Save time and money with eSignatures: How electronic signatures make everyday work easier

Instead of paper and pens, digital tools are in demand today. The best example: contract signatures and other documents that need to be signed. Compared to manual signatures, the digital variant offers many advantages: first and foremost, high-security standards and enormous savings in time and money. Thanks to electronic signatures, you can speed up your business processes and save important manual resources. Apart from that, you don’t need printers to put documents on paper, nor the postage to send contracts to be signed.

Read our article to learn how eSignatures can make your business processes faster, more efficient, and more secure.

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How can companies benefit from digital signatures?

As a company, you deal with documents and their signatures daily. Often, all pages are printed out and processed manually. However, this does not only result in printing and paper costs. To have contracts signed by other parties, you also incur shipping costs. It can take a few days for the letter to find its way to the recipient – during which time your contract process comes to a standstill.

The alternative: switching to eSignatures. You can benefit in these aspects:

  • With digital signatures, you save costs: printing and sending documents in particular requires resources and costs money. With electronic signatures, you can save both of these steps.
  • Higher customer satisfaction: Your customers also save on printing and scanning or sending documents. Easy contract processing increases satisfaction with your company.
  • Streamline processes and increase efficiency: ease the workload of departments that deal with many contracts and documents by handling the entire contract process digitally. Documents are signed faster and departments increase their productivity – whether it’s real estate companies through faster leasing, banks through a higher closing rate of credit card contracts, or recruitment agencies through a higher staffing rate.
  • Make a statement toward sustainability: by eliminating paper and shipping, you show that you care about the environment.

What security measures are required to ensure legally compliant use of digital signatures?

The legal compliance of an electronic signature depends on several factors. You should consider the following:

  • Type of electronic signature: there are different types of electronic signatures, each meeting different legal requirements. Depending on the context, a simple, advanced, or qualified electronic signature is suitable. In use cases with a so-called formal requirement, legislators may stipulate the use of QES (qualified electronic signature).
  • Authentication of the signer: A secure method should be used to authenticate the signer. It is possible to authenticate by confirming the e-mail address or cell phone number. However, the most secure variant is the matching of biometric data – this is used in QES.
  • Integrity of the document: It must be ensured that the document has not been changed after signing. Cryptography is usually used for this purpose.
  • Proof of consent: It must be possible to clearly prove that all parties have consented to signing the document. eSigning providers log and store this consent.
  • Retention and archiving: the signed document should be securely stored with all recorded data to serve as evidence in the event of a dispute.
  • Legal compliance: The electronic signature should comply with applicable legal requirements. It is important to know and comply with the specific requirements in your jurisdiction. In the EU, these are governed by the eIDAS Regulation, and in Switzerland by ZertES.
  • Trust service provider: Your eSigning provider should use a reputable trust service provider (TSP). Among other things, the TSP creates certificates, time stamps, and seals for advanced and qualified signatures. Ask which provider it is.

Requirements for legally valid digital signatures vary widely by industry and even within an industry. For example, HR service providers only require a simple signature to sign permanent employment contracts, but a qualified signature for temporary employment contracts. In general, it can be said that

  • Simple electronic signatures (SES) are used primarily for B2B contracts and internal documents.
  • Advanced electronic signatures (AES) are also used primarily in the B2B sector but offer an additional authentication level.
  • Qualified electronic signatures (QES) are used for B2C contracts or in specially regulated industries, such as the financial or medical sectors.

Digital signatures and confidential documents: How do they fit together?

Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs) and patent applications are areas where confidentiality plays a major role. Security measures are essential to confirm the authenticity of the document as well as the identity of the signer. Digital signatures can be used effectively in both areas to ensure the authenticity and integrity of a document. This is because the eSignature is basically a mathematical code linked to a digital certificate that uniquely assigns the signer of the document.

A digitally filed patent application must contain a signature to ensure the identity of the applicant and the authenticity of the document. A qualified electronic signature should be used – this ensures that the sender is clearly authenticated. The same should be done for NDAs, as this is also a confidential document.

What are the benefits of digital signatures compared to handwritten signatures?

Apart from the legal and security benefits, there are other advantages to switching to a digital signature system:

  • eSignatures are convenient: when you choose digital signatures, you choose a more convenient processing process for everyone involved. There’s no need to print out contracts, you don’t have to hunt for a pen, and the question of how much postage to put on the envelope is eliminated. Regardless of where the contracting parties are located, they can sign in real-time. And instead of using a hole punch, you only need a mouse click to file the documents.
  • eSignatures are secure: Biometric authentication and a secure digital certificate: You don’t get that with a manually signed lease. eSignatures ensure a high level of security compared to paper documents. This results in a forgery-proof signing process that is verifiable and legally valid.
  • eSignatures are cost-effective: With the help of digital signatures, you can save considerable sums of money that would otherwise be needed for paper, printing, and postage costs. You also save on the travel costs that are sometimes incurred to sign a document in person.

So thanks to eSignatures, documents can be signed easily, securely, and affordably from anywhere.

What are the special requirements for QES?

Some contracts are bound by formal requirements, such as fixed-term employment contracts in the EU, electronic patient records, or certain processes in banks such as account openings. Here, the qualified electronic signature (QES) is required. This guarantees the maximum level of security and legal bindingness. Likewise, the document is safe from forgery and manipulation. As mentioned above, the QES is only valid with a certificate issued by trusted service providers (TSP). These providers are certified by the state according to the criteria of the eIDAS regulation.

Conclusion

eSignatures not only mean savings in time and resources for your company but also enable your contractual partners, customers, and employees to work more efficiently. Documents can be signed easily, regardless of location. The process is fast, secure, and environmentally friendly. Encryption technologies guarantee that your data is protected.

With electronic signatures, you can make your company fit for the digital future! Do you still have questions and would like to know how exactly the changeover to eSignatures can take place? We will be happy to advise you personally.