Glossary of Terms for Contracts+

This glossary provides clear definitions for the key terms, fields, and sections used throughout Contracts+. It is designed to help Contract Specialists, Buyers, and other stakeholders navigate the system efficiently and accurately manage contracts from creation to execution.

Glossary of Contracts+ Terms

General System & Process Terms

Contracts+: Procurement contract lifecycle management solution for streamlining contract creation, review, approval, and tracking.
Contract Record: The digital file in Contracts+ that contains all contract details, documents, and workflow steps for a specific agreement.
Contract Template: A pre-configured set of default settings and fields for a contract record, reducing manual data entry.
Main Document Template: A pre-loaded, templated contract document that can be used as the starting point for drafting agreements.
Third Party Paper: A contract document provided by the supplier, used as the basis for negotiation and authoring.
Workgroup: The category team responsible for managing a contract record.

Contract Types

Purchasing Agrmt: General agreements for goods and services purchases.
Svcs Agreement: Agreements for services, including consulting and facilities.
Software License Agreement: Covers software purchases, including SaaS and perpetual licenses.
Hotel and Event Services: Agreements for event hosting and related services.
Cooperative Purchasing: Leveraging another institution’s contract, often without University signature.
Cooperative w/ Participation: University creates its own contract based on another institution’s agreement.
PSA (Personal Service Agreement): Simple service agreements under $25,000.
Special Terms: Standalone agreements, including NDAs and IP terms.
Sourcing Record: Non-contract records for tracking sourcing efforts.
Construction Design: Professional design services for construction projects.
Construction Services: Labor and materials for construction/renovation.
Lease Agreement (Real Property): Leasing of land or buildings.

Status & Workflow Terms

Draft: Contract is being constructed or negotiated.
Review: Under review by department, buying team, or supplier.
Workflow: Submitted for approval by various stakeholders.
DocuSign Setup/Out for Signature: Contract is being prepared or sent for electronic signature.
Executed: In Effect: Fully signed and active contract.
Expired: Contract has passed its end date.
Superseded: Replaced by a newer contract record.
Cancelled/Terminated: Contract draft or active contract has been closed.

Workflow Steps

Compile File: System compiles contract attachments into a PDF.
Senior Contract Specialist Review: Review by senior staff or director.
OGC Approval Pre-Review: Prior to signatures, the Office of General Counsel reviews the contract to ensure it is legally sufficient and ready for execution. Required for contracts valued at $25,000 or greater.
Compliance Check: Ensuring all requirements (ethics forms, insurance) are met.
Signature Robot: Automated system step that moves the contract to the next stage in the workflow, often triggering notifications or status changes.
E-signature Setup: The Contract Specialist prepares and configures the DocuSign envelope, specifying signers and signature fields before sending for electronic signature.
Out for Signature: Sent for signature.
OGC Approval: After signatures, the Office of General Counsel ensures the signed agreement is legally sufficient. If corrections are needed, the contract may be returned to draft for negotiation and re-submission.
AG Approval: The contract is sent to the Attorney General for final review, which is required for contracts valued at $500,000 or greater.

AI & Authoring Tools

Contracts AI: Embedded AI for summarizing, analyzing, and assisting with contract authoring.
AI Summaries: Automated summaries of contract records.
Chat with Contract: AI interface for querying contract content.
Word-Plugin AI Features: AI tools in the Word plugin for clause analysis and risk identification.
Clause Analysis: AI-powered review of contract clauses for risk and clarity.

Obligations & Roles

Obligation: A specific task or responsibility assigned to a party under a contract, tracked until completion.
First Party Owner: University individual responsible for managing and marking obligations as complete.
First Party Stakeholder: University individual informed of obligation status or required to provide documentation.
Second Party Stakeholder: Supplier contact responsible for fulfilling an obligation.
Obligation Library: Pre-set list of common obligations that can be added to contracts.
Custom Obligation: A user-defined obligation created for a specific contract.

Additional Key Terms, Fields, and Sections

Header Fields

Contract Number: A unique identifier automatically assigned to each contract (format: UC-{Fiscal Year}-{Work Group}-#####). Can be manually overridden in certain cases.
Contract Name: The title or descriptive name of the contract.
Contract Type: Specifies the category of the contract (e.g., Purchasing Agreement, Sourcing Record, Lease Agreement).
Start Date / End Date: The effective and expiration dates of the contract.
Supplier Information: Includes supplier name, address, and contact details.
Procurement Category / Workgroup: The category or team responsible for the contract.
Budget: Optional field to track spending on contracts that do not have a set contract value.
Contract Value: The maximum payable amount under the contract (not always required, e.g., for cooperative agreements).
Use eSignature for this contract?: Indicates whether DocuSign or another e-signature method will be used.

Sections and Tabs

Attachments: Section for uploading and managing all contract-related documents (quotes, proposals, agreements, etc.).
Legal Terms and Sourcing Data: Section for entering required legal and sourcing information.
Contract Parties: Section listing all parties involved in the contract, including roles and contact information.
Sourcing Record Only: Tab for specifying if a sourcing record is an informal bid or sole source.
Questions: Section or page where additional required or optional information is collected via form fields.
Review and Complete: Final review page showing progress and completion status of all required fields.
Summary Page: Overview of the contract record, accessible from search results.

System and Custom Fields

System Default Fields: Standard fields available in all contract templates (e.g., contract number, renewal number, amendment number).
Custom Fields: Fields specific to certain contract types, such as “Legal Terms and Sourcing Data”.
Amendment Number / Renewal Number: Fields for tracking contract amendments and renewals.

Navigation and Workflow

Create New Contract: Button to initiate a new contract record.
Request Contract: Button to start a contract request process.
Submit for Approval: Action to send the contract into the approval workflow.
Save Progress: Option to save work at any stage of the contract creation or request process.
Open Summary: Button to view the summary page of a contract from search results.
Quick Filters: Search filters to narrow down contract search results.

Document Authoring and Clause Management

Show Taskpane: Button in the Word plugin to open options for inserting fields and clauses.
Clause Library: A repository of pre-approved contract clauses that can be inserted into agreements during authoring.
Approved Clause: A clause from the Clause Library that has been reviewed and approved for use in contracts.
Redlining: The process of editing and tracking changes in contract documents, especially for negotiable clauses.
Locked Clauses: Non-negotiable clauses that cannot be removed or edited, indicated by a lock icon.