Creating a New Draft Template Workflow in Finalize

Overview

Templates form the basis of all agreement and request workflows in Finalize.

Templates allow Administrators to configure specific rules and actions for end users to take in order to generate an agreement that has language and approvals that are compliant with company policy.

For example, an Administrator can configure a template to facilitate:

1. Drafting of a MNDA with company approved language and automatically assigned business approvers.
2. Creation of an Order Form with approvals relevant to the business unit and purchasing amount.
3. Submission of a request for a non-standard contract to be reviewed and then generated by the Legal Team.

Some templates can be configured specifically to interact with Finalize's native Salesforce integration. These templates are managed within the Finalize web application but will only be available to users trying to draft an agreement in Salesforce, for more information, reference our article on Salesforce Finalize: Pricing Table Configuration. 

A common use case for Draft templates with no tokens is submitting standard Non-Disclosure Agreements with no custom information through Finalize for tracking purposes.

Process

Select the Templates tab from the navigation bar to go to the Templates page. The Templates page is where templates are created and managed. 

 

 

Creating New Templates

To create a new template, click + ADD A TEMPLATE in the upper right-hand corner of the Templates page. 

 

Finalize will then ask you to select a particular template type to use as the basis for your workflow. 

Our Paper

Our Paper Templates are broken into two types - Templates and Requests:

Templates

Our Paper Templates are used to create a workflow based on an existing document with pre-approved company language. As part of this option you are able to configure modifications to this document to be specific to each new agreement workflow created. For example:

1. You can configure a workflow to modify a standard MNDA to be specific to a particular counterparty you are working with.
2. You can configure a workflow to modify a standard Order Form to have details particular to a given transaction.

These templates are referred to throughout Finalize and Reporting as Draft templates.

Requests

Request Templates are used to allow users in Finalize to submit a request for Legal Approval. This is an important differentiation from Our Paper Templates used to allow non-authorized users to still interact with the Legal Team via Finalize, but allows the Legal team to determine what documentation can be created in accordance with company policy. For example:

1. An IT project manager can submit a request for an exception to purchase a non-approved scheduling tool.
2. An Office Manager can submit a request to have legal review updates to the company's work from home policy. 

In both examples above the Legal team can make the final decision to either move forward and create, or to put the request on hold and not create a formal agreement to work on.

These templates referred to throughout Finalize and Reporting as Request forms. 

For additional resources, you can find more information  HERE

Creating Draft Templates

To create a Draft - or Our Paper - Template workflow - select that option from the choices presented and click Next.  

You will be immediately instructed to upload a Microsoft Word Document to upload as the basis for this template workflow. 

1. Configuring the underlying template file prior to upload 

Tokenization

Prior to uploading the Microsoft Word document, it is critical to go through and review the file to determine if you need to add tokens to the document to assist in automating the workflow. Tokens are a critical piece of how Finalize standardizes and streamlines Legal teams abilities to control what language is being used across their various agreements.

Tokens are a set of "placeholder" details in the file that you insert in order to later replace the "placeholder" with relevant information entered by your end users. Tokens function in a manner similar to a mail merge - which many users may be familiar with - in order to avoid repetitive input of information in many places in a document

For Example:

1. You may enter a #[COUNTERPARTY_NAME]# token in several places in your template file.
   1. When a user then enters the Counterparty Name - say "LinkSquares, Inc." - as they are drafting an agreement, all instances of #[COUNTERPARTY_NAME]#  will be replaced by "LinkSquares, Inc.".
2. You may enter an #[EFFECTIVE_DATE]# token in several places in your template file.
   1. When a user then enters the effective date of the agreement - say "6/6/2024" - as they are drafting an agreement, all instances of #[EFFECTIVE_DATE]# will be replaced by "LinkSquares, Inc.".

Important Notes

• Tokens must always appear in the format of #[TOKEN]#. The token itself must be in all capital letters with no spaces. If a space is needed, use an underscore symbol ( _ ) as a space.
• Tokens can be input within the header and footer of a document. 
• Some documents may not require tokenization, which Finalize will support. 
• When replacing a template file - Finalize will rerun logic to determine if tokens have been added or removed:
  • If a token is removed all downstream dependencies (dynamic language, tasks, etc) will also be removed. 

