PandaDoc Recipient & Signature Management

Overview

Recipients in PandaDoc are the people who receive, view, and sign documents. In MSP engagements, documents typically involve multiple parties -- the client decision-maker who signs the agreement, sometimes a technical contact who reviews, and the MSP representative who countersigns. PandaDoc supports complex signing workflows with ordered signing, role-based assignments, and real-time completion tracking. Understanding recipient management is essential for smooth contract execution.

MCP Tools

Available Tools

Add Recipients During Document Creation

When calling pandadoc-create-document, include the recipients array:

{
  "recipients": [
    {
      "email": "[email protected]",
      "first_name": "John",
      "last_name": "Smith",
      "role": "Client",
      "signing_order": 1
    },
    {
      "email": "[email protected]",
      "first_name": "Sarah",
      "last_name": "Johnson",
      "role": "MSP",
      "signing_order": 2
    }
  ]
}

Add a Recipient to an Existing Document

Call pandadoc-add-recipient with:

• Document: Set document_id to the document ID (required)
• Email: Set email to the recipient's email address
• Name: Set first_name and last_name
• Role: Set role to match a role defined in the template
• Order: Set signing_order to control when they sign

Example: Add a co-signer:

• pandadoc-add-recipient with document_id=msFYActMfJHqNTKH9tcPFa, email="[email protected]", first_name="Lisa", last_name="Chen", role="Approver", signing_order=2

Check Recipient Completion

Call pandadoc-get-document with the document id to see recipient status:

• Review the recipients array
• Check has_completed for each recipient
• true means the recipient has completed their signing action
• false means they have not yet signed

Key Concepts

Recipient Roles

Roles define what actions a recipient takes on the document:

Signing Order

Signing order controls the sequence in which recipients receive and sign the document:

When signing order is set:

• Recipient #1 receives the document first
• Recipient #2 is notified only after #1 has completed
• This ensures proper document flow and prevents premature signing

When signing order is not set (or all set to the same value):

• All recipients receive the document simultaneously
• Any recipient can sign in any order

Multi-Party MSP Agreements

Common multi-party signing scenarios for MSPs:

Completion Tracking

Track the progress of document signing across all recipients:

Field Reference

Recipient Fields

Common Workflows

Set Up a Standard MSP Contract Signing

1. Create document with pandadoc-create-document including two recipients:

• Client signer with signing_order=1
• MSP signer with signing_order=2

1. Send the document with pandadoc-send-document
2. Client receives the document and signs
3. MSP representative is automatically notified to countersign
4. Document status changes to document.completed

Add a Recipient After Document Creation

1. Get the document with pandadoc-get-document to review current recipients
2. Call pandadoc-add-recipient with the new recipient's details
3. Verify the recipient was added by calling pandadoc-get-document again

Check Who Has Signed

1. Call pandadoc-get-document with the document id
2. Review the recipients array
3. For each recipient, check has_completed:

• true = signed
• false = waiting for signature

1. Report the signing progress

Follow Up on Unsigned Documents

1. Call pandadoc-list-documents with status=document.sent to find sent documents
2. For each document, call pandadoc-get-document to check recipient completion
3. Identify recipients where has_completed=false
4. Flag documents that have been waiting more than 3-5 business days

Handle a Declined Document

1. When a document status is document.declined:

• Contact the recipient to understand their concerns
• Address the issues (modify terms, pricing, scope)
• Create a new document from the same template with updated content
• Send the new document to the same recipients

Response Examples

Document with Recipients:

{
  "id": "msFYActMfJHqNTKH9tcPFa",
  "name": "Acme Corp - Managed Services Agreement",
  "status": "document.sent",
  "recipients": [
    {
      "email": "[email protected]",
      "first_name": "John",
      "last_name": "Smith",
      "role": "Client",
      "signing_order": 1,
      "has_completed": true
    },
    {
      "email": "[email protected]",
      "first_name": "Sarah",
      "last_name": "Johnson",
      "role": "MSP",
      "signing_order": 2,
      "has_completed": false
    }
  ]
}

Recipient Added:

{
  "email": "[email protected]",
  "first_name": "Lisa",
  "last_name": "Chen",
  "role": "Approver",
  "signing_order": 2,
  "has_completed": false
}

Error Handling

Common Errors

Recipient Addition Restrictions

Best Practices

1. Add all recipients during creation - Include recipients in pandadoc-create-document rather than adding after
2. Use signing order - Always set signing order for multi-party agreements
3. Match template roles - Ensure recipient roles match the roles defined in the template
4. Verify emails - Double-check recipient email addresses before sending
5. Track completion actively - Check recipient completion status regularly for sent documents
6. Follow up promptly - Contact recipients who haven't signed within 3-5 business days
7. Use viewer role for CC - Add stakeholders as viewers rather than signers when they don't need to sign
8. Plan signing flow - For complex agreements, map out the signing order before creating the document
9. Handle declines gracefully - When documents are declined, address concerns and create new documents
10. Document recipient changes - Note any changes to recipients in your PSA or CRM

Related Skills

• PandaDoc API Patterns - MCP tools reference and connection info
• PandaDoc Documents - Document creation and management
• PandaDoc Templates - Template roles and fields
• PandaDoc Proposals - MSP proposal workflows with recipients