HOW TO PREVENT COVID-19 AND OTHER CRISES FROM AFFECTING YOUR CONTRACT MANAGEMENT
On March 11th, 2020, COVID-19 (coronavirus) was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO). Although the case fatality rate of COVID-19 (3.4%) is not as high as that of SARS (9.6%) at the moment, it has spread significantly quicker – and has had a far greater impact. And if the latest predictions hold true, the outbreak will continue its course to at least late May or mid-June 2020.
The impact of this virus on the global economy will vary. But the numbers are staggering. In fact, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) predicts that COVID-19 will reduce 2020’s international GDP growth from 2.9% to 2.4% – or by half a percent. Bloomberg Economics, meanwhile, estimates that the GDP growth in the first quarter of 2020 slowed to 1.2% YoY (year over year), which is the slowest growth on record. It also warns of a possible GDP growth of zero – and a $2.7 trillion hit to the global economy.
Planning For Contingencies
We sincerely hope that COVID-19 will be relatively brief and that the virus will be ultimately contained. Richard Tromans, founder of Artificial Lawyer, recently stated “if the scientific advice that has been given so far is correct, then we are looking at a ‘short sharp shock,’ rather than the epic and long-term crash of 2008/2009.” But let’s face it, the legal industry can benefit immensely from contingency planning and crisis preparedness today. Whether working from home (WFH) in the U.K., mainland Europe, or the U.S.,
general counsels (GCs) and legal teams need to think deeply about their contract management processes. This is especially true if contracts and related documents are not at teams’ fingertips. What is certain is that those that have already planned ahead – when it comes to contract management systems (CMS) and crisis management preparedness – are likely to emerge from this event in a stronger
position than ever before. They will be ready to face the next shock, too. As for the 62% of house legal teams currently lacking such a solution, according to ContractPodAi’s research, the coronavirus and future crises will be challenging, indeed.
Driving Legal Digital Transformation
The most crucial point, however, is to stop procrastinating. Right now. If you are a GC, head of procurement, or other senior executive responsible for the legal team, learn more about the importance of:
- Staying on top of service level agreements; liabilities and indemnities; delayed or liquidated damages; and termination provisions
- Having even more control of – and insights into – contracts
- Cloud-based, end-to-end CMS solutions, like AI-based contract lifecycle management (CLM) systems that are deployed out of the box – in a matter of two to five weeks
- Contract onboarding; a full contract repository; smart summaries; contract automation; AI analytics; an integrations ecosystem; and revision and review workflows
- Proper vendor selection
- An overall crisis preparedness plan
Download our whitepaper today. And find out how ContractPodAi can help you with your crisis management and emergency preparedness, as well as your legal digital transformation.
