This blog, co-authored by Lisa Rowan, Vice President of Modern HR Strategies at IDC and Holly Muscolino, Group Vice President of Content Strategies and the Future of Work at IDC, discusses the critical role HR document management technology solutions play in enabling a better employee onboarding experience. 

Building a Better Employee Experience from Day One with HR Document Management

Date: June 21, 2022

Guest IDC Bloggers: Lisa Rowan, VP Modern HR Strategies and Holly Muscolino, GVP of Content Strategies and the Future of Work

Sponsored By: SAP

The onboarding experience for new employees is the chance for a company to make a good first impression and set the tone for what it’s going to be like to work there. A positive onboarding experience sets the employee up for success so they can hit the ground running on Day 1. Modern, cloud-enabled document management capabilities play an important role in helping to streamline critical onboarding processes and enabling a great employee experience. In fact, in a recent IDC survey, 31% of respondents told us that an enhanced employee experience was the biggest benefit achieved by shifting document management to the cloud.

The key to ensuring a smooth transition into the workplace is to offer new hires a modern, digital onboarding experience. Best practices in onboarding call for managing both social as well as tactical matters prior to the start date for a worker. A number of these matters entail required documentation. Document management solutions eliminate manual paper-based processes such as printing, signing, and faxing or scanning back required documentation resulting in an improved onboarding experience for new employees. And, with integrated e-signature, an employee can quickly sign required docs.

Document management technology also enables HR to be more efficient in managing the onboarding process. Document management solutions eliminate (or mitigate) the need for paper-based manual processing, including sending, reviewing, approving/signing, and storing documents. HR can benefit in the following ways.

1. Digitizing the process supports organizations that operate in a remote working model. The ability to access documents from anywhere with a centralized employee file makes for more efficient and accurate back-end processing.

2. A centralized digital folder of employee documents enables HR shared services to locate documents more easily and resolve employee inquiries quicker for better HR service delivery.

3. Tight access controls mean security is improved with a centralized employee folder.

4. Risk is reduced by capturing an audit trail and tracking that required documents are completed.

When documents are centrally created, stored, and managed as part of a digital employee record, compliance-related activities can be automated, decreasing corporate risk. This includes administering access, effective management of personal information, tracking and implementation of retention schedules, and even proactively flagging anomalous or risky activities. Take for example the I-9 process (eligibility for U.S. employment) which must be completed prior to an employee’s start. If not completed, the start date is delayed which impacts payroll and opens up the organization to compliance risk and fines. With document completeness checks, the employer can identify the forms required to be completed prior to an employee’s start. The system proactively notifies HR of any incomplete documents, helping the department to track and ensure completion of required documentation accurately and on time. This not only safeguards the company but also ensures a good employee onboarding experience as all the required back-end paperwork is in place to ensure a smooth first day for the employee.

Of course, the employee experience is paramount. Streamlining the onboarding process, reducing compliance risk, and accelerating response times can lead to a better new hire experience. In addition, cloud-based document management solutions are critical to ensuring a more efficient HR organization.

Message from the Sponsor

To learn more on how you can digitize and streamline your HR document management processes, please visit our website.

About the co-authors

Lisa Rowan is Research Vice President for IDC responsible for global research on human capital and talent management software and services. Ms. Rowan provides expert analysis focused on both the business services and software used to address HR and talent-related dimensions. Her research addresses developments in human capital and talent management applications, human resources consulting, and HR outsourcing services.

Holly Muscolino is the Group Vice President, Content Strategies and the Future of Work at  IDC, responsible for research related to innovation and transformation in content solutions, including intelligent document processing, esignature, imaging and printing and other content workflow services. Ms. Muscolino’s core coverage also includes work transformation, technology & digital skills research, and the role of technology in driving the Future of Work.