CRIV CONNECTION

Author: Mary Jenkins, Library and Research Services Manager, Devine, Millimet & Branch, P.A.

At the 2025 AALL Annual Meeting & Conference, Laura MacAvoy and Erin Vassalotti of the Holland & Knight Digital Solutions Team (part of the firm’s Research Services team) presented their solution for in-house contract lifecycle management. We have probably all tried various approaches for managing contract information, from spreadsheets to integrated library system records to databases. MacAvoy and Vassalotti shared their particular automagic  (n. A process carried out automatically in such a clever way that the result appears to be magic, Wiktionary), approaching their contracts and renewals management project in a solution-oriented, software-agnostic manner.

Their goal was an in-house solution for contract lifecycle management that would use automation to increase efficiency, reduce human error, and go beyond managing dates and cost information. Further, they sought to clarify processes, reduce subscription costs, and provide effective reporting. With multiple teams involved with contract and budget management and an existing spreadsheet with loads of columns and data, they had several pain points to resolve. These included lack of clarity around ownership and input of data, a need to tease apart budgets and contracts (overlapping but separate matters), a need for good reporting, and a massive amount of data that needed to be cleaned up. Their result: a sleek system with a reporting dashboard and a clearer workflow and division of responsibilities.

With so many projects, it is critical to define the objectives from the start. The speakers sought to automate as much as possible; enable a full lifecycle approach to contract management; understand and define data and reporting needs; clarify ownership and accountability through a documented process; and clean up and organize data.

They started with a technology review (identifying available applications and their potential suitability). Next, they identified stakeholders and documented the lifecycle and existing data, asking the following questions:

• What data are needed?
• Who needs to see it?
• What purpose does it serve?
• When does it become stale?

Next, the speakers identified the core components that would be needed: the current state of active contracts; the renewal workflow (usage, negotiation, users, and portfolio review); and reporting (the spend year-over-year and forecasting). Honing in on the core elements allowed them to determine the needed fields. They knew they needed to be able to work with multi-year agreements while isolating a year at a time; this led to a parent-child row approach. And, importantly, they designated a specific assignee for each contract or product.

Now that their solution is in place, the workflow runs smoothly, with checkboxes and clearly defined steps and key dates. The process employs a fillable PDF for the staff who need to populate data throughout the renewal process. Action items extend far beyond signing a contract, and include changes to the terms, adding or removing users, and approving added content or cancellations. 

Using PowerBI for the data model and OneLog reporting, the team has impressive and more actionable usage data so they can address issues related to seats, swapping out users, and identifying training needs. The reporting dashboard provides summaries like year-to-date usage and costs, year-over-year expenses, spend avoidance, cost savings, and more. Additionally, the team retains archived sheets so staff can refer to past years’ data. 

I appreciated their practical lessons learned, applicable to many other processes and projects:

• Begin at the beginning with objectives and buy-in.
• Keep checking in with the people affected by and benefitting from the project.
• Be flexible, backtracking as needed.
• Share your screen—show the process and workflows in action, then listen and ask questions.
• Take your ego out of the project.
• Remember that if it is math, it can be automated.

Their mantra, “Don’t let perfect hinder progress,” is certainly something to keep in mind.

What does the future hold for this effort? MacAvoy and Vassalotti expect to constantly evaluate workflows to ensure that stakeholders’ needs are met. They have already decided to pivot, moving to QuickBase, but they noted that the platform is not the important part, the process is.

This program was recorded. AALL members can watch it in full on AALL eLearning once the Annual Meeting programs become available.