RunBeat Contracts User Guide

Electronic document signing — upload, sign, and manage contracts with full audit trails.

Docs → RunBeat Contracts

Overview

RunBeat Contracts is a complete contract lifecycle management (CLM) and electronic signature platform built for UK businesses. It covers the entire contract journey — from authoring and clause management through counterparty negotiation, approval workflows, e-signature, obligation tracking, amendments, renewals, and termination — with AI assistance powered by OpenAI throughout.

Contracts is hosted at runbeatcontracts.com. Signers and counterparties do not need a RunBeat account — they receive secure links via email.

Getting Started

Visit runbeatcontracts.com and sign up. The Free tier gives you 3 envelopes per month to try the service.

Quick start

  1. Upload a document — PDF or Word file.
  2. Add signers — Enter the name and email of each person who needs to sign.
  3. Place fields — Drag signature, date, text, and checkbox fields onto the document.
  4. Send — Each signer receives an email with a secure link.
  5. Track — Monitor status in your dashboard.

Guided Wizards — "Show Me How"

Every Contracts page includes a "🎓 Show me how" button in the header navigation bar. Click it to open a library of step-by-step guided walkthroughs that walk you through common tasks without leaving the app.

Each wizard guides you through the process one step at a time, with tips and explanations along the way. You can dismiss a wizard at any point by pressing Escape or clicking the ✕ button.

Available wizards

WizardWhat it covers
✉️ Send a Contract for SignatureCreate an envelope, upload a PDF, add signers, and send for e-signature.
📄 Create a Reusable TemplateBuild a template with signature fields for repeated use.
📋 Create & Manage a ContractTrack a contract through its full lifecycle — draft, negotiation, active, renewal.
📨 Send to Multiple RecipientsUse Bulk Send to send the same document to many people at once.
✅ Set Up Approval WorkflowsCreate internal approval chains with sequential or parallel steps.
📚 Build Your Clause LibraryCreate and organise standard clauses for consistent contract language.

Wizards are a great way to learn the platform — especially for new users or when exploring features you haven't used before.

Envelopes

An envelope is a signing transaction containing one or more documents. Each envelope tracks the documents, signers, signing order, status (draft → sent → in progress → completed/declined/voided), and a complete audit trail.

Contracts (CLM)

For full lifecycle management, create a contract instead of a bare envelope. A contract wraps an envelope with additional lifecycle stages:

  1. Authoring — Draft the contract, insert clauses from your library, use AI to suggest missing clauses and flag risks.
  2. Negotiation — Share with the counterparty via a secure link. They can suggest edits, add comments, and redline the document without needing an account.
  3. Approval — Route through configurable approval workflows before sending for signature.
  4. Signature — Send for e-signature (creates an envelope automatically).
  5. Active — Track obligations, set reminders, monitor expiry dates.
  6. Amendment / Renewal / Termination — Formally modify, extend, or end the contract with full audit trails.

Contracts track counterparty details, contract value, effective/expiry dates, auto-renewal settings, and custom metadata.

Clause Library

Build a library of reusable legal clauses for your organisation. Each clause has a title, body text, category (e.g. Confidentiality, Indemnity, Payment Terms), tags, and version history. During contract authoring, search and insert clauses from the library to maintain consistency across all your contracts.

Counterparty Negotiation

Share a contract with a counterparty via a secure, optionally password-protected link. The counterparty can:

  • Suggest text edits (additions, modifications, deletions) tracked as redlines.
  • Add comments on specific sections.
  • Submit their review when done.

You receive a review summary and can accept or reject individual changes. Multiple negotiation rounds are supported. AI can analyse the counterparty's changes against your standard terms.

Approval Workflows

Define approval workflows that require internal stakeholders to approve a contract before it goes for signature. Workflows support sequential and parallel steps, with conditions based on contract value or type. Approvers can approve, reject, or request changes with comments.

Uploading Documents

Upload documents in PDF, DOCX, or image format. The document is rendered as a visual preview where you can place fields. Multiple documents can be included in a single envelope.

Adding Signers

Add one or more signers to an envelope. Each signer needs a name and email address. You can configure:

  • Signing order — Signers can sign in parallel (all at once) or sequentially (in a defined order).
  • Signer roles — Assign different field sets to different signers (e.g. "Client" signs here, "Witness" signs there).
  • CC recipients — Add people who should receive a copy of the completed document without needing to sign.

Placing Fields

Drag and drop fields onto the document preview. Available field types:

  • Signature — Electronic signature capture (draw, type, or upload).
  • Initials — Initial fields for page-by-page acknowledgement.
  • Date signed — Automatically populated with the signing date.
  • Text input — Free-text fields for the signer to complete.
  • Checkbox — Tick boxes for terms acceptance or options.
  • Dropdown — Selection fields with predefined options.

Each field is assigned to a specific signer, so each person only sees and completes their own fields.

Sending for Signature

Once your document is prepared with fields and signers, click Send. Each signer receives an email with a personalised, secure link to the signing ceremony. You can include a custom message in the email.

