Reworking the Global Distribution Contract Lifecycle
The Situation
Prior to the acquisition of Metametrix Clinical Laboratory by Genova Diagnostics, I managed distributor partnerships, specimen shipping logistics, and the full contract lifecycle. At the time I took over management, the contract lifecycle was manual, email-driven, and decentralized. This caused:
Version control issues and lost time hunting for the “right” contract
Slow turnaround times (avg. 30 days per renewal) and missed renewal risk
Limited visibility during a pending acquisition, where accuracy and audit readiness were critical
What I Did
I redesigned the end-to-end contract lifecycle and centralized it on SharePoint.
Discovery & Baseline
Audited 15 existing contracts and mapped the current workflow to find gaps in access, accountability, and documentation.
Established baseline metrics: avg. turnaround time, % of on-time renewals, # of versions per contract, search time, audit prep time.
Design & Build
Built a SharePoint contract repository with:
Version control and role-based access
Searchable metadata (effective date, renewal/termination, governing law, exclusivity, pricing, territory, notice method, etc.)
Created standardized templates and workflows for drafting, review, approval, and renewal.
Implemented automated alerts for key dates (renewals, terminations, notice windows).
Documented a governance model (who owns templates, SLA targets, escalation paths).
Change Management & Training
Trained legal, sales, and operations teams; achieved 100% adoption in two weeks.
Built how-to guides, short walkthroughs, and quick-reference SOPs to reduce friction.
Worked cross-functionally to align with international documentation and legal requirements.
The Results
Contract renewal turnaround time reduced from an average of 30 to 14 days.
Contract version search/retrieval time cut by 90% (from ~2 hours → 12 minutes).
Missed renewals reduced to 0, with automated notifications and clear ownership.
Audit & acquisition readiness improved: due diligence data room assembly time dropped from ~5 days → 3 hours.
Visibility and accountability increased across sales, legal, and ops via shared dashboards and standardized workflows.
