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Aavenir Atlas early access is open Contractflow on the ServiceNow Store since 2019 Runs on ServiceNow, or standalone ProcureTech100 2025/26 Pioneering Digital Solution ISO/IEC 27001:2022 certified, SOC 2 Type 2 compliant

Glossary

What is contract approval?

Contract approval is the step where the right people review and authorize a contract before signature, based on rules such as contract value, type, risk and any deviation from standard terms.

Schedule a Demo All Glossary Terms

Who approves a contract

It depends on the contract. A typical workflow routes to the business owner first, then to legal when the terms deviate from the standard, to finance above a value threshold, and to security or privacy when data is involved. Executives sign off only on the largest or riskiest agreements.

Common approval problems

  • Approvals chased by email, with no record of who agreed to what
  • Every contract sent to legal, whatever its risk
  • No visibility of where a contract is stuck
  • Approvers asked to read the whole contract instead of the changes that matter

How Aavenir handles it

Contractflow routes each contract by rules you set, shows approvers the deviations and the risk summary, and records every decision with a time stamp. It also tracks how long a contract has sat in one status, so stalled approvals are easy to spot.

Keep reading

Contract lifecycle management Contract lifecycle management is the process of managing a contract from the first request through drafting,.Read more Contract clause library A contract clause library is a central set of approved clauses, with fallback positions and guidance, that.Read more Electronic signature An electronic signature is a way to sign a document electronically to show agreement, recognized in law in.Read more

Frequently asked questions (FAQ)

Common questions

What is a contract approval workflow?

A set of rules that decides who must approve a contract, and in which order, before it can be signed. Rules usually depend on value, contract type, risk and whether the terms deviate from your standard. See Contractflow.

How can contract approvals go faster?

Route by risk, so standard low value contracts skip extra reviews, and show approvers the deviations that matter instead of the whole document. Tracking how long a contract sits in each status makes stalled approvals visible. Read about the clause library.

Can contract approvals be automated?

The routing, reminders and record keeping can be automated. The decision itself stays with a person, and every approval is recorded with a time stamp for audit. After approval the contract moves to signature. Read about electronic signature.

Have a question we have not answered? Ask the Expert

Schedule a demo

See your contracts run on one record.

  • 1 A 30 minute walkthrough Built around your team, whether that is procurement, legal, IT or finance.
  • 2 Your contracts, not ours Bring a few sample agreements and watch Aavenir AI extract and review them.
  • 3 ServiceNow or standalone We show the deployment that fits the systems you already run.

Prefer to talk first? Contact the team.