Donor Agreement Management¶

A Guide for Archivists¶

What is This For?¶

When someone donates materials to your archive, you need a formal agreement. This system helps you: - Keep track of all donors - Create and store donation agreements - Remember important follow-ups - Connect donations to the actual records

Note: For vendor contracts, service agreements, and institutional partnerships, see Contract Management.

The Dashboard¶

Find it at: Admin > Donor Management

+-------------------------------------------------------------+
|                   DONOR DASHBOARD                            |
+---------------+---------------+------------------------------+
| Donors        | Agreements    | Reminders Due                |
|     45        |      62       |      5                       |
+---------------+---------------+------------------------------+
|                                                              |
|  RECENT AGREEMENTS                                           |
|  --------------------------------------------------------    |
|  Smith Family Papers      Deed of Gift      Active           |
|  Johnson Photographs      Deposit           Pending          |
|  Municipal Records        Transfer          Draft            |
|                                                              |
|  REMINDERS DUE THIS WEEK                                     |
|  --------------------------------------------------------    |
|  Contact Mrs Smith about additional papers    15 Jan         |
|  Review Johnson agreement terms               20 Jan         |
|                                                              |
+--------------------------------------------------------------+

Types of Donor Agreements¶

Type	When to Use	Witness Needed?
Deed of Gift	Donor gives materials permanently, no strings attached	Yes
Deed of Donation	Formal donation under South African law	Yes
Deposit	Materials stay with you but donor keeps ownership	No
Loan	Temporary - for exhibition or research	No
Purchase	You are buying the materials	No
Bequest	Received through someone's will	Yes
Transfer	Materials transferred from another institution	No
Custody	Temporary custody pending decision	No
Access Agreement	Special access arrangements for sensitive materials	No
Reproduction Agreement	Rights for reproduction of donated materials	No

The Donation Process¶

+------------------+
| Donor contacts   |
| your archive     |
+--------+---------+
         |
         v
+------------------+
| Create donor     |
| record           |
| (name, contact)  |
+--------+---------+
         |
         v
+------------------+
| Discuss what     |
| they're donating |
| and any terms    |
+--------+---------+
         |
         v
+------------------+
| Create agreement |
| in the system    |
+--------+---------+
         |
         v
+------------------+
| Generate the     |
| agreement        |
| document         |
+--------+---------+
         |
         v
+------------------+
| Print two        |
| copies           |
+--------+---------+
         |
         v
+------------------+
| Get signatures   |
| (donor & witness |
| if required)     |
+--------+---------+
         |
         v
+------------------+
| Scan and upload  |
| signed copy      |
+--------+---------+
         |
         v
+------------------+
| Process the      |
| materials        |
+--------+---------+
         |
         v
+------------------+
| Link agreement   |
| to the records   |
| you created      |
+--------+---------+
         |
         v
+------------------+
| Set any          |
| reminders        |
+------------------+

Adding a Logo to Agreements¶

You can add your organization's logo to any agreement for professional presentation.

How to Add a Logo¶

Go to the agreement (Add or Edit)
In the Agreement Details section, find Agreement Logo
Click Choose File and select your logo
Supported formats: JPG, PNG, GIF, WebP
Save the agreement

Logo Display¶

The logo appears at the top of the agreement when viewing
Useful for printed/PDF versions
Recommended size: Max height 120px

Removing a Logo¶

Edit the agreement
Check the Remove logo checkbox
Save the agreement

Using Templates¶

Save time by creating template agreements:

Creating a Template¶

Create an agreement with all standard terms filled in
Check the Save as Template checkbox
Save

Using a Template¶

When creating a new agreement, find a suitable template
Clone the template
Modify details for the specific situation
Uncheck Save as Template for the new agreement

Creating a New Donor¶

Go to Admin > Donor Management
Click New Donor
Fill in their details:

Field	What to Enter
Name	Full name
Organisation	Company or institution (if any)
Address	Postal address
Phone	Contact number
Email	Email address
Notes	How you know them, relationship history

Click Save

Creating an Agreement¶

Go to the donor's record
Click New Agreement
Fill in the form:

Field	Example
Title	Smith Family Papers 2026
Type	Deed of Gift
Date	15 January 2026
Description	Personal papers, photographs, and correspondence of John Smith (1920-2005)
Special Terms	No access to medical records for 25 years
Status	Draft

Click Save

Generate the Document¶

From the agreement, click Generate Document
Choose PDF or Word format
Review the document
Print two copies

Upload Signed Copy¶

After getting signatures, scan the document
Go back to the agreement record
Click Upload Document
Select your scanned PDF

Linking to Records¶

After you've processed the donated materials:

+------------------+     +------------------+
|    AGREEMENT     |     |    ARCHIVAL      |
|                  |     |    RECORDS       |
|  Smith Family    |---->|                  |
|  Papers 2026     |     |  - Letters       |
|                  |     |  - Photos        |
|                  |     |  - Diaries       |
+------------------+     +------------------+

Go to the agreement
Click Link Records
Search for the archival descriptions
Select the ones that came from this donation
Click Link

Now you can always see which records came from which donation.

Setting Reminders¶

Never forget an important follow-up:

Go to any agreement
Click Add Reminder
Enter:
What needs to be done
Due date
Who should be reminded (yourself or colleague)

Reminders appear on the dashboard and can send email notifications.

Common Reminders¶

Reminder	When
Contact donor about additional materials	6 months after donation
Review access restrictions	Before expiry date
Send thank you letter	1 week after receipt
Follow up on promised items	3 months after initial contact

Access Restrictions¶

Some donations come with conditions. Record these carefully:

Types of Restrictions¶

Restriction	What It Means
Embargo	No one can see it until a certain date
Permission Required	Must ask donor before allowing access
Reading Room Only	Can view but not copy
Anonymised	Names must be hidden

How to Add Restrictions¶

Go to the agreement
Click Add Restriction
Select the type
Enter details (dates, conditions)
Click Save

These restrictions automatically apply to all linked records.

Quick Reference¶

Agreement Statuses¶

Status	Meaning
Draft	Still being prepared
Pending	Waiting for signatures
Active	Signed and in effect
Closed	Completed or superseded

Best Practices¶

Always get it in writing - Even for small donations - Protects both you and the donor

Upload signed copies immediately - Don't let paper pile up - Digital copies are searchable

Link to records as you process - Easier to do as you go - Harder to remember later

Set reminders proactively - Thank you letters - Follow-up conversations - Restriction expiry dates

Donor vs Contract Management¶

Use Donor Agreements for:	Use Contract Management for:
Donations from individuals	Vendor service agreements
Gifts and bequests	Collaboration partnerships
Deposits and loans TO you	SLAs with service providers
Access restrictions on donated materials	NDAs and data processing agreements
Reproduction rights from donors	Maintenance and lease contracts

For technical support, contact your system administrator.