What’s more frustrating than delay caused by waiting for a document with an ink-to-paper signature to be signed and returned? You don’t know how long it’s going to take to get the signed copy back. Once the signed document is received, it may be scanned and filed both in paper and digital form which slows the process down even more. e-Signatures shortcut the process of signing proposals and sales contracts, employee benefits forms, vendor agreements, and other documents that require a verified signature for audit and compliance purposes.
The pandemic changed the nature of doing business. Meeting in-person to get a signature is next to impossible but mailing documents back-and-forth is time-consuming and inefficient. This has increased the importance of conducting remote transactions quickly and securely. e-Signature technology can be an asset to every company and the business case for adopting it has never been more compelling.
e-Signatures differ in their security level. The typed name under an email or a DocuWare stamp are examples of a simple signature. An advanced signature must be encrypted, with part of the key accessible only to the signer. In the case of a qualified signature, the identity of the signer is additionally verified with a certificate deposited with a Trust Service Provider.
With some exceptions, most e-signatures are legally enforceable. They are accepted in most business and personal transactions in almost every country. Digital signature providers leverage secure protocols ensuring the highest level of security and universal acceptance. In response to customer needs, DocuWare partnered with two digital signature providers (a.k.a. Trust Service Providers) in Validated ID and DocuSign.
If you’ve already begun your digital transformation by working with a signature service provider, document management adds workflow to the mix to eliminate manual steps like filing the completed document, sending email reminders, and returning a copy of a completed documents to the signer.
See how e-signatures can benefit your business at a webinar, How to implement secure electronic signatures now to increase productivity for you distributed workforce. It will be held on Thursday, January 21 at 2 p.m. EST.
e-Signatures for the win
- Eliminate printing, physical storage and automate email notifications
- Save paper and reduce the risk of filing errors
- Avoid the tedious task of printing out documents to revise them before they’re sent out for signature
- Authenticate, track and store signatures and signer information in a centralized database
- Enable version control to make sure you have the final signed document on file
- e-Sign documents from smartphones, tablets, laptops or desktop computers
- Use audit trails and automated document creation features to connect securely with customers and vendors
- Amp up the value of existing signature software with automated workflow
Main image: Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash
