27th January, 2020
Let’s face it, HR management means a lot of forms and paperwork. Thankfully most of us are moving to some form of document management technology that both supports a paperless system and is cloud based.
So how about your business document management? Let’s focus specifically on the often-large proportion of documentation that relates to the Human Resources (HR) component of your business.
These could be employment contracts, position descriptions, investigations, employee letters, performance issues and disciplinary procedures to name a few.
These are important for your recordkeeping and management of staff, and you need to keep most of these documents for seven years in Australia or six years in New Zealand.
There are many benefits of moving to a paperless system such as; one central location for HR documents, monetary savings on paper and printing costs, manual labour efficiency and even increasing your corporate social responsibility.
READ: Automated HR: How to choose the right software for your business
The great thing about document management technology is that it can also integrate with other great, compatible technology, including payroll solutions.
When you link systems, you can have them talk to each other and work together to provide a total business solution.
The right system is the one that suits your business needs.
Most systems will be highly customisable, but it’s important to choose the system that suits your needs and desired outcomes.
HR systems can also include leave workflows, induction procedures, policies and templates and other elements specific to your HR process.
So it’s essential that you plan out your HR management requirements, and then do your research.
And finally, while there are immediate benefits, there can be procedural challenges down the track if the management of the system has not been thought out or is poorly managed.
Once you choose a system for your business, here are some steps that you can take to ensure your road to a paperless workplace is a success.
When it comes to HR documentation, security levels and permissions need to be set for each type of document. Can everyone see this document? is the document confidential?
Setting the permissions on types of documentation can help you set up your folder structure also.
Be consistent with your naming guidelines. This will allow you and colleagues to identify documents quicker.
Being consistent can also assist with your folder structure and retention procedures.
If you were to be audited tomorrow, do you have all the HR management documents that you need and how much of what you have do you even need to keep?
Creating a retention procedure can alleviate document clutter allowing you to manage your documents.
Rethinking your folder structure from where documents are saved to what is being saved can revolutionise your folder structure making it much easier for you and your colleagues to find and identify gaps in HR documentation.
If you adhere to the above tips to make your document management a no fuss, beneficial process, you will find that you will save time, increase your productivity and take the stress out of searching thru piles and piles of paper to find your HR documentation.