Paper process

What is a paper process?

The paper process is the steps after a verbal yes: legal review, procurement, security review and signatures. MEDDPICC added it to MEDDIC as the P, described as the legal and procurement steps needed to sign the contract. In commercial services it often includes vendor onboarding, insurance certificates, safety prequalification and purchase order setup.

Why it matters to a revenue leader

A deal won on the decision can still miss the quarter on paper. Procurement teams add terms, legal redlines take weeks, and a missing insurance certificate can hold up a purchase order. Revenue leaders who see slippage late in the quarter often find the cause here. Knowing the paper process early turns a surprise into a date. In a PE-backed services company, large national or multi-site customers tend to have the longest paper processes, and they are often the deals the plan depends on.

A facility services company wins a verbal yes on a 12-site maintenance agreement on June 1. The client's procurement team requires a master service agreement, registration in its vendor portal and higher insurance limits. Those take 41 days, so the agreement starts in mid-July instead of the June date in the forecast.