Navigating Change Management In The Shift From Traditional To Digital Signing

Navigating Change Management in the Shift from Traditional to Digital Signing

January 18th, 2024

As digital transformation becomes a pivotal goal for many organizations, the shift from traditional to digital signing marks a significant evolution. This transition reshapes operational processes, challenges ingrained employee habits, and demands a redefinition of roles and responsibilities. A common hurdle in this journey is overcoming digital adoption fatigue. In this blog, we delve into these aspects of change management and explore how Signority’s Customer Lifecycle Journey can guide organizations towards a successful digital transition, driving business growth and innovation.

Understanding the Change Dynamics

Operational Process Changes
Transitioning to digital signing represents a shift from manual, paper-based methods to automated digital workflows. This transformation necessitates a thorough reevaluation of existing procedures, paving the way for more efficient, streamlined operations.
Adjusting Employee Habits
Adopting digital signing requires employees to move away from familiar manual processes to embrace new digital methods. This shift involves not just learning new technologies but also adopting new ways of working.
Evolving Roles and Responsibilities
With the automation of previously manual tasks, employees find their roles evolving. The focus now shifts towards managing digital systems, presenting opportunities for professional growth and development.
Combating Digital Adoption Fatigue
The continuous introduction of new technologies can be overwhelming, leading to fatigue or resistance. Effective change management strategies, characterized by empathy and clear communication, are essential to navigate this challenge.

Signority’s Customer-Centric Lifecycle Journey in Change Management

To navigate these changes effectively, Signority has a proven customer-centric onboarding and professional service on demand process provides a structured framework.

Preparation and Planning
The journey towards digital signing with Signority begins with a meticulous preparation phase. It’s crucial to first gain a deep understanding of the existing processes and pinpoint opportunities for digital integration. Our team collaborates closely with customers to identify the best starting point for this transition.

During this stage, we engage with clients to select a core group of internal champions. These individuals are pivotal in the ‘train-the-trainer’ approach, becoming the knowledge-bearers and advocates for the digital signing process within the organization. We assist in identifying key administrators and users who will play a central role in the rollout of the digital signing system.

A critical aspect of this phase is defining a tailored adoption roadmap. This involves initiating smaller-scale pilot programs focused on specific use cases. We work with clients to determine the most suitable templates and workflows, ensuring they seamlessly integrate into and enhance existing operational processes. This step includes a careful review of any IT and legal policies that may impact the setup of accounts, templates, and workflows, ensuring compliance and smooth integration.

An important part of our planning process also involves the transformation of existing paper forms into digital formats. This digitization isn’t just about conversion; it’s about optimization. We help streamline and simplify processes through automation, enabling our clients to concentrate on their core business activities more efficiently. This transformation is not just a technological shift but a strategic move towards operational excellence.
Training and Support: Tailored for Efficiency and Effectiveness
At Signority, we recognize that the success of any digital transition heavily relies on the confidence and proficiency of the employees using the new tools. To this end, our training and support are designed to be comprehensive yet streamlined, ensuring that your team can quickly adapt to the digital signing tools without feeling overwhelmed.

Our training approach is use case-based and focused on practical application. Instead of lengthy, generic online tutorials, we offer concise, 30-minute training blocks, each tailored to specific use cases. This method ensures that the learning is relevant, directly applicable, and respectful of your team’s time and existing workload. We understand that our clients are professionals in their fields, not expected to be Signority experts, and our training reflects this philosophy.

Following each training session, we actively seek feedback from our clients to not only gauge the effectiveness of the training but also to gather insights on product feature requests. This feedback loop is essential in ensuring that our support is aligned with your specific needs and challenges. Additionally, all training sessions are recorded, providing a valuable resource for future reference and review.

To further enhance the support experience, each enterprise client is assigned a dedicated Account Manager. This personalized approach ensures that you have a consistent point of contact familiar with your organization’s unique needs and preferences. Our online support team is always available, providing an additional layer of assistance. We pride ourselves on our customer-centric support model, where every query is logged and meticulously followed through to ensure complete customer satisfaction. This commitment to support is a cornerstone of our approach, ensuring a smooth and successful transition to digital signing for your organization.
Continuous Engagement and Feedback: Fostering a Collaborative Growth Environment
At Signority, we believe that the key to successful digital signing implementation lies in ongoing engagement and open channels of feedback with our clients. This continuous interaction is vital for fine-tuning the digital signing process to align perfectly with the unique requirements of each organization.

We proactively conduct regular focus groups, at least annually, with our enterprise customers. These sessions are more than just check-ins; they’re opportunities for in-depth discussions, allowing us to gather valuable insights directly from the users. This feedback is essential for us to understand how our digital signing solutions are being utilized in real-world scenarios and how they can be improved or adapted to better serve the evolving needs of our clients.

Monitoring usage patterns forms a crucial part of our engagement strategy. By keeping a close eye on how our solutions are used, we can ensure that adoption is not only taking place but is also effective and efficient. This monitoring allows us to provide timely assistance and support, addressing any challenges as they arise and ensuring a smooth experience for all users.

