Contract Automation Is Transforming the Business World

During the last three years, digital transformation within companies has evolved at an accelerated pace. Companies are now rethinking their business strategies by putting technology at the center of their operations. Today, incorporating it is no longer a synonym for having a competitive advantage but a must to improve processes, adapt to new challenges and above all, provide resources to employees to develop activities of greater value.

In this sense, businesses rely on innovative solutions, especially those on the cloud, to achieve their goals. Cloud enables personalized work schemes that allow us to work with information from anywhere in the world, which is vital for the new remote work modalities . If companies digitize their processes correctly and in strategic places, it can and will impact multiple areas. 

One key aspect to explore is contract management. Documents are core to any business, from the beginning to the end of every process. They are used by customers, suppliers, operational personnel, the finance area, the legal department and, by decision-makers who approve corporate movements. 

Perhaps this is the first area every company should be thinking about when it says it is going through digital transformation. Is this true when their contracts are still printed and housed in folders? Is it easy to redact a contract? To negotiate? To search for clauses? Is this a true transformation if their clients don't have the convenience of mobility? The trust in data security? Is this efficient, enabling employees to focus on what's core to the business?

According to a recent study, companies take an average of 30.8 hours to complete a contract from the time it is drafted to the time it is signed by all parties and stored. It can take from four days to weeks in total to have a contract completed, considering that employees have more activities to support their roles.

A few years ago, it would have been considered science fiction to make a deal close in just hours or even minutes; however, it's real life now. Companies that went through real transformation of their contract processes complete deals in less than a day. 

These numbers are achieved thanks to technology, which simplifies activities by creating templates, sending notifications to follow up on each of the stages of the process. Not to mention the real convenience of managing contracts from anywhere with internet access, saving time and avoiding having to go to an office. It favors hybrid work or home office and focuses on strategic activities.

Using technology to automate  contract management has become essential since it helps to standardize processes, aligns with the sustainability strategy of companies and favors a secure experience for all parties. Proof of this is another study from the consulting firm IDC that indicated that Mexican organizations consider that the use of technology increases efficiency (29 percent), expands mobility and connectivity, supports new ways of working (20 percent) and promotes collaboration and communication (16 percent).

The digitalization of processes increases the trust of employees, customers and suppliers toward companies because it increases security and privacy. While years ago paper signatures and seals were forged, electronic devices now have high standards that make it difficult to misuse the data they handle.

The adoption of technology not only generates economic benefits for organizations but also improves the quality of life of employees. From a business point of view, working with happy employees also translates into greater efficiency. If we delegate repetitive activities to systems that can perform them automatically, coupled with the speed with which they will be done, we will remove from our team a great weight of monotony, they can use their hours to seek new business opportunities and develop strategies to improve performance, among others. 

Despite the progress that companies have made in recent years, there is still much to be done. IDC revealed in the same study that in Mexico, only 3 out of 10 organizations consider that they have an advantage over their competitors when using technology. This delay in the implementation of technological innovation results in a high cost for organizations as it compromises the development and growth of the business.

The technological explosion of recent times shows that year after year we have new tools to boost our businesses. Being open to exploring them will help us nurture satisfied customers. Let us forget about dull, repetitive tasks and focus on performing highly valuable tasks, those that only human beings can do.