Electronic Signatures: Simplifying Operations for HR Staffing Firms

In today's employee-oriented work culture, attracting and retaining top talent is one of the leading factors that influence the success of any organization. And as a result, human resource departments are given more importance than ever, ensuring they're aptly resourced. However, unfortunately, many businesses struggle to find decent staff for the HR department that can help them thrive in the modern business ecosystem. Moreover, most can neither afford a well-staffed HR department. Luckily, there are startups whose mission is to help tackle the toughest corporate challenges – from hiring top talent to managing their sensitive data.

HR staffing firms strive to meet clients’ requirements and onboard the best talent. They often use social platforms like LinkedIn, online advertising, job portals, online conferences, or webinars to connect and land more candidates. In a nutshell, HR staffing firms help organizations meet their ideal workforce requirements. However, the fact remains that most HR processes are still manual and document-driven. As a result, HR professionals waste countless hours on documentation. Automating these paper-based processes, optimizing workflows, streamlining operations, and cutting out waste can help HR professionals spend more time on what they are passionate about – people.

Getting the right tools can help HR staffing agencies develop the agility to respond to market changes while providing best-in-class services. An electronic signature is one such technology that has become a lifesaver for many businesses, including HR staffing firms. As we know, staffing agencies rely on paper-based processes - eSignatures work towards eliminating these outdated, manual documentation processes. Here's how HR staffing firms can leverage e-signatures.

How HR staffing firms leverage electronic signatures

• Recruit top talent

  The global skills shortage is not a secret anymore. The vast majority of companies worldwide, 87%, know they already have a skills gap or are most likely to have one within a few years. So how do you perceive the term "skills gap?" It generally refers to the bridge between the skills companies require and the skills candidates possess. In such a tight labor market, recruiting top talent is a priority no.1 for HR staffing firms. They look into every possible tool that can help them attract, hire, and retain the best candidates.

  With the emergence of remote and hybrid work cultures, meeting the best candidates across diverse geographies has become more critical. Luckily, eSignatures can make things happen, regardless of location or time. For instance, you can automate below HR forms with the help of electronic signatures:

  • Non-disclosure agreements (NDAs)
  • Contractor agreements
  • Master services agreements (MSA)
  • Service level agreements (SLAs
  • Background check consents
  • Employment verifications
  • Job applications
  • Document verification forms
  • Offer letters

• Onboarding new employees

  Hiring and onboarding top talent help you win half the battle. After getting approval from the client and candidate, HR staffing firms seek to onboard the new hire. However, any delay caused in this process can lead to missed opportunities, lost income for candidates, or late project kick-offs for clients. In addition, delayed processes lose candidates' interest, and they might prefer to look for other opportunities. Nevertheless, eSignatures have you covered. E-Signature solutions like DrySign can help you onboard a new employee in minimal time by accelerating the processes associated with:

  • Employment contracts or agreements
  • Tax withholding forms
  • Employee agreements
  • Non-disclosure agreements
  • List of expectations
  • Insurance forms
  • Appointment letter

• Offboarding

  Former employees can impact your organization and its reputation significantly. They can be future advocates, influencing moves for new employees or your future decisions. Thus, HR staffing firms must invest in managing sensitive information securely and reliably. In addition, similar to onboarding, employees must have a satisfying offboarding experience. Just as smooth onboarding is essential for positive employee experiences, a smooth offboarding experience is equally critical. Here are certain offboarding forms that can be effortlessly and efficiently signed using electronic signatures:

  • Exit interview forms
  • Tax documents
  • Retirement plan transfers
  • Retirement forms
  • Employee resignation or termination letters
  • Non-disclosure agreements

Also Read: Tips for businesses embracing eSignature solutions in 2023

5 Benefits observed by staffing firms by automating paper-based processes

• Better employee engagement

  Building a unified, productive, and satisfied workforce starts with the first step – hiring and onboarding. Investing in streamlined hiring and onboarding processes promotes higher employee engagement. And incorporating eSignature technology helps streamline the processes. In addition, automating paperwork can speed up processes and save time, ultimately increasing the pace of hiring, onboarding, payroll, HR administration, etc., and driving better employee engagement.

• Reduced paper usage

  From hiring to onboarding to offboarding, the document checklist for employees is comprehensive. It includes medical forms, tax forms, payroll documentation, disclosures, policies, exit interviews, etc. Managing all of these documents for every single employee can get overwhelming. Electronic signatures lessen this burden and eliminate paper usage by creating a single repository in the cloud with easy, universal access. In addition, going paperless with eSignatures also helps address ever-evolving compliance issues.

• Better communication

  Human resource departments are often overwhelmed with countless tasks coupled with stringent security and compliance requirements. As a result, working with an HR professional is often perceived as a time-consuming and sluggish process. Managing employee data, delivering critical information on time, managing payroll, and taking care of employee engagement programs and benefits - handling all these tasks at once is an intricate job. However, incorporating eSignature technology can ease this burden. You can automate redundant processes and invest more time in acknowledging real issues. Moreover, you can also furnish important information on time and keep concerned persons updated on the real-time progress.

• Enhanced productivity

  Interdepartmental silos can slow down responsiveness and productivity. For instance, onboarding a new employee may impact HR, IT, finance, and other departments differently. On the other hand, automating workflows with the help of an electronic signature solution reduces friction and drives more productivity. Moreover, employees and HR professionals can focus on priority tasks with streamlined processes.

• Reduced manual work

  Most of the HR processes are paper-centric – hiring forms, employment documents, salary slips, employee data, payroll data, employee handbooks, exit forms, etc. Most of these documents include repetitive information, need the signatures of one or more parties, and must be shared back and forth for reviews. With the help of electronic signatures, you can save templates for future references and get documents signed and stored within minutes without worrying about security or compliance – a lifesaver for HR professionals.

The Bottom Line

Employees are the biggest asset of any organization. Human resource teams are responsible for finding these valuable assets, developing them into productive team players, and retaining the best talent for organizational growth. Unfortunately, HR professionals spend most of their time drafting, sharing, and signing paper documents. Keeping track of each of these documents, updating concerned persons, maintaining security and compliance, and avoiding potential legal disputes can be very challenging. This is where eSignatures come into the picture. DrySign, a leading digital signature solution, provides a wide range of features to streamline your HR processes, helping you build, develop, and retain a superior workforce. Get DrySign now for all your signing needs!

DISCLAIMER: The information on this site is for general information purposes only and is not intended to serve as legal advice. Laws governing the subject matter may change quickly, and Exela cannot guarantee that all the information on this site is current or correct. Should you have specific legal questions about any of the information on this site, you should consult with a licensed attorney in your area.

Contact us