Beyond initial adoption, our commitment to our clients continues as we strive for widespread, corporation-wide integration of our digital signing solutions. We work closely with our clients to expand the range of use cases, continuously adapting and expanding the scope of our services. Our professional team is dedicated to creating custom templates and designing workflows that are not just functional but optimized for efficiency. This tailored approach ensures that every aspect of Signority’s offerings is leveraged to its fullest potential, contributing to the seamless digital transformation of your organization.
Long-term Partnership: “We Win Only When You Win First”
At Signority, our approach to digital signing technologies transcends the typical vendor-client transaction; we embark on a journey of long-term partnership. In a digital landscape that’s constantly evolving, staying ahead of technological trends is imperative for sustained success. Committed to this ethos, we provide ongoing support and frequent updates, ensuring our digital signing solutions are always at the cutting edge.

Our relationships with clients are rooted in mutual trust and respect, and we treasure the confidence our customers place in us. When they choose Signority, they’re not just selecting a service provider; they’re gaining a partner genuinely invested in their success. This commitment is at the heart of how we interact and grow with our clients.

The role of our Account Managers is crucial in nurturing these relationships. Through regular, meaningful interactions, they gather valuable insights and feedback, helping us understand how our clients leverage our digital signing solutions in their unique contexts. This feedback is instrumental in continually refining and enhancing our services.

We’re constantly exploring ways to improve and innovate, whether through upgrading existing features or introducing new ones. Our proactive approach ensures that our partnership with each client is not static but evolves dynamically, in tandem with the fast-paced digital world. With Signority, clients embark on a path of growth and innovation, where their victories are our victories.

As digital reliance grows, so do the complexities of legal requirements and security concerns. We’re committed to evolving alongside these legal changes, ensuring our solutions meet the highest standards of legality and security. Whether it’s adapting to local regulations like Quebec’s Bill 64 or broader legislative changes, legal compliance is at the core of what we do.

We take pride in listening to our clients, considering their feedback and requests as integral to our product development roadmap. This customer-centric approach ensures that our solutions are not only advanced but also highly tailored to meet the specific needs of our diverse client base.

For those transitioning from other eSign vendors, we understand the weight of the trust placed in us. Signority’s customer-centric culture is designed to make this transition seamless and rewarding. We go above and beyond to honor the trust of new members joining our community, ensuring their switch to Signority is met with unparalleled support and a commitment to excellence.

Join us at Signority, where your growth and success define ours, and experience a partnership that goes beyond the conventional, into a future of digital excellence and mutual triumph.

The shift to digital signing is a transformative step for any organization, bringing efficiencies and modernization to traditional processes. By understanding the challenges of this transition and leveraging the structured approach of the Signority Customer Lifecycle Journey, organizations can ensure a smooth and successful adoption of digital signing. This journey is not just about technology adoption; it’s about reshaping your business practices to thrive in a digital future.

Ready to begin your digital signing journey? Reach out to Signority at sales@signority.com for tailored guidance and support, and set your organization on the path to digital excellence.

Securing Your Trust: Signority’s Compliance Journey

October 5th, 2023

Signority’s security & compliance principles guide how we deliver our products and services, enabling people to simply and securely access the digital world.

Secure Personnel

Child & Family Services encompass an array of responsibilities, from safeguarding children against harm to providing necessary support to families in crisis. Each interaction, whether it’s an initial intake, assessment, or even volunteer onboarding, requires multiple layers of documentation. Historically, this has meant paper forms, manual logging, and significant administrative overhead.

The Practical Benefits of Signority’s Digital Approach

Signority takes the security of its data and that of its clients and customers seriously and ensures that only vetted personnel are given access to their resources.

All Signority contractors and employees undergo background checks prior to being engaged or employed by us in accordance with local laws and industry best practices.
Confidentiality or other types of Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs) are signed by all employees, contractors, and others who have a need to access sensitive or internal information.
We embed the culture of security into our business by conducting employee security training & testing using current and emerging techniques and attack vectors.

Secure Development

All development projects at Signority, including on-premises software products, support services, and our own Digital Identity Cloud offerings follow secure development lifecycle principles.
All development of new products, tools, and services, and major changes to existing ones, undergo a design review to ensure security requirements are incorporated into proposed development.
All team members that are regularly involved in any system development undergo annual secure development training in coding or scripting languages that they work with as well as any other relevant training.
Software development is conducted in line with OWASP Top 10 recommendations for web application security.

Secure Testing

Signority deploys third party penetration testing and vulnerability scanning of all production and Internet facing systems on a regular basis.

All new systems and services are scanned prior to being deployed to production.
We perform penetration testing both by internal security engineers and external penetration testing companies on new systems and products or major changes to existing systems, services, and products to ensure a comprehensive and real-world view of our products & environment from multiple perspectives.
We perform static and dynamic software application security testing of all code, including open source libraries, as part of our software development process.

Cloud Security

Signority Cloud provides maximum security with complete customer isolation in a modern, multi-tenant cloud architecture.

Signority Cloud leverages the native physical and network security features of the cloud service, and relies on the providers to maintain the infrastructure, services, and physical access policies and procedures.

All customer cloud environments and data are isolated using Signority’s patented isolation approach. Each customer environment is stored within a dedicated trust zone to prevent any accidental or malicious co-mingling.
All data is also encrypted at rest and in transmission to prevent any unauthorized access and prevent data breaches. Our entire platform is also continuously monitored by dedicated, highly trained Signority experts.
We separate each customer’s data and our own, utilizing unique encryption keys to ensure data is protected and isolated.
Client’s data protection complies with SOC 2 standards to encrypt data in transit and at rest, ensuring customer and company data and sensitive information is protected at all times.
We implement role-based access controls and the principles of least privileged access, and review revoke access as needed.

