Document generation is software that builds business documents, such as a quote, a proposal or a contract, automatically from the data in a deal record, and then sends the document for signature. It is also called document automation. In sales, it usually runs inside the CRM, so the document is built from the same data that the salesperson has already entered.
Without it, a salesperson copies the customer's name, address, products, prices and terms from the CRM into a Word file by hand. Mistakes are easy to make: an old price, last year's address, or a clause meant for another state. Every document also looks slightly different.
Document generation starts from a template. The template is the fixed text of the document, with fields in place of the details. A field might be the customer's legal name, its GST number or the table of products. The template also holds rules. A rule chooses which clauses to include, based on the deal's data. For example, a rule may add a price-increase clause when the contract runs for more than one year. When the salesperson clicks "Generate", the software fills in the fields from the deal record, applies the rules and produces a PDF or Word file. It then sends the file for electronic signature, and stores the signed copy against the deal.
Consider a Mysuru company that maintains CCTV cameras for housing societies. A salesperson closes a deal with a society of 220 flats: a two-year contract for 64 cameras, at ₹3.6 lakh a year. In the CRM, she clicks "Generate contract". The software fills in the society's registered name and address, the 64 cameras and their locations, and the yearly fee. Because the contract runs for two years, one rule adds a clause that raises the fee by 5% in the second year, to ₹3.78 lakh. Because the society is in Karnataka, another rule names the courts in Mysuru for any dispute. The nine-page contract is ready in under a minute. It goes to the society's secretary and treasurer for electronic signature, and both sign the same evening. The signed copy is saved against the deal.
Document generation is a part of CPQ software, which produces the quote, and it is also sold on its own. After signature, a longer contract is managed through its whole life, including renewals and changes, in contract lifecycle management (CLM). For simpler agreements that people need, such as a rent agreement, online legal services fill in templates in a similar way.