Understanding Contract Lifecycle Tracking stages and automation

Before you begin

Contract Lifecycle Tracking is available on Maximize plan. If you do not see lifecycle fields or stage controls, confirm that the feature is enabled under Settings > AI and Workflow Options.

Getting started with Contract Lifecycle Tracking explains how to enable the feature.
Understanding Contract Tracking Fields explains the system fields that support lifecycle tracking.

List of Contract Stages

Here is a breakdown of each stage in the contract lifecycle:

Contract stages

The lifecycle moves through the following stages. A contract may bypass Contract Received when an Intake or Template Form has automatic approval routing enabled.

Stage	What it means	Key actions and notes
Contract Received	The contract has been added to ContractSafe.	This is the default starting stage when a new contract page is created through upload, email, a form, or a template. Intake and Template Forms with automatic approval routing may bypass this stage.
In-Progress	The contract is actively being worked on.	Organizations commonly use this stage for drafting, negotiating terms, or gathering related information. The stage name and system meaning remain fixed even if internal work varies.
Approving	The contract is routing internally for required approvals.	This stage can begin through an automatic approval workflow or when the contract is sent for approval. It remains until the required internal approvals are complete.
Signing	The contract has been sent to the relevant parties for signature.	The contract remains here until all required signatures are collected.
Managing	The contract is fully executed and stored in the repository.	This is the post-signature management stage and represents the executed contract as part of the organization’s official records.
Terminated	The fully executed contract’s termination date is in the past.	This stage indicates that the agreement has officially ended according to its terms.
Closed Pre-Signing	The contract process stopped before the agreement was fully executed.	Example: the request was halted because the vendor failed security requirements. Use this stage when the contract will not proceed to full execution.

How contract stages change

ContractSafe supports automatic transitions based on contract activity and manual transitions through the Contract Stage control. The exact options available to a user depend on the organization’s workflow and permissions.

Stage	Typical automatic entry	Typical automatic exit	Manual or special-case guidance
Contract Received	A new contract is added through upload, email, form, or template.	A Contract Owner is assigned, the contract is sent for approval, or it is sent for signature.	A form or template with automatic approval routing may bypass this stage. Use the Contract Stage control when a permitted manual correction is needed.
In-Progress	A Contract Owner is assigned.	The contract is sent for approval or signature. A past termination date may also move the contract to Terminated.	Use the Contract Stage control when the stage needs a permitted manual correction.
Approving	The contract enters an automatic approval workflow or is sent for approval.	The contract is sent for signature.	Use the Contract Stage control when the organization needs a permitted manual correction.
Signing	The contract is sent for eSignature.	All required signatures are collected, moving the contract to Managing.	Use the Contract Stage control when the organization needs a permitted manual correction.
Managing	The contract is fully executed through an eSignature integration or otherwise reaches the executed state.	The termination date is in the past, moving the contract to Terminated.	Use the Contract Stage control when the organization needs a permitted manual correction.
Terminated	The termination date is in the past.	There is no standard automatic exit; this is typically a final stage.	Use the Contract Stage control or update the termination date when a permitted correction is needed.
Closed Pre-Signing	The process is closed before full execution.	No standard automatic transition is described for this stage.	Select Closed Pre-Signing through the Contract Stage control when the request will not proceed to signing.

Important: A stage transition can also trigger lifecycle email notifications for eligible Contract Owners and Contract Requested By users. ContractSafe does not send a self-notification to the person who performed the triggering action.

Use stages in your daily workflow

Start with the Pipeline View or Contract List to identify contracts in Contract Received, In-Progress, Approving, or Signing.
Open the contract and confirm the current Contract Stage, Contract Owner, and Contract Requested By fields.
Use the Contract Tracking Workspace to review the stage history and time spent on an individual contract.
Use calculated stage-duration fields and lifecycle reporting to compare bottlenecks across contracts.
Tracking and reporting on contracts using Lifecycle Tracking provides guidance on the Contract List, Workspace, Pipeline View, Analytics View, and duration fields.
Understanding Contract Tracking Fields explains how owner, requester, needed-by, priority, and stage fields support the workflow.

For further inquiries, please reach out to support@contractsafe.com