The perfect match – CRM and contract management software
Sometimes, confusion arises if your contract management software and your CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system function separately. Business can run much more smoothly, and you’ll have greater contract management success if you can dovetail these two systems.
Leading contract management solutions enable integration with an organisation’s existing CRM system, expediting the entire contract process and eliminating any lack of communication between sales and contract teams.
CRM alone doesn’t cut it
Without the affectionate aid of credible contract management software, many CRM systems impose data limits that can hinder you by putting a cap on how many files can be stored within its database. Most are only available as a cloud service, and lack flexibility for clients. They often have their own maintenance schedule, leading to downtime during periods of high-demand.
In a world where contract management software and CRM don’t talk to each other, problems ensue. Instances of duplicate data entry can arise when accounts and opportunity data are located on two disconnected systems. The need to find related contracts within two different systems can lead to bottlenecks.
Signing processes, which aren’t unified, can lead to confusion during contract signatures. Many CRM solutions lack automated legal workflows to reduce sales cycle time and enforce organised accountability. Without reputable contract management software, users don’t have access to contract-specific dashboards and email alerts so miss out on user-friendly status updates.
Additionally, with fragmented systems, organisations can fail to meet compliance rules and governmental regulations. Sales opportunities can be squandered if they fail to attain the most value from their contracts and contract-to-close rates are slower without maximising CRM capabilities.
The benefits of integrating contract management software with CRM
Successful relationships involve partners who work better together – this is no different for reliable contract management and CRM software. Both platforms are fantastic tools for business success, but integrating them supports the greatest possible revenue enhancements and the fastest sales cycle and contract lifecycle times.
The benefits of system integration are clear to see. Sales and legal teams complete deals faster when CRM information and contract information are handled within an assimilated system. Integrated electronic signatures simplify the signing process for all involved stakeholders. Since account data and opportunity data are synched between two reciprocal systems, instances of duplicate data entry are reduced or eliminated.
Holistic lifecycle automation
Where CRM software is a satisfactory tool for the sell-side of contract management, leading contract management software offers holistic contract lifecycle automation. It can send dynamic, rules-based workflow alerts and triggers based on up-to-date sales and legal information, speeding up the contract approval process.
User dashboards proffered by trustworthy contract management software offer easy and visually engaging access to contract status updates when CRM is linked.
Users can find contract files much more easily within a joined system. Legal and sales teams can generate company-approved contracts easily from standard, established templates with field and clause merging. Key date alerts make it simpler to manage contract obligations. Full version control helps users to monitor negotiations and changes.
In essence, the sales cycle control offered by CRM solutions and the contract lifecycle control offered by leading contract management software work together as a packaged unit for the greatest possible contract process.
Talking to CRM – Contract Insight from Four Business Solutions
Contract Insight® Enterprise Edition can directly integrate with your organisation’s existing CRM system. In only a matter of days, your sales system and Contract Insight Enterprise accounts, contacts, products, and custom objects can be synched. It offers:
- rapid integration with field mapping to CRM open objects and tables
- integration flexibility, supporting easy-to-manage interface operations
- proven integration points like Salesforce, MS Dynamics, Oracle, SAP, PeopleSoft, Workday amongst others.
About Four
Four helps small and multi-national organisations enrich the way they work. From supply chain to procurement and contract management, we have decades of experience helping companies forge ahead in the global market.
John O’Brien is the CEO at Four Business Solutions, global business consultants and software integrators providing business processes improvements in Finance, Supply Chain and Operations, across a broad range of industries.