Tokens are compatible with the LinkSquares Clause Library to insert more detailed, standardized and pre-approved language into an agreement. To do this users must first:

1. Ensure the desired clause is included in the Clause Library.
2. Delete the full clause from the underlying document file before uploading it.
3. Following the token format, enter #[CLAUSE NAME_CLAUSE]# in place of the clause.
   • Example: #[TERMINATION_CLAUSE]#
4. When configuring tokens in the following step, you will be able to map that clause field to the desired clause in the drop-down.

To learn more about the Clause Library, reference our articles on LinkSquares Clause Library. 

File Cleansing and Formatting

In order to ensure maximum compatibility with the Finalize application, users should also perform the following actions prior to uploading the word document file. 

1. Accept all track changes.
2. Remove or accept all comments.
3. Review the document structure and formatting for alignment with company standards. 

1.1 Uploading Word Document Template

Upload the document using the draft and drop or file upload window on the left side of the screen.

Browse to attach a file or easily drag and drop.

 

1.2 Token Mapping and Type Selection

Once the document has been uploaded, Finalize will search through the file and display any tokens that are detected.

• Finalize will pre-populate the tokens found in the order in which they appeared within the document.
  • To reorder the tokens, drag and drop them individually using the drag handle icon on the left-hand side of the token name.
• Administrators can modify what the question text is for each token that is detected.
  • This helps clarify and simplify the drafting workflow by avoiding errors and speeding up the process.
• Click the toggle to determine whether a token field is required for users to fill out when drafting an agreement.
  • All token fields are required by default.

Signature Block Best Practices 

If entering more than one token block to designate the counterparty within the document, the system will only register this as one counterparty token to configure in the following step.

If using an eSignature tool, add the relevant signature blocks via the eSignature tool in the event that you need to pass off signing responsibility.

 

Data Fields

While adding tokens, ensure that the appropriate data type is selected (i.e., Type fields).

For example, select the Date data type if the token is the effective date.

Text Field

This is a free text area that allows Drafters to input one line of text (limit of 80 characters). This is best used for shorter text such as counterparty or name.

Text Area

This is a free text area that allows Drafters to input more than one line of text (limit of 10,000 characters). This is useful for inputting large amounts of data or fields that require multiple lines. This field is best used for longer text areas such as a description of services, clauses, or addresses.

Date

This will give the Drafter a calendar view to facilitate selecting the correct date. Dates will be displayed in the following format:

Month abbreviation, Day with leading zeroes, Year

Example: Sep-14-2022.

Clause

This gives you the option to insert a specific clause saved from the Clause Library.

Map the token to a term within LinkSquares from the drop-down. 

Once signed, the agreement can be automatically ingested into Analyze and the token value will be transferred over as a term.

If you choose not to have the token value mapped to Analyze, select the (unmapped) option.

To learn more about automatic Analyze ingestion, reference our article on Analyze and Finalize Integration. 

Tokenizing Full Clauses
To tokenize a full clause:
1. Ensure the desired clause is included in the Clause Library.
2. Delete the full clause from the document.
3. Following the token format, enter #[CLAUSE NAME_CLAUSE]# in place of the clause.

Example: #[TERMINATION_CLAUSE]#

4. When configuring tokens in the following step, you can map that clause field to the desired clause in the drop-down.

 

Multiple-Selection

This gives Drafters the ability to select as many responses as needed when filling out the respective Multiple-selection token questions. 

The Multiple-selection answer type can be used to enable Drafters to reference a hyperlink throughout the drafting process within the Info tab upon agreement creation. 

Single-Selection

This gives Drafters the ability to select only one response when filling out the respective Single-selection token questions. 

The Single-selection answer type can be used to enable Drafters to reference a hyperlink throughout the drafting process within the Info tab upon agreement creation. 
Note: When using the option of 'other', answers will be alphabetized.

 

After selecting a Multiple-selection or Single-selection answer type, click Please add options below the drop-down.

The question that is outlined for the token will be the question that appears for configuration.

From here, input the available responses. Reorder these options by dragging and dropping them using the drag handle icon.

Click SAVE once you have finished entering the appropriate question responses.

Click SAVE AND CONTINUE once the token configuration is complete. 

