Workflow Step - E-Signature 

Overview

Leverage FormAssembly’s Document and E-Signature steps to facilitate seamless document approvals, contract signing, and other essential workflows directly within the platform. 

FormAssembly's E-Signature step is designed to comply with U.S. E-Signature Regulations, including the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (UETA). It is compliant with the E-Sign Act, which states that electronic signatures, when used in accordance with the law, are legally binding and valid to the same extent as signatures attached to paper documents.

This article covers the basics of selecting a generated PDF document from the Document step to be digitally signed in an E-Signature step.

Requirements

To use the E-Signature step, a FormAssembly user must

• be part of a Team plan or higher
• have Content Management user permissions enabled for their login
  • specifically, the Enable E-Signature permission must be enabled for the user account

Document Template Signature Tags

The E-Signature step requires a document with signature tags from a Document step. The Document step article covers how to add tags to a template. To add an E-Signature to a generated document, at least one signature tag must be included in the template submitted to the Document step. Included signature tags will not be mapped during the Document step, but will be reserved for mapping in the E-Signature step.

The following signature tags can be included on a template in a Document step:

• {{signature}}
• {{signer_title}}
• {{signer_name}}
• {{signer_date}}
• {{signer_initials}}

Adding Multiple Signers

With the proper tag formatting, multiple signers can be assigned to a single document. Tags will be grouped by matching tag suffixes to be assigned to a signer. 

For example, if you wanted a manager and a director to sign and date a document in an E-Signature step, you might have the following tags in your document template:

• {{signature_manager}}
• {{signer_name_manager}}
• {{signer_date_manager}}
• {{signature_director}}
• {{signer_name_director}}
• {{signer_date_director}}

Add an E-Signature Step to a Workflow

• Select Add Step
• Select E-Signature

E-Signature Properties

Document Tab

A PDF generated by a Document step in the workflow can be selected for signature on the E-Signature step. Ensure the document you select has at least one signature tag to map.

Signer Tab

All signature tags uploaded on a document template will be assigned to a single signer. Use this tab to designate who that signer is using an email address gathered by a form field, value or formula, or variable.

Assign a Signer

• Select a form field, enter a value or formula, or select a variable
  • Field: Use the list to search for and select a form field with email validation from the forms included in the workflow
  • Valueor Formula: Enter a value as text or open the formula editor to build a formula.
  • Variable: Select an existing workflow variable from the dropdown

Assign Multiple Signers

All signature & signer tags uploaded on a document template with a unique suffix will be assigned to a signer. Select a form field with email validation, a static value or formula, or a workflow variable to be assigned to each signer.

Notifications Tab

Emails are sent to the configured signer(s) in the Signers tab for both notifications to provide an E-Signature and to inform when the final document is ready for download. Use the Notifications tab to set the Sender Name and Sender Email Address for these notification emails. By default, these values are the workflow owner's first name, last name, and email address, as defined in their FormAssembly account settings.

Enter the Sender Name(e.g., your name and email) and Sender Email Address.

• Sender Name - This is the name from which the recipient will receive the email. Use the function icon to configure an alias or formula value, if desired. For more information about how to use the Formula Editor to create formulas and leverage field aliases, see our article on Smart Processing with Formulas.
• Sender Email Address - This is the email address from which the recipient will receive the email. You cannot enter multiple email addresses in this field.

E-Signature Step Behavior

Upon workflow execution, an email notification is sent to the designated email address of the signer with a link to sign the document. 

The signer should be able to apply a digital signature, either by drawing or typing. 

After each signer completes the document, an email will be sent to any subsequent signers in the order they appear in the document. The next signer will not receive an email notification until the previous signer completes their signature.

Once all parties have completed their signatures, all signers will receive an email with a secure link to the E-Signature Details page, where they can download the final document and view the audit log. This link expires after 48 hours.

Workflow Response

When the E-Signature step of a workflow runs, an E-Signature Card is created in the workflow response. The workflow owner and collaborators can view or download the signed document PDF or view the E-Signature record from this card. They can also view the audit trail of the E-Signature process. 

E-Signature Details Page and Audit Log

Select the Audit Trail button to view the E-Signature Details page. This is the same page that signers see when clicking the link to access the completed document and audit log.

The audit log displays a table showing the event status, timestamp, signer (by email address), IP address, and details of each logged event.

Send a PDF File 

The signed PDF document generated by an E-Signature step can be sent through connectors and the Email step.

The signed PDF document name can be chosen in the “Send file” dropdown of a file upload connector, such as the Salesforce, Google Drive, Microsoft SharePoint, Box, or Dropbox Connectors.