Compliance

Signority is committed to providing secure products and services to safely and easily manage billions of digital identities across the globe. Our external certifications provide independent assurance of Signority’s dedication to protecting our customers by regularly assessing and validating the protections and effective security practices Signority has in place.

Signority Acquires SOC 2, CSA Level 2, and HIPAA Compliance

October 3rd, 2023

Ontario, Canada, September 27, 2023 – Today, Signority celebrates achieving the SOC 2 Type II compliance, in line with the standards set by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), commonly referred to as SSAE 18. With an unqualified opinion supporting this achievement, Signority underscores its dedication to enterprise-level security, ensuring the safety of customer data within its system.

Furthermore, Signority has earned the CSA Star compliance, adhering to the Cloud Security Alliance’s Security, Trust, Assurance, and Risk Registry benchmarks.

With a global footprint, Signority provides a cloud-secured digital signature solution. Our platform’s security and compliance credentials were meticulously audited by the reputed Prescient Assurance, known for their expertise in B2B and SaaS sector assessments. We extend our gratitude to Secureframe for their pivotal support in this journey.

Our SOC 2 Type II and CSA Star audit certifications offer a solid reassurance to our existing and future clientele about Signority’s steadfast commitment to maintaining superior standards in security and compliance.

If you ‘d like to acquire Signority’s attestation letter, please reach out to compliance@signority.com.

About Signority

Catering to a worldwide user base, Signority champions in providing leading-edge digital signature workflow solutions. We pride ourselves on ensuring legal compliance, efficiency, cost savings, and enhancing overall productivity for our clients.

Media Relations

Jane He
1.833.222.1088
mediarequests@signority.com

Digitizing Canadian Child & Family Services: Signority’s Impact

Canadian Child & Family Services:

A Digital Transformation

Canadian Child & Family Services:

A Digital Transformation

Digitizing Canadian Child & Family Services: Signority’s Impact

September 26th, 2023

Children represent the future, and families are the cornerstone of our society. In the heart of community resilience and strength lies Child & Family Services organizations. They play an indispensable role in ensuring the safety, health, and overall well-being of our most vulnerable members – our children. Yet, like many sectors with deeply embedded traditional processes, Child & Family Services have often been bound by paper-heavy methods, which can delay vital interventions and take crucial time away from direct service.

Signority: Transforming Child & Family Services with Digital Solutions

Child & Family Services encompass an array of responsibilities, from safeguarding children against harm to providing necessary support to families in crisis. Each interaction, whether it’s an initial intake, assessment, or even volunteer onboarding, requires multiple layers of documentation. Historically, this has meant paper forms, manual logging, and significant administrative overhead.

The Practical Benefits of Signority’s Digital Approach

Streamlined Consent Processes: Child & Family Services often require consent forms for various activities, including medical treatment, counseling, urgent response service plan (URS), and educational support. Signority’s digital signature solution simplifies the process of obtaining and managing these consents. Social workers can send consent forms electronically, and clients or guardians can sign them from anywhere, reducing delays and ensuring that necessary permissions are in place promptly.

Efficient Document Signing: Whether it’s agreements, service contracts, or parental consent forms, Signority enables Child & Family Services to send, receive, and sign documents quickly and securely. This efficiency is vital in situations where time-sensitive decisions must be made to protect the well-being of children and families.

Data Security: Signority hosts Canadian customer data exclusively within Canada. Our platform employs advanced encryption and security measures to safeguard sensitive information. Given that Child & Family Services handle confidential data daily, Signority’s robust security features, including masked tags for data security, guarantee that personal identifiable information (PII) remains confidential and fully compliant with data protection regulations.

Environmental & Cost Savings: By shifting away from paper-based processes, agencies can reduce their reliance on physical documents, saving money on printing, storage, and transportation. Additionally, this eco-friendly approach aligns with the broader societal trend towards sustainability.

Access from Anywhere: Signority’s cloud-based platform allows social workers and professionals to access necessary documents from anywhere with an internet connection. This accessibility ensures seamless service delivery, even when working remotely or in the field.

Efficient Onboarding: For Child & Family Services that rely on volunteers or need to conduct background checks, Signority’s digital signature solution streamlines the onboarding process. Volunteer applications and criminal record checks can be seamlessly integrated, ensuring that the agency has the right people on board quickly and safely.

Audit Trails for Accountability: Signority provides audit trails for every signed document, enhancing accountability and transparency within the organization. This feature is particularly valuable in cases where document validity and compliance are essential.

Faster Response Times: Digital signatures expedite the signing process. Social workers can get the necessary approvals in place swiftly, reducing response times and ensuring that children and families receive the support they need without unnecessary delays.

These benefits underscore how Signority’s digital signature solution is uniquely positioned to meet the needs of Child & Family Services by simplifying administrative tasks, ensuring data security, and enhancing efficiency in a sector where time and accuracy are critical for protecting vulnerable children and families.

Ultimately, the mission is clear. It’s not just about digitization for the sake of modernity. It’s about providing Child & Family Services with the platform they need to do their job more efficiently, so more time and resources can be allocated where they matter most: directly with children and their families.

By leveraging the power of Signority, Child & Family Services organizations can ensure that every child’s story is not just heard but also acted upon with the efficiency, care, and urgency it deserves.

Signority is proud to be a part of this transformative journey, offering solutions that make a tangible difference in the lives of many.

Batch Signing: Signing Hundreds of Documents with One Stroke!

