Due diligence is a process that is performed before the purchase of securities, a corporate merger or an investment in real estate. It is performed by equity research analysts, brokerage firms, fund managers, investors and companies. A good deal management solution should help streamline this process, keeping teams in lockstep and allowing stakeholders to view which tasks have been completed and those that still need to be done.
Due Diligence Checklists
Due diligence can be a complex, time-consuming process. It can also be difficult to know what to look for, especially if you’re not familiar with a particular industry or subject matter. A due diligence checklist template can help you construct an effective plan of attack.
For example, management looking to buy an appliance company in order to incorporate it into their business might need to look at that company’s legal history and find out if they have been involved in any litigation or have received citations for violations of environmental standards, factory safety laws or antitrust issues.
Project management software like Loopio can simplify the process by allowing teams to collaborate on due diligence tasks in a shared workspace and by tracking the status of each task. This ensures consistency and provides better alignment between analysts and with the firm’s overarching strategy. It also makes it easier for new members to jump in and continue working without losing track of the overall scope of work.
Task Approval Tracking
The back-and-forth of approving and re-approving documents, reports and decisions can quickly become overwhelming without a proper workflow system in place. With task approval tracking, you can streamline the process and eliminate the need for rework.
Stakeholders are alerted when tasks have been submitted to them for review, and if necessary, reminders can be set on a custom frequency. In addition, escalation can be configured to route the request to another person or team if an approver is not available.
Approval tasks appear on the Documents page and in My tasks as square icons that are empty if incomplete, green if approved, orange if changes are requested and red if rejected. When the approval is complete (Approved, Request Changes or Rejected) a notification will be sent to the user assigned and the task will also appear in their Process Street Inbox. Clicking a task to view the associated documents or evidence is also possible. This can be done by selecting a task in My Tasks or the Documents tab in the navigation panel.
Configurable Reporting
User-configured reports are a great way to save and auto-generate a report based on the specific needs of a team, project, or business unit. They can be set up to run daily or weekly, and users can also choose the file format.
To configure a report, click the New Report button and select from the available list of preconfigured reports. If the Report is configured to send emails, the option to select recipients or add email addresses can be enabled from the Frequency and Schedule Report Properties.
Users can define Selection Fields (grouping) and Visibility for the selected characteristics by selecting them from the drop-down menus in the Report Definition dialog structure. These settings determine the criteria that the system uses to select deals for the report. They can be overridden on the initial reporting selection screen or results screen during reporting. For example, to select a different group of deals than those selected on the original report, in the selection fields settings dialog, double-click the Sel. Characteristics main./Group1/Group2 and make the necessary changes.
Streamlined Collaboration
Rather than fighting it out in court, you can settle disputes with a neutral mediator or arbitrator. That saves you from the high costs of discovery, depositions and motions. It also lets you resolve disagreements quickly so you can get back to work.
With deal management software, you can streamline collaboration so that your team works more efficiently. This means everyone can make better decisions and work smarter, even if they are working in different locations or time zones.
Additionally, the software can integrate your current processes so you don’t lose a beat during the transition over to the new system. This can help keep potential disasters from brewing and prevent your employees from getting frustrated by the transition.