Government contracts, more than any other type of contract, often bring with them a specific set of requirements and regulations. You want to ensure that you remain in compliance throughout the life of the contract and during any continuing obligations with that government entity. The flags, alerts, and triggers you set up with your contract management software can go a long way toward ensuring that you meet your legal and contractual obligations. As you organize your contract records in your enterprise contract management system, consider how it can help you build those alerts.
Contents
1. Flag any compliance concerns as the contract moves through the approval process.
While the government isn’t out to go through your contracts or examine your business with a fine-tooth comb, chances are, if you’re working on a government contract, you need to ensure absolute compliance. This includes specific industry compliance as well as maintaining privacy, appropriate payment arrangements, and OSHA compliance at construction and job sites. If there are any features missing from your contract, the system should notify you immediately so that you can make those changes.
2. Trigger an alert if the size of the contract needs to scale.
When the government contracts with your business, it has the right to change the size or scale of the contract while receiving the same services for the same reasonable price range. If the contract needs to scale or requires specific changes, it should trigger an alert in your system to let you know that the size has changed and what changes you need to make to meet your new contractual obligations.
3. Flag any specific issues that are different on this contract.
Your business probably has several clear templates that you use when you put together your usual contracts. When you’re working on a government contract, however, you may discover that the template needs to change. Make sure that your contract management system flags anything on government contracts that is different from the system you usually use. This will allow you to see at a glance what has changed on this contract. Also, it will ensure that you meet your actual contractual obligations, not what you include in a standard contract.
4. Trigger reminders of due dates and deadlines.
While the government may move forward only slowly, that doesn’t mean your business can afford to do the same. Trigger reminders of important due dates and deadlines in your system. Depending on those deadlines, you may want to trigger the reminders well ahead of the actual deadline. You can also add more reminders as you get closer to those deadlines.
5. Trigger an alert if the contract sits for too long in your system, especially during the approval process.
Government contracts can pose some unique headaches. But they also offer unique advantages to your business — and you can’t afford to miss out on them. Government work often pays fairly well. Also, you can count on the government to meet its contractual obligations in a way that you might not see from a standard small business or private partner. Not only that, government contracts often offer consistent business, which can help keep your company running smoothly. You don’t want to wait too long to approve those contracts and chance missing out on the contract altogether.
6. Alert the appropriate individuals when government contracts are up for renewal.
Government contracts, in particular, should not wait until the last minute to be renewed. Sometimes, it takes longer to get approval from the client’s end when you’re dealing with the government. Other times, expired contracts may have different processes than contracts that simply need to be renewed. By triggering an alert well ahead of time, you can ensure that you’ll get that contract renewed quickly and effectively. Then, business can continue unhindered.
7. Issue a reminder about access permissions on government contracts.
In some cases, government contracts may require a higher degree of security and confidentiality. That may mean that you need to tightly control who can access those contracts. That control should be even more stringent when it comes to who has permission to make changes to the contracts themselves. Make sure that your software issues a reminder about overall security when dealing with government contracts. This includes locking down those contracts and the information related to them. With the right security measures, no one who does not have permission can access them. At the same time, you can still permit access to the people who need to be able to see those contracts or get to them easily.
Your contract management software can provide easier contract management solutions for all your contracts. When it comes to government contracts, however, management and security are particularly important. With these alerts and reminders, you can make sure that you don’t miss any of the important details of your government contracts. This proactive maintenance can help you keep this valuable source of business. Schedule a 1:1 demo to learn more about how ContraxAware can help you manage your government contracts.