Batch Sign:
One Signature for Hundreds of Documents

Batch Signing: Signing Hundreds of Documents with One Stroke!

September 26th, 2023

Remember all those documents you sent out? Those hundreds of recipients of the same type of document that now you have to sign as well.

Signing a pile of documents can be a tedious and time-consuming task, especially when you have a mountain of paperwork to go through. But what if I told you there’s a game-changing feature that allows you to sign hundreds of documents with just one swift action? Enter the world of “Batch Signing,” a revolutionary feature that will transform the way you handle paperwork. In this blog, we’ll delve into the concept of batch signing, its benefits, and how it can bring a dynamic and fun twist to your document signing process. Get ready to save time, streamline your workflow, and unleash your inner efficiency expert!

First things first, what is Batch Signing?

Imagine a scenario in which you Bulk Send documents to be signed, hundreds of volunteer forms or even contracts, maybe even a handful of invoices and now it is your turn to sign them all. Normally, you would have to sign each document individually, taking up a significant amount of your valuable time. What if all these documents are due within one day or one hour, your recipients could have taken their time to sign one document but you can’t hold off on all of them. Your wrist is sore just thinking about all the repetitive clicks.

However, with batch signing, you can sign all those documents at once, eliminating the need for repetitive actions. It’s a game-changer for individuals and businesses alike, not to mention a huge time saver and let’s face it, carpal tunnel syndrome preventive measure.

So, how did this help? Here are some benefits of Batch Signing:

Batch signing utilizes modern technology to simplify the signing process. Here’s how it typically works:

Find your Bulk sent documents (batch signing only works for documents that were sent in bulk)
Review the contents of each of them, none of them or spot check a few. Since these documents were sent for bulk signing, they should all have roughly the same content. Even so, you still have the ability to go through each as needed ensuring they were properly filled out.
From the list of documents you have reviewed you get to choose which one to include in your batches sing. This makes it easy for you to choose which ones to leave out if you have doubts or a couple have yet to be signed.
Read the acknowledgements and continue to bulk signing all the documents you chose.

Four simple steps that have saved you a mountain of paperwork and endless repetitive actions!

How Does Batch Signing Work?

Time-Saving: Batch signing allows you to sign multiple documents simultaneously, saving you valuable time and effort. Instead of signing each document individually, you can complete the task with just one action.
Streamlined Workflow: By automating the signing process, batch signing streamlines your workflow. You can focus on other important tasks while the software or platform takes care of the signing.
Increased Efficiency: With batch signing, you eliminate the risk of missing signatures or signing the wrong document. This reduces errors and increases overall efficiency in your document management process.
Enhanced Security: Digital signatures used in batch signing are often more secure than traditional ink signatures. They can be encrypted, authenticated, and traceable, ensuring the integrity and authenticity of your documents.

Have Fun with Batch Signing:

Who said signing documents has to be dull and monotonous? Batch signing can bring a touch of excitement and playfulness to your paperwork routine. Here are a few ideas to make it more fun:

Speed Challenge: Time yourself to see how quickly you can complete a batch signing process. Aim to beat your previous records and challenge yourself to improve your signing speed.
Signature Styles: Experiment with different signature styles, DIY or choose from our preselected fonts for each batch of documents. Get creative and add a personal touch to your digital autographs.
Celebratory Dance: When you’ve completed a particularly large batch signing task, why not celebrate with a victory dance? It’s a great way to inject some joy into the process.

How to send 500 documents to be signed in one fell swoop: Bulk Send

How to send 500 documents to be signed in one easy swoop: Bulk Send

In today’s fast-paced digital world, efficiency and productivity are paramount for organizations, especially nonprofits. Time-consuming administrative tasks can often hinder progress and divert valuable resources away from the core mission. One such challenge that has plagued nonprofits for years is the laborious process of sending hundreds of documents, often the same in content, to many different recipients. Not to mention the process of signing those documents only after a recipient has already done so. However, the tides are turning with the advent of innovative eSignature platforms and their groundbreaking feature: BULK SEND.

Nonprofits frequently find themselves grappling with the monumental task of having numerous documents signed, ranging from donation receipts and funding agreements to volunteer waivers and partnership contracts. Traditionally, getting everyone to sign such documents required significant manpower, countless hours, and extensive administrative coordination. This tedious process often resulted in delays, errors, and increased costs, diverting focus from the organization’s true objective.

Recognizing this pain point, eSignature platforms like Signority, decided to adapt and evolve, seeking innovative solutions to streamline the signing process for nonprofits. Enter BULK SEND, the game-changing feature designed specifically to alleviate the burden of sending hundreds of documents with repetitive content for eSigning.

How BULK SEND Works:

BULK SEND is a powerful feature that empowers nonprofits to send multiple documents swiftly and efficiently, all with just a single click. The process involves a few simple steps:

Step 1: Document Preparation

Using the intuitive interface of the eSignature platform, nonprofits can easily upload their documents into the BULK SEND module.

Step 2: Template Creation

Once the documents are uploaded, nonprofits can create a master template. This template serves as the foundation for all the documents in the bulk signing process. It contains common fields, such as the organization’s name, address, and contact details, which are identical across all documents, it also contains all the tags that will be personalized for each recipient.

Step 3: Automating Signatures

With the template in place and the tags included, it is time to get your recipient list imported. This can easily be done through a CSV file. By leveraging intelligent automation, the BULK SEND feature swiftly populates these fields across all the documents, eliminating the need for manual input.

