Six Benefits of Using Preliminary Contract Charters and Joint Statements of Intent in Contract Management

Jim Bergman

In high-stakes procurement environments – whether public sector, higher education, healthcare, or utilities – the clarity of roles between customer and supplier contract managers is not a luxury; it’s a necessity. Yet too often, contract execution falters due to ambiguous expectations, siloed accountability, or reactive governance. One powerful remedy? Embedding preliminary contract charters and/or joint statements of intent into the contract management process.

These pre-contractual instruments serve as alignment tools, delineating the respective responsibilities of contract managers on both sides of the relationship. When thoughtfully deployed, they elevate operational discipline, mutual accountability, and strategic outcomes.

Here are six key benefits:

1. Role Clarity and Operational Discipline

By explicitly defining who does what—across performance monitoring, issue escalation, change control, and supplier relationship management – contract charters eliminate ambiguity. This clarity reduces friction, accelerates decision-making, and fosters a culture of proactive ownership.

2. Mutual Accountability and Governance Maturity

Joint statements of intent reinforce that contract success is a shared responsibility. They establish a governance rhythm – touchpoints, reporting cadences, and escalation protocols – that both parties commit to. This mutuality strengthens trust and enables more resilient partnerships.

3. Enhanced Performance Management

When responsibilities are pre-agreed, performance metrics can be tracked more meaningfully. Contract managers know which KPIs they own, which ones they influence, and how to collaborate across boundaries. This precision supports better analytics, faster interventions, and more credible reporting to stakeholders.

4. Risk Mitigation and Change Control

Preliminary charters often include risk registers and change protocols. By assigning ownership for monitoring and responding to risks, organizations reduce exposure and avoid costly delays. Contract managers become stewards of continuity, not just compliance.

5. Seamless Integration with CLM and ERP Systems

When charters are structured and standardized, they can be embedded into contract lifecycle management (CLM) platforms and ERP workflows. This integration ensures that role-based alerts, approvals, and documentation are aligned with system logic – reducing manual errors and improving auditability.

6. Strategic Alignment and Relationship Continuity

Beyond tactical execution, joint statements of intent can articulate shared goals, values, and long-term aspirations. This framing elevates the contract from a transactional document to a strategic instrument – one that supports continuity even amid personnel changes or organizational shifts.

Final Thought

Preliminary charters and joint statements of intent are not bureaucratic add-ons. They are strategic enablers – especially in complex, multi-stakeholder environments. By investing in upfront clarity, organizations unlock downstream agility, accountability, and impact.

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Published by Jim Bergman

Jim Bergman is a commercial contract professional with global experience spanning the USA, Latin America, UK, Europe, China, South Korea, Japan, India, SE Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Australia. He has worked on a wide range of direct and indirect spend categories in numerous sectors, developing a deep knowledge of services, goods and technology procurement and sales. Across this wide array of commodity and services experience, Jim has found the keys to success in maximizing value for money through customer-supplier relationships founded on innovative category management and strategic sourcing practices, key performance metrics and measures, as well as Total Cost of Ownership principles and collaborative contracting tenets. He has shared his knowledge through advisory engagements, as well as in developing and delivering training programs both on-line and in classrooms, in both open-enrollment and internal environments. Jim has assisted his clients through all phases and steps of contracting, negotiation, strategic sourcing and bidding processes, demonstrating value generation in excess of $250 million. His audiences and clients have included over 7,000 attorneys and commercial professionals students from over 1,000 corporations and public-sector entities.

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