Signing presos

Last updated 4 October, 2024

Overview

A “signing slide”—like the Authority to Proceed slide included at the time of release—is one that has been designed specifically for clients to sign off, either manually or digitally.

When you create a preso that includes one or more signing slides, a formal signing workflow is automatically activated, as described below.

Configuring your signing options

Step 1: Configuration at the practice level

Step 2: Configuration at the user level

Finalising and sending presos for signing

To prevent unintended double-ups or clashes, only one person can “finalise” the preso and send it for signing. This can be the adviser themselves during the meeting, or one of the clients via a shared preso.

By the adviser

During a meeting (in Present mode), an adviser can trigger the signing process (“finalise and send for signing”):

1. When you get to the slide in your meeting, offer your clients whatever choices are available on the signing slide—for example, to proceed in full or with variations on the Authority to Proceed slide.

2. Finalise the preso:

   1. Check the appropriate boxes on the slide and optionally enter relevant text.

3. Send for signing:

   1. Click Proceed.

   2. In the pop-up box on the slide, choose Print and Sign for manual signing, or whichever digital option you have connected and configured (as above). For example, for a practice with Docusign enabled, the pop-up on the Authority to Proceed slide would look like this:
      
      

       

4. You will see a confirmation that the process has started. The exact message will depend on which type of signing you selected. See below for a description of the rest of the process.

By the client(s)

If you prefer, you can let your client(s) trigger the signing process (“finalise and send for signing”):

1. From the appointment screen of your preso, click Share.

2. If you have at least one signing slide turned on for the preso, you will see both the Signing and Sharing pop-up boxes.

   1. Sharing: You can generate a share link and turn on/off 2FA share security as you normally do when Sharing presos with your clients.

   2. Signing: To allow your clients to finalise and sign:

      1. Click the toggle in the Signing box to “Ask the following recipient to finalise and send for signing”.

      2. If you have more than one client recipient for the preso, select which one you want to designate to finalise and send for signing.

      3. Click Save.

Now the share will be set up to require the designated contact to “trigger” the signing process.

You will notice this bar appear on the appointment screen for the preso, to confirm that the preso is now locked for signing:

Your client’s experience will look something like this:

1. When they first visit the share link, it will be clear who has been designated to finalise and send for signing:
   
   

   
   In this example, Cory has been designated, but Pam can still view the preso.
   
   

2. When Cory gets to the signing slide, he can make whatever choices are available on the signing slide—for example, to proceed in full or with variations on the Authority to Proceed slide.

3. He can then finalise the preso:

   1. He will check the appropriate boxes on the slide and optionally enter relevant text.

4. He can then send for signing:

   1. He will click Proceed.

   2. In the pop-up box on the slide, he will choose Print and Sign for manual signing, or whichever digital option you have connected and configured (as above). For example, for a practice with Docusign enabled, the pop-up on the Authority to Proceed slide would look like this:
      
      

       

5. He will see a confirmation that the process has started. The exact message will depend on which type of signing you selected. See below for a description of the rest of the process.

Manual signing

When the manual (Print and Sign) option is chosen—by either the adviser or the client—the following happens:

1. A PDF is generated on demand, and delivered by email to whomever requested it (usually only a minute or two later). That person can then print it and have it signed manually.

2. A “Signing request created” activity is shown for the preso on both the Activity screen and the Appointment screen for that preso. The activity also shows which signing method was chosen; in this example, it was Print and Sign:
   
   

    

Checking/Setting the status of manual signing

Because manual signing happens offline, its status can’t be discerned automatically. However, you “close the loop” by marking it as complete when the manual signing has been completed:

1. Click on the activity from the appointment screen, then Details, to bring up the status.

2. (You can download a copy of the unsigned document.)

3. Optionally, upload the signed document to keep everything in one place.

4. Click Complete to mark the document as fully signed.

The “Signing request created” activity will now change to “Signing completed”:

If the signed PDF was uploaded in step 3 above, clicking on the activity and then Details again will allow you to download the signed document at any stage in the future.

Digital signing

When the digital signing option is chosen—by either the adviser or the client—the following happens:

1. A PDF is generated on demand and sent to the relevant digital signing service.

2. The digital signing service (through its normal process) sends an email to the client(s) to request a signature.

3. A “Signing request created” activity is shown for the preso on both the Activity screen and the Appointment screen for that preso. The activity also shows which signing method was chosen; in this example, it was DocuSign:
   
   

4. Once the client(s) have signed via the digital signing service:

   1. The signed document is attached to the preso.

   2. A file note is created in Xplan, with a link to the signed document.

   3. The “Signing request created” activity changes “Signing completed”:
      
      

Checking the status of digital signing

Because digital signing is all automated, you can see the status at any time:

1. Click on the activity from the appointment screen, then Details.

2. The pop-up will tell you the current status of the signing process.

Note: Once digital signing has been completed, the status box will reflect that but will also allow you to download the fully signed PDF.

Related articles

Understanding the appointment screen

Sharing presos with your clients

Authority to Proceed slide