Step 4: Preview and Verify

Before initiating the bulk signing process, you can preview the finalized template to ensure accuracy. This step allows organizations to review and make any necessary adjustments or corrections before proceeding.

Step 5: One-Click Bulk Send

Finally, with everything in order, you can initiate the BULK SEND process by simply clicking a button. Signority will then apply the pre-specified signatures and fields across all the documents, effectively sending each document only once. The process is quick, efficient, and frees up valuable time and resources for the nonprofit to focus on their core objectives.

You can track each of these documents and see when they have been signed individually, which allows organizations to use these documents at their leisure.

Benefits of BULK SEND for Nonprofits:

Time and Cost Savings: By automating the signing process, nonprofits can significantly reduce the time and effort required to send hundreds of documents to be signed. This time-saving feature translates into cost savings by allowing organizations to allocate resources more efficiently.
Enhanced Productivity: With BULK SEND, nonprofits can redirect their focus to high-impact activities, such as fundraising, community outreach, and program development. The streamlined signing process ensures that administrative tasks no longer hinder productivity.
Reduced Errors and Increased Accuracy: Manual data entry is prone to errors, potentially leading to legal and financial implications. BULK SEND eliminates the risk of mistakes by automatically populating fields across all documents from a single template, and sending them out to your recipients.

How to choose an eSigning solution for NonProfits

Non-profit organizations are unique, they are not like every other business. We could argue that in a few ways there is a resemblance. For instance, everyday challenges like increasing productivity, wearing too many hats, having too much to do in very little time can be like those of another business. However, when we dive deep into the organization, the challenges they face in their unique context can take a different form, even more so when we talk about adopting new technologies for processes like eSignature.

Challenges like privacy and security of information can be especially delicate for non-profits. They not only have to comply with their own standards and those of their clients, like a private organization; they also have to ensure the general public, some government institutions and any external investor of the policies that safeguard this type of data. The same structure makes adopting technology another challenge as their expenditure is likely overseen by several internal and external agents, not to mention, they often have to report on that expenditure to the general public.

These are only a few examples of the unique challenges nonprofits face when dealing with new technologies. On the bright side, their team members are often resilient and extremely dedicated professionals ready to face this head on. The next steps will help nonprofit professionals take a stroll through the process of choosing an eSignature provider, which can be a more daunting task than it sounds like.

eSigning solutions: why are there so many?

In the tech space it is common to find many players in one category, they all solve the same need but do it in different ways. This is often just the beginning, taking a deeper look each of the solutions in a space have different:

Features (and sometimes unique)
Niche based products or benefits
Pricing models and offers
Support policies, times and channels
Privacy policies
Process to handle information
And more

These factors do not affect the basic solution they offer, signing a document online. However, they directly affect an organization’s ability to grow with a solution, adopt it, use it and make it a part of their processes in the easiest way possible. If all these needs are not met, the solution chosen will work in the short term and might even become more of a cost than an investment.

Choosing any provider should be seen as a long term investment. Ultimately the goal is to choose it once and not have to worry about it again for a while. When your organization grows, you don’t want to have to migrate. Ideally your solution will adapt to your growing needs and in the long term it will help you make and save more money than it costs.

This is why it is so important to choose wisely. As an organization you decide what your needs are and you get to choose the solution that is best suited for that. But, how do you know which e-signature platform is right for your non-profit organization? Here are some steps to help you understand your unique needs and assess an e-signature platform with the goals of being scalable, cost-efficient, and increasing productivity.

Our 4 step framework

We have talked about needs and how they go beyond signing a document on a phone or tablet. So the first step is to define what are your needs beyond eSinging.

Step 1: Define your needs

It’s essential to identify your specific e-signature needs before you start evaluating e-signature platforms.

Document related questions:

What type of documents do you need to sign electronically? Are they often the same type of documents like NDA’s in which only the signer changes. Or are they often unique in content as well?
Do I send out documents for 1 person or more to sign?
Is there an order to sign documents?
Do I bulk send or bulk sign documents at some point?
What are the specific requirements for signatures, such as legal compliance or security?
When do I send documents to be signed, after sales are made, before a sale, during the service process?

Sender related questions

What does my team need when they send or manage documents?
Do we need hierarchical permissions for different team members?
Are some documents not to be accessed by everyone?
Do we have team leaders who should be the ones to set default permissions?

After a document is sent

Do we need automatic reminders for signers?
Do we have a signer order that needs to be followed?
Will my team be notified upon completion?
What stats can be important to measure and track in order to improve this singing process a d reduce signer delays?
Once you have a clear understanding of your needs, you can start evaluating e-signature platforms that meet those requirements.

Customer support needs

What type of support do you think you will need?
Will you need onboarding and migration support? This could be needed if you already have another eSinging solution or process.
Do you foresee any unique challenges in your process which might be unique to your organization?

Step 2: Evaluate options based on your needs

Once you find some solutions that offer the features you need it is time to dig deeper. A free trial might not be enough, if you have unique requirements ask for a demo or a quick call in which they will show you how to use the platform.

As a non-profit organization, your needs may change over time. It’s essential to choose an eSignature platform that can grow with you and your team. Look for a platform that offers scalable pricing, so you don’t end up paying for more than you need. This is also something that can often be discussed when reaching out to a sales team.

Look for productivity-boosting features. The right e-signature platform should not only save time but also increase productivity. Look for features such as templates, automatic reminders, and mobile compatibility to streamline your workflow and reduce delays. Additionally, make sure the platform integrates with other software you use, such as document management systems or CRMs, to ensure smooth operations.

