Scaling eSignature Solutions for Large Enterprises: Key Challenges and Best Practices

Once considered a “nice-to-have,” eSignatures have become an essential tool for businesses, especially for large enterprises that handle high volumes of agreements and intricate workflows. The eSignature software market size is projected to reach $35.7B by 2031, according to Market Research Intellect. Whether used for streamlining employee onboarding processes, ensuring regulatory compliance, managing vendor contracts, or expediting sales processes, eSignatures drive efficiency and reduce operational bottlenecks. 

Greater reliance on eSignatures brings the need for scalability, which creates new challenges. Your organization may operate in dynamic, complex environments with strict regulations, widespread operations, and diverse stakeholder needs. Meeting these demands requires more than simply adding users or increasing capacity; You need flexible, robust solutions that can adapt to your evolving business needs.

In this article, we’ll explore the need for scalability in eSignature solutions, discuss the challenges it can bring, and share practical strategies to scale eSignature solutions and ensure long-term success.

Understanding the need for scalability

Scaling eSignature solutions means more than just upgrading your software. It’s about preparing your organization for growth while ensuring smooth operations. As your business expands, the increasing volume of transactions and documents requires comprehensive solutions to keep you efficient compared with traditional approaches that may have worked in the past. 

Managing high volumes of documents and transactions

You might process large numbers of agreements daily, from contracts to customer agreements and employee forms. Manual processes or limited-capacity eSignature tools can overwhelm your systems, slow down processes, and lead to errors.  

Failure to scale properly could delay operations, waste time and erode customer loyalty. If your sales team needs to close deals quickly, a scalable solution ensures that transactions don’t get bogged down by system limitations. As Forbes Business Council explains, scalable systems are the backbone of growing businesses, enabling financial controls, enhancing the customer experience, and ensuring consistency. 

Supporting a growing user base

As your organization grows, so does your need for more users across multiple departments. While smaller organizations may only require eSignatures for HR and legal teams, you might need them for sales, IT, procurement, and even external partners. Scalable eSignature solutions enable you to extend access without compromising system performance.

Adapting to market changes and regulatory compliance
Scalability shouldn’t be a scramble to meet your current business demands. It is a forward-thinking approach to being prepared for your evolving business needs. Whether you’re preparing to enter new markets or adapting to regulatory changes, scalable solutions should reflect your changing priorities. Scaling creates systems that can help you flexibly adapt to these changes without incurring high costs or delays.

As your business grows, you may begin to operate in different jurisdictions that require you to adapt to new regulatory requirements. For instance, a healthcare organization expanding its services must ensure HIPAA compliance and adherence to local regulations, and companies that work with the data of EU residents must contend with GDPR and eIDAS regulations. 

Enabling use across devices
Today’s hybrid work environments may mean that your employees need to access eSignature tools from anywhere and on any device. Scalable solutions provide you with smooth, reliable workflows across devices and in any location.

EasySign by EasySend offers a mobile-friendly interface, allowing your teams to handle paperwork or close deals while traveling or at a client’s location. This flexibility accelerates decision-making, boosts productivity, and enhances satisfaction. 

Key challenges in scaling eSignatures

Scaling eSignature solutions in your business can present unique challenges:

Integration issues

Your existing systems are designed to work with your company’s specific workflows. These may include CRM systems such as Salesforce, ERPs like SAP, BPMs, and other proprietary systems. eSignature tools are not always easy to connect with these systems, which can have ramifications on your entire company.

If your organization can’t seamlessly integrate an eSignature solution within existing systems, this can lead to delays in document processing and other key tasks. The resulting inefficiencies and data siloes can negate the benefits of eSignatures altogether. Therefore, scalable eSignature solutions must offer robust integrations and connectors to ensure smooth implementation across all your tools and platforms.

Security and compliance

Handling sensitive data requires adherence to strict security measures, including access restrictions, data encryption, and secure audit trails for every transaction. These challenges are even more pronounced when you’re in a highly regulated industry, such as insurance, finance, or healthcare, or interacting with international markets. Poor data hygiene when scaling causes reputational damage to your organization and erodes stakeholder trust. 

To mitigate these risks, you’ll want an eSignature solution certified for global standards such as ISO 27001, SOC 2, and industry-specific regulations like HIPAA. Tamper-proof records and audit trails can help bolster your compliance and resolve disputes. If you’re branching out into the EU (or dealing with the data of its citizens), you’ll need to comply with GDPR and adhere to EU eSignature standards such as eIDAS. Failure to use a secure and compliant solution could lead to costly penalties.

User adoption across teams

Strategic planning can help ensure that your scaling and growth strategies are sustainable, as explained in this Salesforce article. Your employees used to relying on traditional signatures may struggle to switch to an unfamiliar eSignature tool. 

You may have multiple teams in different departments, sometimes across several regions and time zones. Getting everyone to adopt an eSignature solution is no simple task. Employee training sessions can instill confidence, ensuring team members utilize eSignature solutions without reverting to manual approaches or requiring IT support to navigate the system. 

Quick-start guides and FAQs can support the adoption of new tools, as can localized support that provides resources in different languages and accommodates regional workflows. You may also want to designate a digital expert within each team - someone who can handle minor issues, promoting adoption and minimizing support requests. 

Best practices for implementation

Here’s how to successfully implement and scale your eSignature solution:

Choose the right provider

Be sure your eSignature solution is designed to handle the complexities of a large enterprise. When selecting a provider, focus on those that offer:

• Scalability: Choose a cloud-based solution that can grow with your business, managing increases in user numbers, transaction volume, and compliance needs with ease.
• Robust features: Select a platform that can integrate with your existing tools and systems (like your CRMs and ERPs). Be sure the solution can be customized for your workflows and provides comprehensive security features. 
• Global regulatory support: Choose a platform that complies with standards such as SOC 2, GDPR, eIDAS, and HIPAA.
  
  

Phased Rollout

Effective scalability is an ongoing process that takes into account changing market dynamics and your evolving needs. Gradually deploying a solution lets you gather feedback, deal with challenges, and fine-tune processes before you scale it across the enterprise. 

You can start with a specific use case to assess the solution’s performance, like streamlining onboarding paperwork for the HR department. Afterward, you can expand the solution to sales, procurement, legal, and beyond. Phased implementation lets you manage change effectively by minimizing workflow disruptions, building user confidence, and ultimately achieving a smoother transition.  

Monitor and optimize performance

Scaling is a process, not a one-time task. Use analytics to keep track of user activity, error rates, and document completion times. Reviewing these insights can identify inefficiencies and direct improvements. EasySend’s analytics dashboard gives you actionable data so you can continually optimize workflows for greater efficiency and user satisfaction. 

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Future-proofing your organization 

Scaling eSignatures is about preparing for the future, not just addressing today’s challenges. A scalable solution ensures your business can adapt to operational growth, navigate changing markets, and handle regulatory updates, all while maintaining efficiency and enhancing the user experience.

EasySign by EasySend is designed to successfully meet these demands. With seamless integrations, enterprise-level security, global compliance, and user-friendly workflows, EasySign empowers you to handle new complexities while delivering exceptional results. 

Ready to scale your eSignature workflows? Start your 14-day free trial and future-proof your enterprise with EasySign. 

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