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Discovery Questionnaire Template

Use this template in a neutral discovery tone. Avoid leading language and overselling.

Volumes and Operations (5 Questions)​

  1. How many new loans are onboarded per month, and how does that vary by instrument type? Internal note: Why we ask: sizes automation and ROI opportunity. Good signal: stable high volume with clear segmentation. Weak signal: very low volume and no growth expectation.
  2. Walk me through the onboarding workflow from document receipt to system entry. Internal note: Why we ask: reveals bottlenecks and handoff points. Good signal: clearly defined steps and owners. Weak signal: unclear ownership and ad-hoc process.
  3. How many FTEs are involved in document extraction and validation today? Internal note: Why we ask: supports effort and business-case baseline. Good signal: identifiable team and workload concentration. Weak signal: no ownership or no measurable effort.
  4. What is the average time from agreement receipt to LoanIQ (or equivalent) entry? Internal note: Why we ask: baseline cycle-time metric. Good signal: measurable baseline available. Weak signal: no tracked baseline.
  5. What manual data-entry error patterns are most common? Internal note: Why we ask: defines quality and control pain. Good signal: known categories and impacts. Weak signal: no visibility into errors.

Document Landscape (5 Questions)​

  1. Which document types are in scope? (Credit agreements, amendments, side letters, compliance certificates) Internal note: Why we ask: establishes scope realism. Good signal: clear prioritization by type. Weak signal: all types equally urgent with no prioritization.
  2. What formats do you receive most often? (Native PDF, Word, scan, fax) Internal note: Why we ask: predicts extraction reliability and review load. Good signal: mostly native PDFs. Weak signal: heavy fax/low-quality scans with no improvement plan.
  3. How standardized are your agreements (APLMA/LMA/LSTA versus bespoke)? Internal note: Why we ask: standardization strongly influences baseline accuracy. Good signal: mostly standard templates. Weak signal: highly bespoke agreements with no pattern.
  4. What is the typical page range for agreements? Internal note: Why we ask: affects processing and reviewer ergonomics. Good signal: known distribution. Weak signal: unknown document profile.
  5. How frequently do amendments change key thresholds or pricing terms? Internal note: Why we ask: indicates versioning and control complexity. Good signal: change events tracked. Weak signal: amendment logic unmanaged.

Systems and Integration (5 Questions)​

  1. Which loan management system is authoritative today? Internal note: Why we ask: integration planning starts from system of record. Good signal: clear target and owner. Weak signal: multiple systems with unclear precedence.
  2. Is there an existing document management or workflow platform in the process? Internal note: Why we ask: identifies integration points and process dependencies. Good signal: documented interfaces. Weak signal: hidden manual workarounds.
  3. What data residency and sovereignty requirements apply? Internal note: Why we ask: determines deployment constraints. Good signal: explicit policy and jurisdiction. Weak signal: unresolved policy ownership.
  4. Which SSO provider and identity model are required? Internal note: Why we ask: critical for enterprise access readiness. Good signal: standard SAML/OIDC path with IAM owner. Weak signal: no agreed identity approach.
  5. What change management and release process must new tooling follow? Internal note: Why we ask: sets realistic timeline expectations. Good signal: defined CAB/security process. Weak signal: no known pathway for onboarding vendors.

Pain Points and Priorities (4 Questions)​

  1. Where does the most time get lost in today’s workflow? Internal note: Why we ask: identifies highest-value pilot target. Good signal: specific delay points with examples. Weak signal: generic statements with no evidence.
  2. What is the operational impact of extraction or data-entry errors? Internal note: Why we ask: quantifies quality and risk cost. Good signal: clear downstream consequences. Weak signal: impact not measured.
  3. What has been tried previously to improve this process? Internal note: Why we ask: surfaces prior blockers and trust dynamics. Good signal: lessons learned articulated. Weak signal: unresolved skepticism from failed attempts.
  4. If this initiative succeeds, what should be measurably better in 6 months? Internal note: Why we ask: anchors success criteria. Good signal: numeric outcomes and owner. Weak signal: non-measurable goals.

Decision Dynamics (4 Questions)​

  1. Who is the executive sponsor, and who signs off technically? Internal note: Why we ask: maps buying and approval path. Good signal: clear sponsor and approver. Weak signal: no decision clarity.
  2. What procurement path applies (direct, RFP, preferred vendor route)? Internal note: Why we ask: shapes timeline and workback plan. Good signal: known process steps. Weak signal: unknown procurement path.
  3. Is budget allocated for pilot or still exploratory? Internal note: Why we ask: distinguishes near-term action from nurture. Good signal: pilot budget owner identified. Weak signal: no budget horizon.
  4. What timeline pressure exists (regulatory, migration, audit, cost targets)? Internal note: Why we ask: urgency predicts execution momentum. Good signal: clear deadline driver. Weak signal: no external driver.