Economic Impact of Digital Signatures

Digitization of business documents such as contracts, agreements, or even forms and letters gave a new lease of life to traditional, time-consuming operational processes during the pandemic. However, even businesses that were digitized pre-pandemic, still face a major bottleneck in their documentation process – chasing signatures!

Attesting your signatures online remains a phenomenon not many organizations have faith in, and not without reason. As always, business documents carry sensitive information that must be protected at all costs. Managing fraud and error rates has become very important for institutions not only because of increased regulatory scrutiny but also due to increased stakeholder expectations and the detrimental effect of the actual fraud loss incurred. Months of planning and strategy can come to a standstill due to a missing or forged signature. Digital signatures have emerged as a novel solution to this problem. A valid digital signature solution can protect your confidential documents with layers of digital security and significantly impact the workflows and functioning of your business.

Notwithstanding the fears of digital scares, the COVID-19 pandemic forced many organizations to embrace digital signature software. The number of organizations utilizing eSignatures has climbed by 50%, while the number of individual users has increased by 13%. Post-pandemic, 69% of business owners prefer eSignature to in-person signing. Thus far, digital signature software statistics project a growing market trend to continue in the next decade. The global eSignature market could witness a 26.6% CAGR during 2022–2030, possibly reaching $12,721.4 million by 2030. The Asia Pacific region is the fastest-growing market, and North America remains the largest market, valued at $440 million in 2019.

With the impact of the pandemic and upgrades to systems costing companies a penny too many, there is still hesitancy to invest in modern solutions. In this blog, we attempt to throw light on the real economic impact of eSignatures and their importance in a modern paperless environment.

A leading global business process automation company has saved over $4.3M in just the last 3 years after adopting digital signatures.

Workflow Challenges Faced by Business Today

• Long and time-consuming – Most paper-based processes, even if partially digital, tend to eat into hours of productive time. According to Gartner, employees waste 20% to 30% of their work-week managing documents or document-based information.
• Security and Compliance – The fear of new technologies leads to hesitancy among enterprises which is understandable. However, the traditional ways of signing and authenticating documents are not safe anymore. Fraud, theft, and forgery are all real risks that businesses face.
• High Costs – A manual workflow reflects the usual costs of paper, stationery, printers, scanners, etc. Businesses tend to overlook the hidden costs that come with a manual documentation process. Postage, handling charges, fuel charges, other logistics, storage, infrastructure, etc., are just some of the costs that may not pop up directly in connection with manual workflows but are undoubtedly piling up in the background.

How eSignatures impact a business?

Integrating an eSignature solution into an existing digital workflow makes the process entirely seamless, without the need for printing a single sheet of paper. In addition, eSignatures also make your workflow 100% digital and secure. Here are some more esign benefits detailed:

• Mitigate Risks by Complying to Standards

  eSignatures are legally binding in major countries worldwide, including in the U.S, Canada, the U.K., the Philippines, India, Germany, and France. Enterprises operating in countries where e-signatures are recognized can benefit from the security and efficiency digital signatures offer. Some notable legislations passed for electronic signatures are:

  • U.K. and European Union (EU) – Electronic Communications Act 2000 and the Electronic Identification Authentication and trust Services (eIDAS)
  • U.S. – The Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act (ESIGN)
  • The Philippines – Electronic Commerce Act of 2000
  • India – Information Technology Act, 2000

Compliance with these laws reduces the risks of fraud and provides a record of all actions taken on a document. It is always advised to refer to laws in your jurisdiction regarding your specific e-signature use case.

• Decrease Overhead Costs & Increase ROI

  Printing, faxing, and storage of business contracts, agreements, and other essential documents costs can be reduced by adopting digital signatures. Reprinting documents due to any errors spotted in contracts could result in multiple do-overs. Using digital documents and a centralized document management system can reduce the probability of errors. According to a report, companies can save almost USD 8 billion in annual expenses by switching to eSignature solutions.

• Get Better Security

  Even today, companies primarily use e-mail as a medium to send and sign contracts. This has increased the probability of data breaches and unprecedented risks. As per the latest report, 73% of employees still send contracts through this method. eSignature solutions, on the other hand, protect your documents with multiple layers of security, such as multi-factor authentication, password-protected documents, secure cloud storage, etc.

• Employee Productivity & Efficiency

  Documents like agreements, contracts, offer letters, and other documents are essential to the smooth running of a business. However, there is no justification for the amount of time wasted on printing, scanning, filing, storing, etc., when it comes to employee efficiency and productivity.

• Faster TATs

  By eliminating a long, tedious process of printing, manually signing, stamping, scanning, sending, and finally storing, eSignature solutions cut your document workflow from 5-6 days to just 30 minutes.

• Go Green

  Companies still stuck in their traditional ways of getting contracts signed using paper continue to impact the environment negatively. Using eSignatures automates the physical process and eliminates the need for printing documents, reducing your consumption of paper and fuel as well as reducing waste.

Also Read: Why eSignatures are Essential to Succeeding in Business

The Economic Impact of eSignatures on Major Industries

eSignatures have been embraced by all major industries to reduce their reliance on paper. Decision makers are choosing lean strategies to curb their expenses, and online signing solutions like DrySign eSignatures fit right in.

• Manufacturing

  The manufacturing industry runs on tight deadlines, with even slight delays causing losses that can run into millions. Adopting digital signatures provides a convenient and legally binding method for invoices, proposals, billing statements, sales orders, and other documents. DrySign can improve the TATs for documentation processes by 70% in the manufacturing sector, helping clients expedite the processes and deliver time-sensitive documents in minutes.

• Legal

  The legal sector looks at agreements and contracts on a daily basis to protect the interests of their client, contributing to high handling and management costs. DrySign can reduce document handling expenses by 85% in the legal industry.

• Real Estate

  The real estate industry is employing digital solutions to modernize its workflow and close deals quickly. Real estate leaders have begun leveraging digital signatures to help clients sign documents from any location. As a result, businesses can save up to USD 20,000 annually in printing and storage costs.

• Human Resources

  Since paperwork dictates the majority of the work in the HR sector, digital documents can save significant time and resources. Electronic signatures have been instrumental in simplifying HR documentation, such as offer letters, resignations, approvals, appraisal letters, onboarding documents, etc. HR Departments can save upwards of 78% by migrating to e-signature apps, taking into account material, administration, and shipping costs.

• Healthcare

  The healthcare sector was burdened recently due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Digitization of healthcare documents, such as prescriptions, reports, approvals, discharge forms, etc., has helped healthcare staff and doctors, and relieved them of cumbersome paperwork. Furthermore, digital signatures have reduced overhead costs and manual work and improved patient experience.

Conclusion

The economic impact is usually measured using earnings, economic output, and value gained by the investment. Digital signatures can be the first step for companies looking to digitally transform their internal and external processes. Businesses can improve ROI by eliminating laborious processes, and the recognition eSignatures enjoy in various countries will eventually lead to complete digital transformation.

Try DrySign today to maximize your ROIs and earn bigger savings!

Sources: financesonline.com |srscomputing.com

DISCLAIMER: The information on this site is for general information purposes only and is not intended to serve as legal advice. Laws governing the subject matter may change quickly, and Exela cannot guarantee that all the information on this site is current or correct. Should you have specific legal questions about any of the information on this site, you should consult with a licensed attorney in your area.

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