Assess cost-efficiency Every dollar saved counts in a non-profit organization. When evaluating e-signature platforms, consider the pricing model and the total cost of ownership, including any setup or maintenance costs. Look for a platform that offers transparent pricing and doesn’t charge hidden fees.

It is important to include that during this stage having direct contact with the platforms you are evaluating can be a game changer. You will be evaluating their responsiveness, support times and channels, and ultimately, a free trial of their platform to see if it’s easy to use and understand. This is also when specific and important questions need to be asked, so write down a list of questions like this:

Where is your data stored?
What makes your product unique?
What is the feature most used by other clients in the NFP realm?
Do you have any testimonials from other NFP that I could read?

A final pro tip: If you are not the user of the product, make sure you include someone from the team that will actively engage with the platform in the free trial. One of the biggest challenges you will face after choosing a solution is adoption inside your organization. You need your team to use this platform for this investment to be successful.

Step 3: Look for a culture fit

Finding the right company to provide services is often reduced to finding a product that works. We believe it is so much more than that. You will be adopting a product that will hopefully be part of your organization for years to come, a product everyone in your team will have contact with at some point. Even more important, a product that is meant to significantly help your productivity and get you closer to your business goals.

While it is extremely important for a product to work, it is just as important to have the right culture fit with the company behind it. Do they live by your same values and believe in what is important to you? Are their goals aligned with your goals? Think of this process as finding a partner, you need to know you are compatible in more than one way. Have them meet with another team member, get more than one opinion and look at reviews in sites like G2 or Capterra. If they are open about reviews it is one the best indicators of their transparency and if they have good reviews, it tells you about other client’s experiences.

Step 4: Open up the discussion about scalability and extra features

Once you choose a provider, ideally, you want to stay with them. So once you know they solve your needs both product related and company related, talk about the future. What are they working on, new developments, features, integrations, etc.

This is an ongoing step, as you get used to the platform ask them about new needs that might arise. If they are open to hearing about them they could even end up developing them. Think of this partnership as that is what will give you the peace of mind you need while increasing productivity, saving money and more.

The recap

Implementing e-signatures can be a game-changer for non-profit organizations, enabling them to save time, money, and resources, while increasing productivity. By understanding your unique needs and assessing e-signature platforms based on your unique needs, scalability, cost-efficiency, and productivity-boosting features, you can choose the right platform to streamline your workflow and make a bigger impact.

The Story Behind Signority’s AI Development

The Story Behind Signority's AI Development

A challenging Ecosystem

Ontario is home to a thriving innovation ecosystem with numerous start-ups and SME’s working on cutting-edge technologies and highly focused on innovation within the Canadian industry. However, many of these innovators face severe challenges when it comes to securing funding to develop and scale their projects. As a Canadian start-up Signority, a key player in the eSignature industry, was no stranger to these challenges in 2022, when our paths crossed with the NCFDC.

“We’ve had plans to adopt AI technology to enhance the ease of use of our platform for some time, but funding restrictions prevented us from implementing it.”

Jane He, CEO and founder of Signority.

An Innovation Ally

The Northumberland Community Futures Development Corporation (NCFDC) is an independent business development corporation dedicated to providing financing and strategy for entrepreneurs based in Ontario, Canada. The NCFDC is committed to supporting local innovators by providing them with the necessary funding to help bring their ideas to life. Through their programs and services, this organization is helping to drive innovation and economic growth in Ontario and in all of Canada, as this is one of its economic centers. They achieve their ultimate goal through a range of funding options, including grants, loans, and equity investments, to help innovators take their ideas to the next level.

There are five ongoing programs currently run by a group of passionate and experienced staff. Their goal is to help promote economic development and job creation in the region by providing support to innovative and promising business ideas.

“We support innovation and entrepreneurship as a pathway to future prosperity.”

NCFDC

thriveFORWARD: The Program that Revolutionized Signority

Signority specializes in providing secure and easy-to-use eSignature solutions to businesses of all sizes. It was founded by a team of entrepreneurs who saw an opportunity to streamline the signing process and reduce paper waste. That was only the beginning. Using this type of technologies, other companies in countless industries have been able to adopt innovation as part of their day to day.

After 10 years of being a key player in the eSignature ecosystem it is key to keep Signority at the forefront of its field. Technology is ever evolving and so are our customer needs. There is one concept that in recent years has become common and furthermore, a synonym of innovation, productivity, and efficacy in the SaaS world: Artificial Intelligence.

AI is a rapidly growing field, and many companies are looking for ways to incorporate AI into their products and services. The goal is to use it to overcome challenges that traditional technologies are not equipped to achieve. Here at Signority, we were at this very stage.

The biggest challenge for companies when adopting eSignature solutions is an ever evolving user with habits that are not easy to change related to document sending and signing processes. This could include team permission hierarchy, different tags and behavior of those tags, messages for senders, types of senders, types of documents or even a mistrust of technology. Every single one of those setups must comply with legal acts, bylaws and privacy policies depending on the document sensitivity. This can be different for each organization or team. Thanks to AI technology, Signority has approached this challenge through an innovative framework.

However, developing AI technology can be a costly and time-consuming endeavor. This is where funding from organizations like NCFDC can be a game-changer. With thriveFORWARD we were able to revolutionize eSignature usability by leveraging AI technology. This translates to more value for users and a user experience taken to the next level.

