# E-signatures for mid-sized businesses

> Unlimited signature requests, roles and permissions, separate organizations per location, a DPA and German data centers: SmartDocs scales from pilot to rollout with no IT project.

Source: https://smartdocs.de/en/mid-sized-businesses/

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SmartDocs also works for mid-sized businesses: unlimited signature requests from the Pro plan, roles and permissions for your team, separate organizations for each location or subsidiary and a complete chain of evidence, without an enterprise price tag and without an IT project. Adoption typically starts as a free pilot in one department.

## Built for established structures

- Separate organizations: for locations or subsidiaries, you create separate organizations, each with its own templates, requests and members. You switch between them in the top bar (from Pro).
- Roles and permissions (owner, admin, member) control who starts requests, edits templates and manages settings.
- Custom roles (Enterprise plan): you build roles from individual permissions, for example drafting templates but not publishing them, and assign them to members and API keys.
- Role-based approval workflows (Enterprise plan): a participant reviews and approves without signing themselves. The request waits for the approval, which appears in the completion certificate with its timestamp.
- Sender branding
- REST API for connecting your DMS, ERP or HR software, included from the Pro plan. Details under [API and developers](/en/developers/).

## Use cases by department

- HR and people: employment contracts and supplementary agreements via signing link, fixed-term contracts with QES (§ 14 (4) TzBfG, Part-Time and Fixed-Term Employment Act).
- Sales: get quotes and framework agreements approved during the meeting; SES is sufficient for contracts with no form requirement.
- Procurement: supplier contracts and NDAs with a sequential signing order (internal approval first, then the external signature).
- Management: resolutions, powers of attorney and sensitive contracts with AES or QES, even on the go.

The signature level is chosen per request; see [Signature levels](/en/signature-levels/).

## Compliance

Hosting exclusively in a German data center (Nuremberg), no transfer to third countries. A data processing agreement (DPA), TOM documentation (technical and organizational measures) and a deletion policy are provided. Every request produces a tamper-evident audit trail with a cryptographic hash chain and a completion certificate. QES meets the statutory written form under § 126a BGB (German Civil Code). More under [Security](/en/security/) and [Legal validity](/en/legal-validity/).

## Rollout without an IT project

1. Pilot: one department starts on the Free plan, with no payment details and no installation.
2. Build-out: recurring contracts become templates with versioning; roles and responsibilities are defined.
3. Rollout: further departments join as members with a suitable role, independent locations as a separate organization. External signers need neither an account nor an app.

If you cancel (possible monthly), signed documents, completion certificates and audit trails can be exported in full; completed signatures remain valid.

The pilot itself needs no appointment. If you want to discuss the rollout in advance, you can book a 30-minute call: https://calendly.com/smartdocs_de/30min