Analyze Mapping

Tokens can be mapped to certain Analyze user-generated values. If a valid mapping is set up, the data entered in the Finalize token will automatically populate the Analyze user-generated value.

The following table outlines the Analyze user-generated value term categories to which Finalize token and agreement detail field data types can be mapped. 

Note: Type Terms cannot be mapped. 

To learn more about user-generated values in Analyze, reference our article on User-Generated Values.

To learn more about best practices for mapping tokens, reference our article on Template Mapping Best Practices. 

 

2. Template Name and Information

Next, you will be asked to name the template, provide a description, choose the agreement type, and select a starting status for agreements created using this template. You can edit this status selection at any time.

The template name and description will be displayed when a user attempts to start a draft.

It is best practice to designate a name, description, and agreement type that will help Drafters identify and select the best agreement template for their needs. 

If custom categories have been configured, you have the option to mark the checkboxes of relevant subcategories to better classify the template. Custom categories become highly important methods of classification when you have many templates. These custom categories help Drafters quickly filter and locate the templates they need when creating new agreements.

Note:

• The agreement type will carry over to Analyze. LinkSquares AI will ultimately determine the type of agreement if the template is assigned to "Uncategorized."
• As indicated by the pencil icon, the agreement type will appear as a user-generated type in Analyze.
• You must select a starting status to continue.
• If applicable - apply a tag to the template.
  • Users will be able to select from the list of available tags currently stored in Analyze.
  • Any agreement drafted from this template will automatically created with these tags auto-applied to the agreement. 

Click SAVE AND CONTINUE once complete.

 

3. Multi-Approval Workflows

Next, you can configure Approval and To-do tasks, designate agreement ownership, and designate default collaborators.

Each time this template is used, it will automatically include these pre-configured tasks, agreement owners, and collaborators.

Approval Tasks

To configure an Approval task, click the + icon next to Approvals. 

From here, determine whether the user needs to:

• Approve the latest version of an agreement
• Approve text from an agreement
• Approve an attachment

• Input the task name and necessary information as required.
  • Assign the Approval task to one or several users. If more than one user is added, any user added to this task can approve it. 
  • You are also able to select an option to make the task owner dynamic, based on who drafts the agreement.
    • Selecting the "Agreement author" radio button will mean this task is automatically assigned to the agreement author once the agreement is created. 
• By default, Approval tasks do not have a due date.
• When selecting the Text option, you must enter text into the field to save the task.

Click SAVE once complete.

 

To-Do Tasks

To configure a To-do task, click the + icon next to To-dos. 

From here, rename the task, enter a description of the task, and select an optional attachment.

• Assign the To-do task to one or several users. If more than one user is added, any user added to this task can approve it. 
• You are also able to select an option to make the task owner dynamic, based on who drafts the agreement.
  • Selecting the "Agreement author" radio button will mean this task is automatically assigned to the agreement author once the agreement is created. 
• By default, To-do tasks do not have a due date.
  • Select the "Set a due date" radio button and enter the number of business days if the tasks needs a pre-configured SLA for completion. 
• You must enter text into the text field to save the task. 

Click SAVE once complete. 

Task SLAs

By default, no tasks have a pre-configured due date or SLA. To add a pre-configured Due Date or SLA do the following for each task:

• Select the "Set a due date" radio button.
• Enter the number of business days the task must be completed in once an agreement is created from this workflow.
  • This number should not exceed 270 days.
  • Finalize assumes five business days (Mon-Fri) per week.
    
  • Holidays will not be considered. 
  • The task due date is excluded from this calculation.

For example:

• If the task is configured to be due in one business day and the agreement is created on a Thursday, the task will be due on Friday.
• If configured to be due in two business days and the agreement is created on a Thursday, the task will be due on Monday.
• If configured to be due in three business days and the agreement is created on a Thursday, the task will be due on Tuesday.
• If configured to be due in seven business days and the agreement is created on a Thursday, the task will be due on a week from Monday.

Editing and Deleting Tasks

To edit or delete a configured Approval or To-do task, click the kebab menu next to the task.

Approval Workflow

To change the tasks workflow from the default, unordered workflow to an ordered workflow, enable the toggles.

• An unordered workflow means that the tasks can be approved in any order.
• An ordered workflow means that the tasks must be approved in a certain order.