The thriveFORWARD fund was a key aspect of this journey, becoming the fuel to an engine that allowed us to implement fundamental AI components to our platform and revolutionize eSigning.

This achievement represents a critical milestone in Signority’s history, and we’re proud to have created many highly skilled jobs in Canada. We’re grateful to the NCFDC team for helping us realize our vision of building a strong Canadian tech company.” Jane He, CEO and Founder of Signority.

Our NCFDC Experience

We are extremely grateful for the support we received from the NCFDC. The experience we have had at Signority for applying to the thriveForward SME fund has been highly efficient and pleasant, from the very first touchpoint to receiving the grant.

Entrepreneurship is a wonderful journey but not an easy one. It is filled with long hours, sleepless nights and a lot of unknowns. Frustration is the word of the day almost everyday, for the modern entrepreneur. When an organization like NCFDC truly understands your needs, it can make all the difference in the world.

As processes go, lengthy, and confusing explanations were expected, as with any grant request (cue frustration). This is something that would inevitably delay the application process as we got acquainted with all that was required. However, from the very first step, the online application guides were clear and provided enough detail for us to understand what was expected.

Things were looking up, could this be a company that understood what we needed and had a team of people actively working towards helping us achieve our goal? We decided not to get ahead of ourselves and enjoy the clarity and easy journey they offered.

Requirements, eligibility, terms, conditions, and measurement were clear and concise as well transparent and understandable. This translated to a great beginning to our customer journey with them. The site was easy to navigate and finding information was simple, which helped avoid jumping around different pages and losing track of readings.

As with any grant application, as the process continued moving forward questions arose and the need for a human touch was clear. This was when NCFDC proved that they do not only provide services, they provide a whole experience for their users. The staff and consultants were great listeners, they clearly knew their craft but beyond that, they were actively focused on providing the support needed at each stage. They answered all our questions within hours and were ready and willing to provide help regarding all topics needed. Sometimes those topics were not only questions about filling up forms, but a friend who actively reminded us of where we were going. Someone who continuously provided emotional and technical support throughout a tiring journey.

Grants are not easy to apply for, anyone can tell you that. From lots of forms to a myriad of deep data is required to even fit the eligibility criteria. After writing for hours and staring blankly at documents with thousands of questions and spaces that need to be filled out, it can be refreshing to talk to someone who eases that path. There is not much anyone can do to avoid all those forms, but NCFDC proved to us that there is a lot an organization can do to make that journey lighter, calmer and even unique.

The reporting stage was no different. Help was always easy to get, email reminders were constant but evenly spaced, allowing our team to work on the documents with enough time in hand. Not only that but by now we had built rapport with them, we felt we could talk freely and they would listen. By now we had a deeply ingrained belief that they cared about us and understood us.

This made it clear to us this organization is run by highly trained professionals with a clear understanding of their brand vision and values, as well as their goal. As users, our entire experience felt unique, easy, and streamlined. NCFDC made us feel welcome and important. They are a customer centric organization that puts their customers at the center of everything they do. When you find a company that understands your needs more than any other, it’s natural to feel grateful. This feeling is a testament to the quality of their work which reverbated inside Signority. It is important to recognize the efforts of companies like NCFDC and appreciate them. With more companies like this we could all turn the world of business and tech into an even more nurturing and fulfilling experience than it already is.

Our CEO and founder, Jane He, mentioned the following when talking about the experience:

As a Canadian eSignature company competing in the global market, innovation is essential for us to remain a market leader. We’ve had plans to adopt AI technology to enhance the ease of use of our platform for some time, but funding restrictions prevented us from implementing it. Thanks to the thriveFORWARD fund, we were able to develop the fundamental components necessary to build interactive document preparation and improve our platform’s functionality before documents are sent for signatures. This achievement represents a critical milestone in Signority’s history, and we’re proud to have created many highly skilled jobs in Canada. We’re grateful to the NCFDC team for helping us realize our vision of building a strong Canadian tech company.

How Business Relationships play a key role in growth

How Business Relationships play a key role in growth

Relationships are a key aspect of business, from relationships with employees and internal players that make sure the business runs smoothly to other external relationships that can be key to success. These Business Relationships are often the results of deliberate efforts on both sides to understand each other’s needs, and help each other grow. The bottom line is, Business relationships are extremely important. Whether the relationship is between individual contacts or a partnership between organizations, these relationships can build trust between people and companies, create more opportunities for business, and enhance your standing within the industry and your community.

It is clear that AWS (Amazon Web Services) still understands this. As an organization, as big as they are, to still appreciate and recognize the value of meeting your clients face to face is impressive. Especially after Covid when many are still nervous to go out and get back to ‘business as usual’.

Signority has chosen AWS to host the Signority eSignature Solutions Platform and one of the reasons is their Shared Security Responsibility Matrix, a secure solution that helps Signority maintain high security and privacy standards. They were also chosen for the great importance they give to their Business Relationships and their client support.

In our most recent contact with them as their client, they invited us to come and meet our account manager and another AWS partner, Arctic Wolf, at an Ottawa Senators hockey game in Ottawa, Canada, where we are based. You might have heard of this hockey team before, it is the one that movie star Ryan Reynolds wants to purchase, and rumor was circulating that Ryan was at the game that very night..

