How Contract Automation Tools Level-Up Operations

The most efficient businesses understand that in order to level-up operations they need to leverage technology and automate repetitive (and sometimes annoying) tasks that take up time and resources. One of the most common ways to streamline business processes, save time, and improve efficiency is through contract management automation. 

There is no shortage of contract automation tools promising the world. Finding the right contract automation tool for your organization can be quite a difficult endeavor, however. There are so many factors to consider — which tools have the right functionality, the right level of control, the ability to scale with your business, the best useability, the right compliance, and so much more. 

The good news is that we’re here to be your contract automation guide and help you find the best contract automation tool for your business. But first, you need to understand what an automated contract system is and how businesses can leverage this technology in today’s marketplace.

What is an Automated Contract System?

Contract automation is the process of developing, managing, and storing contracts online with minimal manual input from your team, giving you time to focus on your business and things that matter most. 

The most important thing to remember is that contract automation cuts out the repetitive, manual, and labor-intensive parts of the contract process like data entry, contract storage, tracking progress, approvals, and even creating the contact language. 

An effective digital contract management solution takes the guesswork and stress out of the entire process, moving contracts through the system on autopilot and creating end-to-end visibility without the need for human intervention at each step along the way.

There are many different reasons organizations would choose to automate their contract processes, but contract automation has obvious, and some not-so-obvious, benefits across industries and departments, including sales, human resources, operations, finance, legal, procurement, just to name a few. 

Why Contract Automation is Essential for Modern Businesses?

In an increasingly digital world, businesses can’t afford to waste time on repetitive, time-consuming tasks. Workforces are often geographically spread out, resources are limited, time is at a premium, and your focus should be on bringing value to your company. 

Wasting time on things like writing contract language, chasing someone down for a signature, or making sure it’s saved in the right folder is painful, to say the least, but many professionals don’t know there are solutions right at their fingertips. 

The demands on today’s businesses, regardless of size or industry, are bigger than they’ve ever been. Contract automation solutions help businesses lower costs, increase productivity, collaborate more efficiently, improve scalability, ensure compliance, reduce errors, focus on clients, and dedicate more time to their organizations and people. 

Benefits of Contract Automation Tools for Different Teams

We know it can be easy to stick to the old way of doing things. Or perhaps you’re not sure whether your team or business could benefit from a contract automation tool. There are always reasons to put it off, but the thought of having to micromanage the execution of another contract should be enough to make anyone want to find a better solution. 

Any business, especially a small or medium-sized business (SMB), that manages contracts regularly can greatly benefit from the right contract automation solution. All types of teams benefit too — legal and insurance teams using manual processes, finance and operational teams managing large amounts of data, or sales teams constantly bringing in new clients.

Legal Teams

Workflow automation for legal teams can be a lifesaver, because let’s face it, you’ve got more important things to focus on than whether the latest contract has been signed. Custom and pre-built workflows that can be tailored to fit your firm’s needs free up time and resources by: 

• Automating financial processes such as invoicing and payment tracking.
• Improving accuracy and reducing errors.
• Securely collecting and storing important documents. 
• Enabling better team collaboration. 

Most importantly, workflow and contract automation solutions help legal teams keep paperwork secure, confidential and compliant, making client relationship management easier than ever.

Financial and Ops Teams

Managing financial documents requires specialized solutions to ensure you’re protecting your organization’s and customers’ sensitive data. Financial document automation provides that level of security, in addition to: 

• Speeding up application approval processes. 
• Automating eSignature requests. 
• Streamlining processes through building documents using templates. 

What does all of this mean for you and your business? We’re glad you asked. It means faster contract generation and negotiation, improved contract collaboration and version control, accelerated deal closures and increased revenue, and enhanced sales productivity and efficiency.

Sales Teams

If your sales team is spending all their time bogged down in paperwork and doing manual repetitive tasks, how can they be selling and bringing in revenue to the business? The short answer is, they can’t! 

Sales automation software frees up your team to focus on closing deals and building relationships by: 

• Enhancing the sales process through automating annoying tasks. 
• Better managing the sale pipeline from contact to close. 
• Speeding up the sales cycle by removing bottlenecks. 
• Easily integrating with existing sales and operational systems. 

Sales automation technologies get your sales team back to selling, closing deals, increasing revenue, and streamlining operations. 

Insurance Teams

Buying and managing insurance policies can be a complicated and stressful experience for everyone involved. Insurance agents, claim clerks, customer service representatives, adjusters, and customers all have a role to play in managing sensitive data, maintaining customer privacy, and protecting clients from fraud, just to name a few concerns. 

