Contracts contain a lot of easy-to-miss details, especially for companies that need to deal with high volumes of paperwork. At the same time, many lack access to software that makes the process easier by digitizing contracts. SirionLabs, the contract management software startup backed by Tiger Global, wants to help with a new product called SirionAE. While SirionAE is integrated into SirionLabs’ flagship contract lifestyle management (CLM) platform, it is also available as a standalone product.
Founder and chief executive officer Ajay Agrawal told TechCrunch that his company decided to offer SirionAE on its own because many clients need to create a central repository of their contract backlog before they are able to fully take advantage of CLM software.
SirionAE is meant to be a cost-effective way for companies to address that gap and “immediately democratize access to a larger set of mid-market companies who’ll now be able to avoid the high costs and durations associated with risk analysis, diligence and compliance,” Agrawal said.
Companies are already using SirionAE include Vodafone, Unilever, Credit Suisse and the Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA). Founded in 2012, SirionLabs’ last round of funding, a $44 million Series C led by Tiger Global and Avatar Growth Capital, was announced in May, and brought the Seattle-based startup’s total raised so far to $66 million.
Close analysis of contracts is always important when doing due diligence, adhering to privacy regulations like the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation, and managing routine legal and operational obligations to customers and vendors.
During COVID-19, digitizing contracts into a central database has also become more important because team members are often working remotely. Parsing contracts is also especially crucial to the logistics industry because of disruptions to the global supply chain, which means suppliers and buyers who are located in different countries need to keep in close contact about their obligations to one another.
Missing contractual obligations can also be an expensive headache. SirionLabs points to research by the International Association for Contract and Commercial Management (IACCM) that shows poor contract management can lose companies 9% in annual revenue.
Image Credits: SirionLabs (opens in a new window)
SirionLabs claims that SirionAE is able to deliver more detailed insight than competing products from other CLM providers, like Cognitiv+, Docusign’s Seal Software or Eigen Technologies, because it can capture data from more than 100 out-of-the-box fields. While some types of contracts, including non-disclosure agreements and master service agreements, are fairly standardized, others, including ones for IT services, tend to be more complex and include statement of work, appendices and other documents.
Agrawal said SirionAE’s technology, which uses neural-network based technology to constantly refine its performance, makes it easier for companies to track crucial information like obligations, service levels and pricing tables. He added that SirionAE can also effectively extract data from multi-column pages, documents written in multiple languages and even handwritten notes. That information, including risks, entitlements and obligations, is then presented on a central dashboard.
For example, a client in the telecom sector uses SirionAE to identify and help their customers understand minimum spend commitment clauses in their contracts, helping the company’s top-line and reducing disputes. Another client is using SirionAE to find volume discounts in their procurement contracts, which Agrawal said has already helped them save hundreds of thousands of dollars.