Managing electronic employee documentation – benefits and challenges for HR departments

The use of electronic employee documentation is revolutionizing human resources management, enabling HR departments to focus on talent acquisition and development rather than the physical circulation of paper documents. Transitioning to electronic employee documentation offers numerous benefits, including enhanced process efficiency, the ability to sign documents remotely with employees, improved data security, and savings in time and resources. However, it also presents new challenges for HR teams.

Managing employee documentation in HR

HR departments play a critical role in every organization, managing not only recruitment processes but also a variety of tasks related to employment and employee documentation administration. This includes recruitment, onboarding new employees, preparing and signing employment contracts, contract amendments, training and development, monitoring working hours, processing leave requests, and payroll management. Traditional management of paper documents is time-consuming and prone to errors, prompting many companies to digitize their HR processes.

Benefits of transitioning to electronic employee documentation

Switching to electronic employee documentation paves the way for automating various tasks and processes. It maximizes HR efficiency by enabling quick search and online sharing of documents. Moreover, electronic documentation improves data security by offering better protection against unauthorized access or data loss. It also eliminates risks associated with physical document storage, such as damage or loss, while supporting sustainable practices by reducing paper consumption.

The adoption of digital employee documentation significantly streamlines internal processes such as onboarding or offboarding employees, making them more seamless and less burdensome for HR teams.

Electronic documentation requires the use of electronic signatures, which vary depending on the type of document: advanced, advanced with KYC identification, or qualified signatures. Modern solutions, like the SIGNIUS Professional document signing platform, enable convenient use of all these types of signatures. They allow for fast and secure signing of agreements and documents, such as employment contracts with employees online, significantly speeding up recruitment. These solutions make it possible to send documents remotely to both new and current employees and enable multi-party document signing (e.g., by all board members) in a specific or flexible order.

Challenges of managing electronic employee documentation

Despite the mentioned benefits, managing electronic employee documentation is not without its challenges. It requires effective change management, finding the right service provider, securely implementing new solutions, integrating them with internal company systems, and training employees on the new processes.

Companies transitioning to electronic document workflows often rely on electronic signatures for these processes.

Using an online document signing platform like SIGNIUS Professional enables HR departments to easily and securely sign employee-related documents online, from employment contracts to leave requests and performance evaluations. Additionally, by utilizing qualified signatures, companies ensure that electronically signed documents are legally equivalent to their paper-based counterparts.

All documents related to employment and employee administration can be signed electronically. However, some documents require a qualified electronic signature. Understanding which documents require which type of signature is therefore crucial.

Conclusion

Transitioning to electronic employee documentation with the use of electronic signatures not only simplifies HR processes but also translates into tangible time and resource savings, allowing companies to focus on what matters most – the growth and development of their employees.

SIGNIUS is a trusted partner supporting companies in their digital transformation, offering tools such as a modern online document signing platform. This platform allows multiple documents to be sent and signed collectively by multiple individuals, significantly accelerating HR operations. It also enables the instant issuance of qualified signatures remotely (based on online identity verification).

Our offering also includes other solutions for digitizing documentation: an electronic signature application, electronic seals, and time stamps. Additionally, we provide online identity verification tools, which are invaluable for recruitment processes and remote hiring. SIGNIUS tools deliver benefits to companies in the form of increased efficiency, enhanced data security, and full regulatory compliance.