Rule 1: Plan for your Legacy and Existing Contracts
For a successful contract management software implementation strategy, it is important to drive user adoption into a new contract software. It is important to communicate the benefits of driving contract migration and how it will help contract teams readily focus on real actions and obligations instead of doing paper-keeping.
Due to a longer lifespan, legacy contracts pose a different challenge altogether. Let’s say you missed a renewal deadline, or an early settlement benefit, or a bonus opportunity – all of which were specified in the contract long ago. But it was signed, allowed to rest and long forgotten. Any of these errors compromise the bottom line in business. This is why we feel strategizing contract migration for legacy contracts is of utmost importance.
However, strategizing Contract migration for an improved contract management process is not a standalone option. One has to do thorough market research and comprehend all sorts of requirements from the contract software standpoint. Next, understand different solutions available in the market to shortlist the ones, matching your requirements.
For example: Understand whether the solution provider only sells a CLM system or they can provide additional support for extraction and migration of contract information from your legacy storage medium into the CLM.
“When Legacy Contracts are likely to form?
Merger & Acquisition of two organizations
Consolidation and Diversification of departments or legal entities
Long term Renewal after liquidation or Insolvency of any long-term contractual relationship”
Why is it important to import legacy contracts?
- Eliminating silos for contracts – Single-point storage and repository having centralized data control and access from anywhere, for any department
- Tracking history of contractual relationships – Track past performances, commitments, schedules or financial obligations of vendors or counterparties
- Imparting Visibility to complete contract information – Reporting needs and visibility metrics to analyze the potential exposures to losses and identification of revenue opportunities
- Identifying hidden risks – vulnerabilities are tracked beforehand with advanced flagging options so that they can be prevented or mitigated in advance.
