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Employee documents are essential for any organisation, as they contain vital information about their qualifications, performance, compensation, benefits, and legal status. However, how can you ensure an accurate record of all your employee documents? How can you access them quickly and securely? How can you comply with the relevant laws and regulations regarding employee data?
In this blog post, we will introduce you to an innovative solution that can help you simplify and streamline your employee document management process. It is a document management system that can connect to your HRIS system and automatically collect and organise all your employee documents in one place. You will also learn how this system can help you save time and hassle, improve data quality and security, and enhance compliance. Read on to find out more!
The Origin and Sources of Employee Documents in an Organization
Employee documents are generated from various sources and stored in multiple organisational locations. Some of the familiar sources and places are:
- Official document management system: This centralised system stores official documents related to the organisation’s operations, policies and procedures. It may include employee documents such as contracts, policies, forms and reports.
- HRIS system: This is a system that manages the human resources functions of the organisation, such as recruitment, payroll, benefits and performance management. It may generate employee documents such as offer letters, payslips, training certificates and employment letters.
- Shared drives: These are networked storage devices that allow multiple users to access and share files. They may contain employee documents such as resumes, portfolios, work samples and feedback.
- Employees’ laptops: These are personal devices used to perform their work tasks. They may store employee documents such as emails, notes, drafts and attachments.
As you can see, employee documents can be scattered across different systems and devices in an organisation. This can create several problems for both the employees and the employers. For example:
- It can be challenging to find and access the relevant documents when needed.
- It can take a lot of work to keep track of the versions and updates of the documents.
- It can increase the risk of data loss or theft due to technical issues or unauthorised access.
- It can lead to inconsistencies and errors in the data due to duplication or omission of information.
- It can result in non-compliance with the legal and regulatory requirements regarding employee data.
- It can be challenging for managers to search documents related to their team members in one place. Some documents are stored in HRIS, and some are in your organisation’s document drive (Sharepoint, OneDrive, GDrive or central document management system).
- It can be difficult for the HR department to handle routine matters when there is an audit on employee files, as they are overworked and unable to handle the workload.
You need a better way to manage employee documents to avoid these problems. That’s where a document management system with HRIS integration comes in handy.
How Employee Documents are Generated in HRIS
HRIS stands for Human Resource Information System. It is a software system that automates recruitment, payroll, benefits, and performance management. It can generate documents during different stages of the employee lifecycle. Examples are:
- Recruitment: HRIS can create offer letters, employment contracts, background check reports and onboarding forms for new hires.
- Payroll: HRIS can generate payslips, tax forms, bonus letters and salary revision letters for employees.
- Benefits: HRIS can produce benefit enrollment forms, insurance cards, claim receipts and employee reimbursement letters.
- Performance management: HRIS can create performance appraisal forms, feedback reports, training certificates and employee promotion letters.
These documents are usually stored in the HRIS system. However, not all employee documents are generated in HRIS. Some documents require manual input or approval from other parties outside the HRIS system.
How Employee Documents are Generated Outside HRIS
HRIS is a robust system that can automate and integrate many human resource functions and generate various employee documents. However, there are more comprehensive solutions that can handle all employee documents. In addition, some documents require manual input or approval from other parties outside the HRIS system. Some examples are:
- Recruitment: HRIS can create offer letters, employment contracts, background check reports and onboarding forms for new hires.
- Payroll: HRIS can generate payslips, tax forms, bonus letters and salary revision letters for employees.
- Benefits: HRIS can produce benefit enrollment forms, insurance cards, claim receipts and employee reimbursement letters.
- Performance management: HRIS can create performance appraisal forms, feedback reports, training certificates and employee promotion letters.
These documents are usually stored in shared drives, employees’ laptops or physical files. However, this poses several challenges for both the employees and the employers. For example, creating and updating documents manually can be time-consuming and tedious. In addition, accessing and sharing these documents with relevant parties can be difficult when needed. This can increase the risk of data loss or theft due to technical issues or unauthorised access. It can also lead to inconsistencies and errors in the data due to duplication or omission of information. Furthermore, it can result in non-compliance with the legal and regulatory requirements regarding employee data.
You need a document management system to connect to your HRIS system and add documents from other sources to overcome these challenges.
How a Document Management System with HRIS Integration Works
A document management system (DMS) is a software system that helps you store, organise, manage and share documents electronically. For example, a DMS with HRIS integration is a DMS that can connect to your HRIS system and automatically collect and organise all your employee documents in one place. It can also allow you to add records from other sources, such as legal documents, external certificates or personal documents.
A DMS with HRIS integration uses APIs (application programming interfaces) to communicate with your HRIS system and other systems or devices that store employee documents. APIs are rules and protocols that enable different software systems to exchange data and information. By using APIs, a DMS with HRIS integration can:
- Replicate Role-Based Permissions from HRIS to document management can ensure data integrity and access control without the need to design a new access control and permissions, which can lead to discrepancies between HRIS permissions and document management permissions.
- Retrieve employee data from your HRIS system, such as name, ID, department, position, salary and benefits.
- Retrieve employee documents from your HRIS system, such as offer letters, payslips, training certificates and promotion letters.
- Add employee documents from other sources, such as legal documents, external certificates or personal documents, by manually scanning them or uploading them.
- Organise employee documents into folders or categories based on predefined criteria such as document type, employee name or date.
- Index employee documents using keywords or metadata to make them searchable and retrievable.
- Secure employee documents using encryption, password protection or access control to prevent unauthorised access or modification.
- Share employee documents with relevant parties such as managers, colleagues or auditors via email, cloud storage or online portals.
By using a DMS with HRIS integration, you can simplify and streamline your employee document management process.
The Benefits of Using a Document Management System with HRIS Integration
Using a DMS with HRIS integration can benefit employees and employers. Some of the benefits are:
- Improved efficiency and productivity: Employees can save time and effort by accessing and updating their documents in one place instead of searching through multiple systems or devices. Employers can reduce manual work and errors by automating and standardising their document management process.
- Enhanced communication and collaboration: Employees can easily share and exchange their documents with their managers, colleagues or other parties via email, cloud storage or online portals. Employers can improve transparency and accountability by tracking and monitoring their document activities and workflows.
- Increased security and compliance: Employees can protect their documents from data loss or theft using encryption, password protection or access control. In addition, employers can ensure compliance with the legal and regulatory requirements regarding employee data by using audit trails, retention policies or e-signatures.
- HR Admins needing full access: HR Admins who are required to run HR compliance audits can benefit from having access to all employee documents in one place. This can help them to easily access and review employee files, ensuring that they are up-to-date and compliant with legal and regulatory requirements. In addition, HR Admins can easily search and retrieve employee files using a document management system, reducing the time and effort required to manage employee data.
A DMS with HRIS integration can help you manage your employee documents more effectively and efficiently. It can also help you improve your employee satisfaction, engagement and retention. If you are looking for a DMS with HRIS integration that suits your needs and budget, you can check out some of the best available options, such as ePFile, OpenText and PeopleDoc.
Over and above, ePFile is a document management system that connects to SAP SuccessFactors and collects all documents and permissions via API, ensuring seamless integration.
Conclusion
According to a Deloitte report, streamlining processes and using technology to eliminate paper can mean cutting operating expenses by 25 per cent. And some organisations have reduced their records management costs by 60–70 per cent. Don’t miss this opportunity to save money and time while enhancing your data quality and protection.
