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Case Study

University of Connecticut Modernizes Contracting Processes with Onit Challenge

Challenge

As a leading public research university, the University of Connecticut (UConn) manages a high volume of complex vendor contracts supporting its academic, research, and operational needs. The Contracting & Compliance team within Procurement Services is responsible for drafting and negotiating over 750 contracts and amendments each year—including software licenses, SaaS agreements, construction contracts, and consulting engagements.

With over 100 vendor relationships in progress at any given time, UConn’s manual tracking system—built on spreadsheets—became a significant bottleneck. It was difficult to track status updates, share information across the team, or maintain continuity during staff absences. The team needed a streamlined, centralized contract management solution to boost efficiency, visibility, and collaboration.

Solution

After evaluating multiple systems, UConn selected Legal Files, a member of the Onit ecosystem, for its customization capabilities, flexibility, and Outlook integration. Legal Files empowered the Contracting & Compliance team to:

  • Consolidate contracts, emails, and supporting documents into a single centralized repository.
  • Track contract expirations, extensions, and key milestone dates with customizable alerts.
  • Improve team coordination with shared visibility into negotiation status, outstanding items, and decision histories.
  • Ensure business continuity by allowing users to easily pick up contract work mid-stream when colleagues are unavailable.
  • Monitor process bottlenecks and drive accountability with real-time status tracking.

Results and ROI

Since implementing Onit’s Legal Files, UConn’s Procurement Services team has significantly improved its contract management operations:

Increased transparency and collaboration

Increased transparency and collaboration with shared access to real-time contract data.

Reduced administrative burden

Reduced administrative burden by eliminating manual spreadsheets and redundant communications.

Enhanced continuity of service

Enhanced continuity of service with seamless handoffs between team members.

Improved stakeholder satisfaction

Improved stakeholder satisfaction by accelerating contract cycle times and improving responsiveness.

Continuous improvement and resource optimization

Gained insights into process efficiency, enabling continuous improvement and resource optimization.

About the University of Connecticut

The University of Connecticut is a Land, Sea, and Space Grant institution with over 30,000 students and multiple campuses across the state. A top-tier public research university, UConn delivers over 7,600 degrees annually and is recognized for its excellence in education, research, and public service. The Contracting & Compliance group plays a critical role in enabling the university’s mission by managing strategic vendor relationships and ensuring compliant, efficient contracting practices.