Contract Management Software Myths

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Contract Management Software

• Debunking the myths

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Contract Management Software

• Contract management software (CMS) is a
  centralized system to house all contract-related
  activities.
• User training is needed to efficiently operate a
  CMS solution. If not trained well, or if a CMS
  user does some silly mistakes in the process of
  entering contracts into CMS, costly errors can
  occur.

3
10 Contract Management Software Myths

• AI (artificial intelligence) does all the work
  for you.
• eSignature is AI.
• Contract templates are all the same.
• Contracts are not legal unless created by a
  lawyer.
• Only a full-time employee can represent their
  employer in a contract.
• Every breach of contract costs a company
  thousands of dollars in court fees.
• CMS that is free offers the same features as an
  expensive CMS.
• Every CMS is the same.
• Only managers should manage CMS.
• All companies that offer CMS offer encryption for
  contracts stored in the CMS.

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Debunk the Myths

• How AI Really Works
• AI is a programming code, or a series of codes,
  within an enormous program (code base). Imagine
  how your town is part of your country. AI is not
  artificial. It is not futuristic or from outer
  space. AI is a programmed to do list, based on
  circumstances predicted during the programming
  process.
• eSignature
• AI triggers the eSignature process, but AI and
  eSignature are two different features of a CMS.
  To initiate the eSignature process, a CMS trigger
  can be setup in advance to occur at a specific
  progress point in the contract life cycle, at the
  end of the last approval workflow stage, or
  another customized time.

5
Debunk the Myths

• Contract Templates
• Contract templates provide the structure of a
  contract and about 95 of the contents of a
  contract. Then, only about 5 of a contract is
  completed with subjective data that pertains only
  to the contract parties and terms.
• Contract Parties
• Anyone that is a valid representative to an
  organization can enter into a contract, complete
  the subjective data of a contract template,
  perform tasks in the workflow process of
  contract, and sign a contract on behalf of their
  organization.

6
Debunk the Myths

• Breach of Contract Costs
• The more that a lawyer charges for their time,
  and the more legal counsel used, and the more
  complex the breach of contract lawsuit, the
  higher the cost of a breach of contract. Then, of
  course, there are court fees per day spent in the
  courtroom.
• CMS Pricing Options
• Many CMS brands offer a free trial, or a limited
  number of users or data. This is more of a
  marketing strategy than an enterprise-level CMS.
  To get the full experience of a CMS, not only
  should you expect to pay for the service, but the
  experience will be a better one.

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Debunk the Myths

• CMS Brands and Optical Character Recognition
• CMS brands will state nearly identical language
  in their demos and sales pitches and marketing
  materials for the features they offer being
  better than the competition. There are hundreds
  of CMS brands.
• Managing a CMS
• The more employees given access to the CMS in
  your organization, the less time that the CMS
  content manager will spend hunting down a
  contract, or worse, a portion of a contract to
  read the details of the obligations of the
  organization.

8
Debunk the Myths

• Encryption
• Encryption can occur at the software level or at
  the tenant level. Tenant level refers to the
  platform in which the software operates. For
  example, Microsoft SharePoint is a tenant that
  offers off-the-shelf (OTS) software with an API
  (application programming interface) offered to
  separate software brands.

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Conclusion

• Debunk the myths about contract management
  solution. Study the facts and statistics, not the
  opinions and wishes. The right CMS for your
  organization will match your list of priorities.
  Do your research to learn which features are
  offered by which CMS. Purchase the CMS that fits
  your priorities first. Be trained by the CMS
  provider to use the software efficiently.