Finding the right workflow and contract automation solution allows for: 

• Efficient management of policy creation, renewal, and claims processes.
• Accurate documentation and reduced errors in insurance contracts.
• Streamlined claims handling and improved customer service.
• Enhanced compliance and risk management.

By streamlining your processes, including automating digital insurance policy documents, you can reduce the stress and allow your teams to put the focus where it belongs – simplifying underwriting new policies and processing claims to support client relationships and build trust. 

Healthcare Teams

The paperwork and administrative demands on healthcare teams can seem herculean at times. The mass number of signatures, the compliance demands, multiple communications channels, redundant tasks, and constantly protecting sensitive information is a lot for any person to manage. And, there are pitfalls to avoid at every step, making an effective healthcare workflow management tool a must for healthcare teams. 

Tell us if any of you can benefit from a solution that: 

• Securely collects and stores patient information. 
• Accelerates patient flow. 
• Manages multiple communications channels in a single location. 
• Improves your team’s efficiency while cutting down errors. 
• Streamlines those annoying redundant tasks. 
• Maintains compliance with built-in HIPAA standards. 

We can’t see you, but we know you are raising your hand. 

A workflow management and eSignature automation tool simplifies and improves every aspect of your healthcare businesses, getting your teams back to focusing on what’s important. 

Choosing the Best Contract Automation Tools

Whether your priority is digital contract management, workflow automation, or eSignatures, choosing the best contract automation tool for your business is a big decision that requires research and an understanding of what your business truly needs. Here are some things to consider: 

Digital Contract Management

A digital contract management platform isn’t just about securing signatures, it’s about streamlining the entire process, from contract creation to securely storing the sensitive documents. 

Think about some of the most tedious and repetitive parts of the process, like creating the contracts. If you can automate the document generation, you’re not only freeing up time to focus on other more productive tasks, but you’re reducing the risks of errors due to manually producing these documents. Add in built-in alerts, notifications and eSignature options, and this leads to increased collaboration among teams and improved client experiences. 

Remember to look for solutions that offer: 

• Legally binding eSignatures
• Automated contract generation
• Customizable document workflows
• Secure integrations with sales and marketing software

eSignatures 

Not all electronic signature software solutions are created equal. Even the big players in the industry often fall short of providing tailored solutions to meet most businesses’ demands (we’re looking at you DocuSign). 

What’s for certain is that if you haven’t implemented an eSignature solution, it’s time to modernize your processes to save yourself and your businesses time and money. Here are some things to consider when deciding on an eSignature solution: 

• User-friendly eSignature services and features like no log-ins required. 
• Scalable document volume that can grow with your company. 
• Secure, compliant and legally-binding that considers compliance concerns like HIPAA, FERPA, SOC 2, and CCPA requirements.
• Reduced turnaround time and eliminating manual follow-ups. 
• Accessibility from any device. 
• Low-cost eSignature options that your business can afford. 

Workflow Automation

Saving time and money is at the top of the priority list for most businesses, especially SMBs, and finding the right workflow automation platform is a great place to start. 

Managing documents, creating and distributing forms, collecting eSignatures, or any number of other manual tasks require a ton of time from your team. Most of those time-consuming manual tasks our teams deal with every single day have an element that can be automated, saving them time and your business money.

A workflow automation solution is about reducing human error, automating repetitive tasks, and eliminating manual data entry, but there are a few things you need to remember:  

• Find a no-code builder that allows for easier organizational adoption at all levels. 
• Get a solution that allows for a fast but customized implementation. 
• Ensure your solution is mobile friendly for eSignatures and document reviews. 
• Automated routing and document or contract approval is a must! 
• Find one with easy send and share options to ensure the people that need it get it. 
• Choose a solution with built-in tracking so you have fast insight into the status of workflow tasks, with reminders, notifications, and escalations to keep progress moving.

Integration Platforms

Whatever solution you choose, it likely won’t be the only solution or digital platform that your company utilizes. That means your workflow or contract automation tool integrations are going to be critical to success. Finding solutions that integrate with existing tools, like Salesforce, Zapier, SharePoint, OpenAI, and others will enable greater productivity and bring your processes full circle and enhance your team’s capabilities and productivity. 

Get Started with Docubee Contract Automation Tools

It’s clear that any organization can benefit from the right contact automation tool. We know there’s a lot to consider when choosing a contract automation tool for your business, but it shouldn’t be difficult, stressful, or costly to your organization. 

Contract workflow automation should help your SMB level up your business by improving efficiency, increasing revenue, and streamlining operations. 

Schedule a demo today to see how Docubee’s contract automation solutions can level up your business.