for everyone involved a great deal easier. This makes an all-in-one digital solution a better choice for managing sensitive contract data. Way better.
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