After selecting an ordered workflow, drag and drop the tasks to configure their order.

To change the order of the tasks, hover over the number on the left side of the task. From here, drag and drop as needed.

Note:

• If the approval workflow toggle is enabled but no tasks are created, this approval workflow will be saved for agreements created from this template. 
• Agreement owners and Administrators can change the approval workflow within the individual agreement view after an agreement is created from the template.
  • If the approval workflow is changed within the individual agreement view, task assignees will be notified via email.
• Relevant tasks will become enabled once an agreement is created from the template. 
• Task assignees will receive emails notifying them of relevant, active tasks.

Assigning Agreement Owners

The purpose of agreement ownership is to assign the point person for the entire life cycle of an agreement, from draft through signature.

Assigning an agreement owner is optional. However, it is best practice to leverage this feature to ensure there will always be visibility on agreements created from this template workflow.

You can add one - or many - users as pre-configured agreement owners. If you assign many users Finalize will default to the round robin method once an agreement is created to determine which user to automatically assigned to the agreement.

When agreement owners are configured in a round-robin format within the template creation process, this means that starting at the top, each individual will take their turn at being an Agreement Owner every time a new agreement is drafted from the template. Once every individual has taken their turn, the sequence will restart.

• All Finalize user roles except Drafter and Sign-only can be assigned as agreement owners.

• Only Administrators can assign and reassign agreement ownership once an agreement workflow is started.

  • Agreement owners who are not Administrators cannot reassign ownership.
  • Approvers and Reviewers who are already added as collaborators to an agreement can can "claim" assign themselves as the agreement owner as long as the agreement is currently unassigned. 

Assigning Collaborators

Assigning default collaborators means that users will be automatically added as agreement collaborators every time an agreement is drafted from the template. Agreement collaborators have complete visibility into the agreement.

Any Finalize user can be added as a collaborator. If the assigned default collaborators have collaborator email notifications enabled within Finalize App > Notifications, they will receive a notification once an agreement has been created.

Click SAVE AND CONTINUE once complete.

4. Adding High-Level Agreement Detail Fields

Agreement detail fields are collection fields for information that your team wants to track throughout the approval process. This would be centered around information not found within the agreements.

While filling out this section, consider what information related to the agreement the stakeholders involved in the review and approval process need to know. 

Examples of agreement detail fields are as follows.

Note: An additional question - "What is the agreement name?" - will automatically populate when the template is selected by Drafters. 

If needed, leverage the optional INSTRUCTIONS field for any special instructions such as Agreement Naming conventions to follow.

1. To create the questionnaire, drag and drop an answer type (e.g., text, paragraph, date, etc.) from the options within the Answer panel section on the right-hand side of the page. 
2. Enter the question or request you want to ask the Drafter within the Type question here field.
3. Enter any possible responses within the Type option here fields. 
4. Repeat this process until you have sufficiently created questions.

Click the ellipsis icon to duplicate or delete a question. Single-selection answer types can be quickly modified to Multiple-selection answer types via the ellipsis icon, and vice versa. 

Agreement detail field responses will be required by default. Uncheck the Required checkbox to make a response optional.

Mark the Include 'Other' option checkbox to include an Other response in which Drafters can enter an alternative response to those outlined. 

Optionally, map agreement detail fields to Analyze terms. When the agreement is created and signed, the field will be ingested into Analyze as a mapped term. Mapping to Analyze terms helps with reporting capabilities.

Reorder questions by selecting the drag handle icon on the left-hand side of the question. Place it on top of the drag handle icon of the desired question location. 