The timing of this invitation was perfect. Signority is not only going through our SOC 2 TYPE 2 and CSA STAR Level 2 audits, but we had some questions on Quebec’s Law 25, An Act to Modernize Legislation Provisions Respecting the Protection of Personal Information as well as the Canadian federal government’s Protected B. What better time to discuss some business than while enjoying a great hockey game in great company?

At the game (our Ottawa Senators beat the Florida Panthers 5 – 2), our team had the pleasure of meeting our AWS Account Manager Steve Blaszko and his colleagues Michaela Clarke and Gavin Harmon.

From left to right: Li Zeng and George Grimes, Michaela Clarke and Steve Blaszko.

We also met Geoff Blair and John Hipp of Arctic Wolf. Another new relationship that Signority is considering expanding. A great example of what can happen when a business partner listens to your needs – they help introduce you to one of their other partners who may be able to help.

This memorable experience could only have happened because we enjoy a functional and nurtured Business Relationship with AWS. One in which we are both open to new conversations on how to expand our relationship and meeting new business contacts who can help improve on the high quality standards we have set for our clients. But, above all else, our relationship is built on respect and honesty. This is how a well established relationship can play a key role in our growth, and in our entertainment as it seems.

Geoff Blair at 2023 Hockey Game.

Amazon Web Services Arctic Wolf AWS Business Relationships Partners

Cost cutting Move to eSignatures

A Solution to Cost Cutting: Move to eSignature

The global economy has experienced a significant depreciation in recent months. Companies are now forced to cut costs where they can. The tech industry, one that has seen rapid growth in recent years, is facing mass layoffs and hiring freezes.

Major companies like Apple, Google, and Meta have lost trillions of dollars amid the stock market crisis. Simply put, companies are struggling. While major enterprises are generally well-equipped to handle an economic downturn, many companies are not so fortunate.

So, what’s the solution? While placing a freeze on hiring is certainly one way to cut costs, it’s just as important to consider trimming overhead. For most companies, the costs associated with document execution can be quite expensive.

Some companies still go with the traditional method of printing documents, obtaining signatures, and scanning them in. Others have opted for a simpler method, such as automating documents and signing workflows using services like Docusign.

Whatever the case may be, the above approaches are not always the most cost-effective. Fortunately, Signority offers a high value and cost-effective service (and DocuSign alternative) that saves customers both time and money.

Cutting costs with digital signing...

Signority is a cloud-based eSignature service provider that simplifies document signing without having to opt for the traditional, time-consuming print/sign/scan method.

Signority is a great DocuSign alternative primarily due to its pricing structure. While DocuSign pricing is around $35 CAD per month per user for a standard plan, users can purchase a similar plan from Signority for just $30 CAD per month for unlimited users. Interested parties can get started with a free trial now.

With a subscription to Signority, users not only have a way to automate their document signing workflows, but they can also ensure documents are always maintained in a way that provides top-level security and confidentiality. This is made possible by storing all customer data in Canada, a country known to be a leader in security and privacy.

In addition, Signority’s recipient controls feature adds another layer of security by allowing subscribers to restrict actions such as changing signers or viewing/downloading a document after it has already been executed. Other ways to Increase security include a multi-factor authentication option and masked text (used to hide sensitive information such as SINs/SSNs or birthdays).

...while improving the customer experience

For those considering transitioning to an e-sign service, it’s a great alternative to traditional methods and a great way to improve the customer experience. For example, due to the Covid-19 pandemic there is a hesitancy by many to travel to an office, or anywhere public, just to sign a contract.

Others simply find it inconvenient because they have used e-sign methods in the past and find them much more efficient and secure. Think about it. Less shuffling documents through multiple hands leads to better confidentiality and less room for error. No more missing documents!

Even further, workloads have doubled for companies that have needed to implement mass layoffs. Automation with a platform like Signority is a cost-effective, fast option to ensure both customer and employee satisfaction.

Cost savings for all

Signority is not just an effective solution for small business owners; it also helps large enterprises by making document execution simple and secure.

The team at Signority understands that enterprise documentation requirements can be complex (e.g., requiring integrations with other apps). Pressure is certainly added when it comes to handling sensitive documents that require the protection of personally identifiable information (PII). The team is always keeping its eyes on any new legislation that arises related to data protection and security. It’s important that Signority customers remain confident knowing their information is safe without any violations.

So, whether you’re looking to cut costs (as many companies are) or simply need a quicker workflow to increase customer and employee satisfaction, Signority may be the best option for you. Sign-up now for a free trial today or contact one of our business professionals.

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How to send 500 documents to be signed in one easy swoop: Bulk Send

How BULK SEND Works:

Step 1: Document Preparation

Step 2: Template Creation

Step 3: Automating Signatures

Step 4: Preview and Verify

Step 5: One-Click Bulk Send

Benefits of BULK SEND for Nonprofits:

How to choose an eSigning solution for NonProfits

eSigning solutions: why are there so many?

Our 4 step framework

Step 1: Define your needs

Document related questions:

Sender related questions

After a document is sent

Customer support needs

Step 2: Evaluate options based on your needs

Step 3: Look for a culture fit

Step 4: Open up the discussion about scalability and extra features

The recap

The Story Behind Signority's AI Development

A challenging Ecosystem

An Innovation Ally

“We support innovation and entrepreneurship as a pathway to future prosperity.”

thriveFORWARD: The Program that Revolutionized Signority

Our NCFDC Experience

How Business Relationships play a key role in growth

A Solution to Cost Cutting: Move to eSignature

Cutting costs with digital signing...

...while improving the customer experience

Cost savings for all