Contract Lifecycle Management Trends in 2023 You Should Know

Let’s face it: in the absence of streamlined contract management, today’s organizations are more likely to find deficits in their day-to-day contracting — each at different points in the contract lifecycle. Naturally, this can result in missed payments on deliverables and renewals of agreements, leading to penalties, loss of revenue, and — yes — even diminished reputations.

Fortunately, legal technology has evolved from two-dimensional buy- and sell-side solutions to artificial intelligence (AI)-driven, multi-user platforms. And they’re only growing in popularity. In particular, contract lifecycle management (CLM) software is helping organizations to overcome their traditional contracting challenges, however simple or complex. Think accelerated contract execution and renewals, greater ability to track contract performance, and better adherence to compliance and government regulations. What’s more, Gartner predicts that AI-powered contract analytics will reduce manual contract review processes by a half by 2024.

So, where is CLM software going in the coming year and beyond? How can it empower you to gain an edge in your organization’s contracting? To give you a better idea of the changing legal tech landscape — and help you improve your contract-related operations — here are the top contract lifecycle management trends you should be aware of in the coming year.

Efficient Audit Trails

First and foremost, the most functional CLM solutions increase the efficiency and effectiveness around contract audit trails, while safeguarding contract activity records. So, instead of having to navigate your completely siloed platform, shared drives, or even emails — and running into bottlenecks — you can use robust audit trails to bring all of your communications and contract files together. This leaves you far more time to manage contract approval processes and focus on contract negotiation, for example.

Leveraged Analytics

The most intelligent contract management is based on constantly evolving technology. That means AI and machine learning (ML), as mentioned above. AI-driven CLM systems help you to not only automate the creation, review, approval, and management of your contracts and related documents, but also gain deeper insights into your day-to-day contracting. And this goes a long way in improving contract workflows and security, and minimizing contract risks. This stands in stark contrast to a straightforward contract repository. In fact, AI and ML are key components of the most advanced CLM systems around today. They are key to contract data classification and extraction processes — and improving the way legal and other departments function altogether.

It is also important to note that AI is not only for Artificial Intelligence, but also Augmented Intelligence (in that it helps humans do better).

Digital Identification Tactics

Moving forward, the security of digital identities will be even more important when it comes to transferring sensitive information between contract parties remotely. This is especially true, as companies retain hybrid office environments and privacy regulations continue to increase. The good news is that CLM software has the potential to authenticate every user as securely as possible. And along with improving enterprise data privacy, in general, secure digital identities can simplify your access and management of contract information. Better still, facial recognition software and biometric technology will further simplify and secure the digital identification process. This, by eliminating the need for third-party verification programs or applications, as well as username and password logins.

Deeper Adoption Organization-wide

Finally, modern contract management is no longer the sole domain of legal teams — thanks to contract management advances, like business user portals and self-service functionality. In a way, this has democratized contract management by giving authority and control over agreements to other business departments.They offer pre-approved contract templates, automated workflows, and electronic signatures, which allow sales, procurement, and HR professionals to handle agreements without having to consult with legal teams first, and select and approve standard language in a variety of contracts. And broadly speaking, this leads to wider adoption of contract management platforms.

How ContractPodAi Can Enable Your Future

Clearly, the coming year promises some interesting contract lifecycle management trends: CLM solutions that are robust, yet connected — contract management software that is as user-friendly as it is cost-effective. And in the very near future, this legal technology will only become more commonplace in legal departments and beyond, as legal digital transformation becomes more expansive in organizations.

So, are you ready to streamline and optimize your contract lifecycle management? Do you need a solution that will make sure you have the most efficient audit trails, help you to leverage AI and deep analytics, support you with your digital identification, and increase your organization’s adoption of legal tech? Download a free copy of our white paper, How to Choose a Contract Management Solution. It will help you navigate the CLM landscape in 2023.

And to find out how to start your digital transformation journey, contact us today, and request a demo.