 

Answer Types

• Text: This free text area allows Drafters to input one line of text (limit of 80 characters). This is best used for shorter text such as counterparty or name.
  • Text responses can be mapped to Analyze terms. This can be helpful to use for terms that LinkSquares AI does not already track automatically. Team or industry-specific agreement details or values (e.g., ARR, audit cadences, contact information, etc.) could be mapped information you want to track and report on within Analyze at a later date.
• Paragraph: This free text area allows Drafters to input more than one line of text (limit of 1,200 characters). It is useful for inputting large amounts of data or fields that require multiple lines. This is best used for longer text areas such as descriptions of services or clause names.
  • Paragraph responses can be mapped to Analyze terms.
• Date: This field provides Drafters with a calendar view to make it easier to select the correct date. Dates will be displayed in the following format: 
  • Month abbreviation, Day with leading zeroes, Year
  • Example: Sep-14-2022.
  • Date responses can be mapped to Analyze terms.
• Numbers: This is a field for Drafters to input numeric values like agreement value or recurring ARR.
  • Number responses can be mapped to Analyze terms.
• Multiple-Selection: This is a picklist where Drafters can select multiple values. This is useful when more than one standard data point must be selected.
  • Multiple-selection responses can be mapped to Analyze multiple list terms.
• Single-Selection: This is a drop-down menu where Drafters can select one value. This can be useful for selecting the sales representative or other related internal processes where you know what values must be selected and kept uniform.
  • Single-selection responses can be mapped to Analyze single-list terms.
• File: This is for any file that you want to be added. Drafters can upload a singular file.
  • Note: Password-protected files are unsupported. 

Alternatively, if there is a file that users should complete and upload to the question, attach it below the Type question here field. 

• URL: This allows Drafters to add a web link.

Click SAVE AND CONTINUE once complete.

To learn more about best practices for mapping agreement detail fields, reference our article on Mapping Tokens and Agreement Detail Fields Best Practices.

 

5. Template Access Rules

Emails

By default, Finalize allows users to send emails from agreements.

By disabling the toggle, all users cannot email agreements created from this template. 

In-flight agreements will not be affected if the toggle on the template is modified once the agreement has been created.

PDF-Only Salesforce Agreements

By enabling the toggle, agreements in Salesforce generated from this template will only be available in a PDF format to prevent modification.

Note: This setting will only appear for users who have integrated their Finalize instance with Salesforce. If you are interested in this integration, contact your Customer Success Manager.

Access Rules

 

 

By default, all templates can be accessed by any user who has access to the drafting templates.

Determine which users are either allowed or restricted from viewing and drafting using this template by enabling the toggle.

Administrators cannot be restricted from viewing, drafting, and executing agreements from certain templates.

Signature Request Permissions

 

By default, templates inherit the global Signature Request permissions found on the Signature Request Settings page. Confirm and modify these settings by clicking View in Settings.

To further customize eSignature permissions on the template level, select the Custom radio button. 

Determine which users are either allowed or restricted from executing agreements created from this template.

Users who are allowed are the only users capable of executing agreements created from this template. This subset of users can execute these agreements via the eSignature drop-down of the individual agreement view.

To learn more about eSignature permissions, reference our article on LinkSquares Sign: Signature Request Permissions. 

Once complete, click SAVE AND PUBLISH. The template has been created and is viewable and usable by all users with access to the template.

 

6. Review

A review page will appear once the workflow has been completed.

To review the details from the creation process (e.g., tokens and agreement detail fields) at a later time, select the desired template from the Templates page.

• To edit the template, click the pencil icon in the upper right-hand corner.
• To clone the template, click the clone icon.
• To delete the template, click the trash icon. 
• To unpublish the template, disable the Published toggle.
  • Disabling this toggle will hide the template so that Drafters (including Salesforce Drafters) will not be able to create new agreements.  
• To download the original template agreement, click the arrow icon below the file.

Once published, this template can be used to draft new agreements. 

 

Templates Page

Once a template has been created, it can be found on the Templates page. Go to the Templates page by selecting the Templates tab from the navigation bar. 

Within the Templates page, leverage the search bar to filter templates by name or description.

Templates will be organized alphabetically by default. Use the filtering and sorting icons to organize templates by name, users who created the template, date created, users who last updated the template, and the date when the template was last updated. 

Customize the Templates page to show the most relevant data points via the user-specific column settings icon. 

Mark the checkboxes next to relevant data points. Drag and drop the options to configure the order in which these data points appear as columns.

Click SUBMIT to save any changes.

Additionally, leverage the filtering options on the right-hand side of the page.

• Mark the checkboxes to filter the available templates by status (i.e., published or unpublished) and template type.
• Use the drop-downs to filter by agreement type and custom template categories (if any).

Quickly edit, clone, unpublish, or delete templates by clicking the ellipsis next to the desired template.