Several steps are involved in effective use of the Electronic Signature service.

Create the Form

In this step, a form is created by converting existing forms to digital format. You may begin with an existing form in Word or PDF format, or by scanning a paper form and processing it in Adobe Acrobat. Forms may be designed once and stored in a template library, or the fields may be placed on an ad-hoc form when sending for signature.

Send for Signature

In this step, the sender selects a document from a template in Document Cloud, or a file on disk or in Box. As part of the sending process, the sender determines who needs to sign the document, in what order the signatures are needed, and the placement of any fill-in fields on the form if it wasn't created as a template.

The sender can also initiate sending a document for signature directly from Box by adding the Adobe Sign extension to their Box account and using the Send for Signature action on the file to be sent. If you keep your documents in Box, this can be a time-saver.

Sign the Document

The recipient(s) of the document receive an email telling them that a document is waiting for their signature, and providing a link to click.

Individuals who use Cornell enterprise accounts to sign documents will be prompted to log in to Adobe Sign using CUWebLogin with Two-Step Login, and will then be taken to the web form. Individuals who don't have a Cornell enterprise account will proceed directly to the web form.   The web form will lead them through the process of filling in the fields on the form, and then signing the document. There are options to upload a scanned handwritten signature, but this is just cosmetic. The digital signature that is recorded in the file is the guarantee that the document is signed, and that no one has altered the document illicitly.

The signer of the document does not need a license, and can be anyone inside or outside of Cornell.

Manage the Signed Documents

Document Cloud (Adobe's service) keeps track of all documents that you have sent out for signature. You can track the documents that have not yet been signed, send followup emails, cancel documents that have not yet been signed, and verify signatures in documents that have been signed.