The Document Signing stage is a stage type you can add to your hiring workflow that enables applicants to sign documents such as agreements, contracts, W-9 tax forms, etc. You can insert Merge Keys to pre-fill the form with the applicant's unique data, which can optimize and simplify the applicant's document signing experience.

To learn about our Fountain's document signing providers, review this Help Center article.

Security Information:

Our document signing solution providers are secure and compliant with all major eSignature laws, including ESIGN, UETA, and European Union eIDAS (EU No.910/2014). Additionally, all access is over HTTPS and all documents are encrypted at rest.

Create Document Signing Templates

Before you can add a Document Signing stage in the workflow, you will need to set up the document as a template by uploading the document file(s) and adding form fields and signature areas.

Follow the steps below to create a document signing template:

Click on your initials icon in the top right corner of any Fountain page.
Click Company Settings in the dropdown.
Click on Document Signing in the menu on the left under Add-ons.
Click on the Templates tab.
Click Create Template.
Upload the document you need to add electronic signatures to into the file box by dragging and dropping or by clicking on the box to upload.
Note: You can upload multiple files of different file types (PDF, JPEG, PNG, Docx) and Fountain will combine them all into one long document for the applicant to complete. Images of different dimensions and sizes may be compressed or stretched to fit standard letter size, so please preview and try to use the 8.5 x 11 dimensions. File size for this upload must be smaller than 15 MB.
By default, the applicant is always required to sign the document. If additional internal signers are needed, click + Add Role and name the role such as "Manager". You will be able to assign an internal user to this role later in the stage setup.
If there is information you would like to automatically populate into fields in the template via Merge Keys, select the desired applicant data from the Merge Keys dropdown. You can add any Custom Merge Keys that were created as part of a Data Collection stage. You can also select any Standard Merge Keys such as Applicant Name, Address, or Phone Number. You must add all relevant Merge Keys during this step. You will not be able to add additional Merge Keys once you begin to create the template. NOTE: Merge Keys are available as a default option with HelloSign. The Merge Keys feature is available in DocuSign only with their Business Pro plan.
Type a Title for the Template, and type a message or brief description. This is what the applicant will see when they land on the stage.
Click Prepare Template.
In the new window, click on the form field type you want to add on the top, and then click the document in the location you want the field to be placed. You can also drag and drop the fields into your document. To resize the field box, drag on the lower right corner of the newly added field.
Click Continue to save the template.

The following example displays how to add Merge Keys to your template in HelloSign.

The following example displays how to add Merge Keys to your template in DocuSign.

Form Field Settings in HelloSign

When using HelloSign, you can choose who completes each form field. After you have added a field to your document, click on the drop-down under Signers and select one of the following:

HelloSign Signer Options

Click the tabs below to explore what each signer option means:

Me (Now)

This option allows you to add permanent text, check a box, or add a date to your template that other signers can't adjust. This is great for pre-checking required boxes that are applicable to everyone or editing the language in a contract.

Fountain (When Sending)

This allows you to use the previously selected Merge Keys to pre-fill fields on the document. These will auto-populate with the information that a specific applicant provided during the application such as their name, email, or phone number. You may also add Opening information such as the pay rate or location. Any fields you have selected in step 8, will be an option for you to select from the pink text field on the right.

Applicant

The applicant is required to complete these fields. You can make the fields a mandatory requirement by toggling on Required field on the right.

Additional Roles

Any additional signers that you added after initially uploading the document will also be available to add to the document. These fields will act in the same way as the applicant fields. Assigning the user for these fields will come later when you connect the template to the Document Signing stage.

Adding Document Signing Templates to the Stage

Once the document signing template is created, you can add the Document Signing stage to the workflow via the Workflow Editor and connect the template to that stage.

Click Add Stage then click Create New Stage. Select the Document Signing Stage option in the dropdown.
Within the Default Documents section, click Add Document.
In the opened window, select the document you would like to use and click Add Document.
Click Save Changes in the top right corner.

Adding an Internal (Fountain User) Signer

To add an internal signer, first, ensure you add the additional signer when setting up the template. This would be the additional role such as "Manager".

Once the template is uploaded in the Document Signing stage, you will receive a pop-up asking you to assign the Additional Signer role to a user on the account. Select the user in the dropdown and click Update Document. You can only assign one user to a document.

The internal signer will be prompted to sign via Status Label once the applicant signs their portion of the document.

Applicant Experience

When applicants land in the Document Signing stage, they will be prompted to sign the templates you initially selected when adding the document signing stage to the workflow.

Once the applicant selects Review & Sign, a window containing the document will appear and the applicant will be prompted to complete the required fields and/or sign the form.

If multiple documents have the same signers (e.g. just the applicant, or just the applicant and the same recruiter user), they will be grouped under one “envelope” for faster signatures.

The applicant will see one Review and Sign button for groups of documents with the same signers. However, they may see multiple buttons and groups of documents if there are separate recruiter countersignatures for separate documents.

Recruiters will see one Status Label for the same group of documents. Learn more in the Viewing Applicant Signed Documents Help Center article.

Additional Resources

Click the image below to try out creating a document signing template and attaching it to the Document Signing stage.

Click the tile below to launch the Document Signing Stage Setup microcourse in a new browser tab.