Great contract management processes are key to maintaining successful business relationships, mitigating financial and legal risks, and measuring the success of projects. In this article, we’ll cover the basics of contract management and discuss the ways in which a content services platform (such as Q-Action) can help your organization do it successfully—whether you work primarily in the public or the private sector.
Contract management is the process of managing contracts between employees and employers or between organizations and goods and services providers. While not all companies have employees dedicated to contract management alone, many major defense firms, government agencies, and businesses that work with government agencies often use contract managers. No matter the title or role of the person responsible for contract management, they need legal knowledge and familiarity with best practices to lead the process appropriately.
There are three main stages to contract management:
Successful contract management yields the following results:
A content services platform can help your organization avoid the common pitfalls of contract management. A software solution such as Q-Action can be tailored to your organization’s specific processes and needs so that with every contract, you can ensure clear communication, eliminate confusion, and avoid a drawn-out negotiation process.
Drafting and editing contracts is usually a collaborative process with multiple experts contributing. A content services platform with version control helps avoid potentially costly mistakes that can result from working with multiple versions of a document.
For example, when working with contract documents in Q-Action, you’ll gain peace of mind that all collaborators are working with the same single source of truth during the drafting and editing phase. All changes are tracked, so a previous version can be restored if needed. Your team will be free to work efficiently since there is no confusion resulting from multiple versions floating around on various drives. And finally, you reduce the risk of an unfinished version of a contract making it into a potential partner’s hands, which if not caught could cost your company money and make for a dysfunctional business relationship with your partner from the get-go.
Communication is critical to successful contract management. The approval process is where bottlenecks most often occur. An automated workflow ensures that no steps are skipped and the process keeps moving.
Additionally, a solution such as Q-Action provides visibility of the contract status to all parties involved in contract management. Integrations with systems that allow electronic signatures can also make it easier and faster to get contracts executed before being handed off to the proper people to get work started.
QFlow Systems is experienced in helping government and private sector organizations reduce risks and improve operations with our content services platform, Q-Action. This solution can be tailored easily to adapt to your unique business’s workflow and integrate with existing systems you’re currently using. If you could use support in improving your contract management process, we are ready to help! Connect with a QFlow Systems expert today to discuss your challenges.