Salesforce contract management and CLM: What you need to know 

When you’re diving into the world of contract management software, Salesforce is a name that pops up a lot—and for good reason.  

Ranked #1 by IDC’s April 2024 Software Tracker, Salesforce is a powerhouse Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system that many companies rely on for streamlined business processes. But when it comes to efficient contracting, there’s a big difference between integrating and implementing a proper Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) and just using Salesforce’s in-app contract management features. 

Your department and how it views data

Your department may be one that has a homegrown legacy system that has been patched together through the years that is unable to easily share its data or your department may have the latest technology but is still unable to share its data due to a lack of integration ability. If you don’t have the view of sharing contract data with every purchase of software, you end up with a variety of disjointed, unconnected solutions. This can, at a minimum, cause confusion and, at most, be detrimental to the business. 

A lot of times in the business environment, with data being seen as power, there is a knee-jerk reaction to keep data close and not let others in, essentially siloing data. But if you look at what power truly is for your organization, it’s the sharing of data because at the core of it, everyone needs the same data for different purposes, or to be seen from their viewpoint. Finance needs to track commitments and payments, Sales wants to know where the heck the contract is in the process and Legal wants to make sure all the i’s are dotted, and the t’s are crossed so that the company is getting its money’s worth or the commitments are reasonable. Same information, but everyone’s viewpoint – and need – is different. 

You have solutions out there that claim they can do other things outside their core function, claiming to be a Swiss Army Knife™ of sorts; whatever your data needs may be. In the world of Conract Lifecycle Management (CLM) you have e-signature companies that claim they can do full-blown CLM, you have Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems that say their contracting is amazing, and then you have Enterprise Legal Management (ELM) systems that say they can do everything well.  

So, you’ve invested completely in a CRM and expect it to do a certain thing and do it well. Why would you want to rely on it for something that is not its core functionality Same question in regard to CLM. Why would you invest in a CLM and expect it to also do your CRM work? You wouldn’t. 

The Salesforce contract conundrum

Salesforce’s contract management tools don’t make it to the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Contract Lifecycle Management, PC Mag’s top 10 CLM software list, or Capterra’s celebrated reviews. Why? Because industry-leading CLM software is designed to ensure compliance, speed up approval cycles, and expand contract visibility—areas where CRM just can’t compete. 

CRM is fantastic for streamlining processes across sales, marketing, customer service, and e-commerce because it keeps customers at the center. But to maintain operations and satisfy customer demand, companies need complex workflows and internal processes that focus on other areas too. Contract risk, legal compliance, and supplier relations won’t get the visibility they need unless contracts are properly managed. 

If you’re looking for basic Salesforce contract management functionalities, you may be in luck. But if you need something more robust that leverages automation and is customized to your unique business needs without extra costs, you need to look beyond CRM. Think about it: a customized CLM solution can decrease revenue leakage, boost compliance, improve information sharing, and speed up procurement processes — likely all at a fraction of the cost. 

How CLM and CRM should work together

When choosing a Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) platform to integrate with your existing CRM, here are some key points to keep in mind: 

• Real-time data mapping: Ensure your CLM provider supports real-time data mapping. This feature is essential for seamless integration. 

• CPQ integration: Check how well your Configure, Price, Quote (CPQ) software integrates with the CLM platform. This is crucial for a smooth workflow. 

• Salesforce compatibility: If you’re using Salesforce CPQ, verify its compatibility with your existing software. This will help avoid any integration issues. 

• Future-proofing: Consider how the CLM solution will work with software you might add in the future. This is important for scaling your team’s operations. 

As with all new solutions, it is important to determine whether Salesforce CPQ can be integrated with the other software that you have in place. A robust CLM platform should have ample integration capabilities. For example, Agiloft’s Integration Hub integrates with more than 1,000 integrations with well-known applications such as Slack, Teams, and Workday. The first of its kind to be embedded within a CLM platform, Integration Hubs allows data to flow into other areas of the business structure where it is deemed useful and removes the friction of sourcing and onboarding a new platform among many other use cases.    

How CLM software helps shorten the sales cycle

CLM solutions that integrate seamlessly with other software, such as Salesforce, enable businesses to further automate their contract processes and negotiate deals in a fraction of the time it would normally take.   

Here are five ways Salesforce for contract management is benefitted by an integrated CLM system: 

1. Pre-approved templates to cut down on manual contract work: Establish pre-approved contract templates using historical data and new legal insights. This means accurate, standardized agreements that minimize variability and reduce risks, helping your sales team close deals faster and providing a smooth contracting experience for customers. 

2. Quick answers with a centralized command center: Streamline document workflows with a centralized command center. Check document status anytime, anywhere with cloud capabilities. Efficient review and approval workflows ensure each step is managed smoothly, pushing contracts to Salesforce for real-time access. 

3. A centralized communication hub to keep things moving: A centralized communication hub shows the lifecycle of contracts, while an activity dashboard offers data points and contract analysis. This transparency helps forecast deal closures and identify hurdles, allowing your team to engage the best strategic partners to move the process along. 

4. Integrated system intelligence for smarter business strategy: Ensure your CRM speaks to your contract management system. With CLM for sales, each step within Salesforce is complemented by Agiloft CLM.  

5. Automated notifications for expedited supplier onboarding: A top-rated CLM platform can speed up supplier onboarding by giving suppliers limited access to the system. They get prompts for required documents, updates on contract approvals, and alerts on performance—all through automated notifications. If you’re just using Salesforce contract management tools, you’re likely missing out on these features. 

The definition of success

By relying on core, specialty software, solutions that integrate and can bi-directionally exchange data, you will create a distinct advantage for your business. There are several reasons why: 

• You’ll be creating a data-first organization that shares data from one true source so there is no data hogging 

• Streamlining your employees’ work simply by being able to stay in the applications they are most familiar with yet seeing data generated by other systems.  

• Having insights that your business hasn’t had before. Manfacturing knows what Procurement is doing, Sales knows which quarter the money will be recorded, Legal is more efficient and able to get contracts out in a timely manner, executives can quickly see the health of the business, and the list goes on.  

Using world-class platforms like Salesforce and Agiloft that each compliment and enforce each other is a guaranteed way to make your business, no matter the industry, a success. 

Learn more about how Salesforce and Agiloft work together in this short demonstration.