Automatic reminders are sent to signers who haven't completed their signature within a configurable period.

Signing Ceremony

The signing ceremony is the experience signers see when they click the link in their email. It is designed to be simple and requires no account:

  1. The signer opens the secure link in their browser.
  2. They review the document and complete their assigned fields.
  3. They create their signature (draw with mouse/finger, type their name, or upload an image).
  4. They confirm and submit.

The signing ceremony supports 5 languages: English, French, German, Spanish, and Welsh. Once all signers have completed, the envelope is marked as completed and all parties receive a copy with a certificate of completion.

In-Person Signing

Collect signatures on the spot by sharing your device. The in-person signing flow guides you through handing the device to each signer in turn, with clear handoff screens between signers. Available on all tiers.

Obligation Tracking

Extract and track contractual obligations from signed contracts. Each obligation has a title, assignee, due date, recurrence (one-time through to annually), and priority level. AI can automatically suggest obligations from the contract text. The obligation dashboard shows all obligations across all contracts with filtering by assignee, status, and due date. Automatic reminders are sent before due dates.

Amendments, Renewals & Termination

Amendments: Create formal modifications to active contracts. Each amendment goes through its own lifecycle (authoring → approval → signature) and is linked to the parent contract.

Renewals: Extend contracts manually or configure auto-renewal. Renewal reminders are sent at 90, 60, and 30 days before expiry.

Termination: Formally end a contract with reason and financial details. The system calculates gain/loss based on original and termination values.

Audit Trail

Every envelope maintains a detailed audit trail recording:

  • When the envelope was created and by whom.
  • When each signer was sent the invitation.
  • When each signer viewed the document.
  • When each signer completed their signature.
  • IP addresses and timestamps for every action.
  • Any declines, voids, or modifications.

The audit trail is included in the certificate of completion and provides legal evidence of the signing process.

Templates

Save frequently used documents as templates. A template preserves the document, field placements, signer roles, and content placeholders — so you can create new envelopes or contracts from a template with just a few clicks.

AI Features (OpenAI)

RunBeat Contracts uses OpenAI GPT-4o to assist throughout the contract lifecycle:

  • Template analysis — Automatically detect placeholders, signature positions, and signer roles when uploading a document.
  • Missing clause suggestions — Analyse a contract against your clause library and suggest clauses that should be included.
  • Jargon simplification — Rewrite selected legal text in plain English.
  • Risk flagging — Identify clauses that may expose your organisation to risk.
  • Negotiation analysis — Analyse counterparty changes against your standard terms.
  • Obligation extraction — Identify obligations from signed contract text.

AI features are available on Professional tier and above. Organisations can opt out of AI in settings.

Bulk Send

Send the same document to many recipients at once. Select a template, add recipients manually or via CSV upload, and each recipient gets their own individual envelope with its own signing link and lifecycle. Available on Professional tier and above.

SignForms

Create public, self-service signing forms linked to a template. Share the SignForm URL and anyone can fill in their details and sign — creating an envelope automatically. Ideal for NDAs, waivers, and onboarding documents. Available on Professional tier and above.

Forms & Surveys

Build standalone forms and surveys that don't require a signature. Create multi-field forms with text inputs, dropdowns, checkboxes, radio buttons, date pickers, and file uploads. Share via a public URL — respondents fill in the form without needing an account.

Use cases:

  • Client onboarding questionnaires — Collect information before drafting a contract.
  • Feedback surveys — Gather post-project feedback from clients.
  • Data collection — Collect structured information for any business process.

Form submissions are stored in the platform and can be viewed, filtered, and exported as CSV. Forms can optionally trigger a contract or envelope creation on submission. Available on Professional tier and above.

Reports & Calendar

The reports dashboard shows key metrics: total contracts, active contracts, contracts expiring in 90 days, overdue obligations, envelope completion rates, and average completion time. Export any report as CSV.

The calendar view displays contract expiry dates, obligation due dates, and renewal reminders in a month-view layout with colour-coded events.

CRM Integration

If you use RunBeat CRM, contracts can be generated and sent for signature directly from deal records. CRM auto-populates contract templates with account details, campaign terms, and pricing — then sends via Contracts for e-signature. Signed documents are linked back to the CRM deal record.

API & Webhooks

The Contracts API allows you to programmatically create envelopes, add signers, and track status. Webhooks notify your systems in real time when envelopes are viewed, signed, or completed — enabling automated workflows.

API access is available on the Professional tier and above.

Subscription Tiers

TierMonthlyEnvelopesHighlights
Free£03/monthBasic signing, audit trail, in-person signing.
Starter£910/monthTemplates, branding, signing order, calendar, multi-language.
Professional£2950/monthFull CLM, clause library, negotiation, obligations, AI assistant, bulk send, SignForms, reports.
Business£79UnlimitedEverything in Professional plus approval workflows, REST API, webhooks, cloud integrations, priority support.