This topic will provide you with an overview of Ironclad Connect.
NOTE
We’re investing in improvements to the Activity Feed, and as part of this, we are retiring Ironclad Connect on October 1, 2024.
What’s coming next?
Over the next few months, we will be evolving the Activity Feed to help you collaborate on contracts more easily with your team. These features will highlight what’s new since you last checked a workflow, and make it easier to navigate between messages, replies, emails, and events.
We also know how important collaborating with your counterparty is. There will be no change to counterparty forms or the ability to email documents from Ironclad. We will also improve the discoverability of the feature that allows you to copy an email address for a workflow, which in turn makes it easy to forward emails to the Activity Feed.
What will happen to in flight workflows?
As part of this change, we are sunsetting the ability to invite and message a counterparty directly from Activity Feed. Internal collaboration will not be affected.
It will be easier for users to immediately add a comment to the Activity Feed, instead of needing to navigate to the ‘Internal’ tab, and they will also benefit from being able to search events and comment all in the same place.
No existing events in your Activity Feed will be lost. Events in the ‘External’ tab are already visible in the ‘All’ tab of the Activity Feed, which is the default tab when viewing the Activity Feed, so the transition should feel familiar and simple. Users will still be able to search for existing messages and activity, and External events will continue to include a globe icon to distinguish them from Internal events.
Finally, counterparties that have previously leveraged Connect will still be able to access their documents.
What is the best way to communicate and share documents with counterparties?
We encourage you to continue leveraging features such as:
- Counterparty Forms, which enable you to collect information from the counterparty;
- Email Document, which allows you to send documents directly from Ironclad, with replies automatically captured in the Activity Feed; and
- Copy Workflow Email Address, which allows you to get an email address for the workflow, so you can then forward emails to the Activity Feed.
Key dates
Here is the timeline for the sunset.
- August 14th, 2024: the ability to invite new counterparties will be discontinued.
- October 1st, 2024: the ability to send external messages on workflows already leveraging Connect will be discontinued.
For more information, or to disable Connect before October 1, 2024, please submit a ticket.
Ironclad Connect is a suite of counterparty collaboration features. There are a variety of benefits to counterparty collaboration:
- Counterparties can decrease their turnaround time for reviews and approvals.
- Internal team messages and comments are never shared without your permission. You can view and confirm what is shared across companies by viewing the Activity Feed at any time.
- Counterparty features can be controlled at the workflow level, ensuring Ironclad Connect can be leveraged by those who find them most useful.
To learn how to permission these features, refer to Counterparty Invitation Permissions.
As an Ironclad User, How Can I Use Ironclad Connect?
Speed Up Communication
Within your own account, the Activity Feed consolidates counterparty conversations and emails, supports securely sharing documents, and provides the contract’s history.
When you communicate with counterparties using the Activity Feed, your team is instantly connected to everything that is being worked on and discussed.
Visibility
Ironclad Connect consolidates counterparty conversations so you can quickly bring new stakeholders up to speed with a comprehensive view of the conversations, action items, and general activity on any agreement.
Share Documents
All counterparty participants are notified when the contract is ready for their review. Both companies can then securely view the latest version of the document that was shared.
Request Documents
You can ask your counterparty to upload any supporting or reference documents related to the contracting process directly to Ironclad. Your counterparty has control of adding these new documents to the workflow or keeping the document as a reference on the external activity feed.
What Will My Counterparty See?
When you send a counterparty invite, you are enabling your counterparty to sign up for a free, separate, Ironclad Connect account. Counterparty users on Ironclad are never added to your Ironclad account. We maintain separate accounts and workflows to keep each company’s information private and confidential. This ensures each team has a shared place to collaborate, loop in the right stakeholders, send internal or external messages, and access the contract's external audit trail and activity history.
NOTE
Counterparty invites expire after 7 days.
From their Ironclad Connect account, your counterparty will ONLY be able to see information, messages, documents, etc. that you elect to share with them. Then, they can take action using Ironclad features like Ironclad Editor, commenting, version comparison, etc.
From their portal, your counterparty workflow participants can easily stay informed on their workflows’ progress and status. This helps prevent lost or misplaced document versions and missed updates or action items. Real-time notifications and the Activity Feed ensure that everyone involved in the process has the most current information.
Ironclad Connect allows your counterparties to:
- Accept terms with one click
- Invite their own team members
- Expedite the signature stage by uploading signed agreements directly to Ironclad
- Request to reassign or edit designated signers
Accept Terms
With one click, counterparties can let you know when their organization is ready to move forward and accept agreement terms.
Counterparty Invites
Counterparties can invite teammates from their company to collaborate directly in Ironclad. This empowers your counterparty to align and set expectations with their internal business and legal partners, while your team generates and reviews the contract draft.
Upload Signed Agreements
You can allow counterparties that do not use eSignature services to upload a signature packet or a wet signature in Ironclad. Ironclad notifies the workflow owner to review and process the agreement.
Reassign/Edit Signers
Counterparties can request to reassign a signer or edit authorized signers on behalf of their company.