Maintaining accurate employee records is a top priority for any Human Resources department. These vital documents and records contain sensitive information; therefore, they must be stored safely and reliably. This makes acquiring and utilizing an efficient filing system a main objective of the HR department. Without some sort of reliable organizational system, those responsible for these documents may be sacrificing efficiency, as well as the safety of the entire company. Read on to learn more about the content of these vital records, as well as recommended systems for sorting and protecting them.
Below are some examples of the essential records kept by the Human Resources department:
- Personal information of the employee (name, date of birth, address, social security number, and many other personal details)
- History of that employee’s previous employment, if any. (start and finish dates, previous job titles, promotions, achievements, among other relevant details)
- Terms and Conditions of the business (pay, holiday entitlement, hours of work, attendance policy, harassment policies, dress code, etc.)
- Personal attendance details (tardiness, maternity, sickness, no-shows)
- Incident log (any work-related injuries or incidents, workers comp.)
- Training information (external and internal policies, procedures, expectations)
- Disciplinary actions (write-ups, warnings, and termination of employment)
Now that you can clearly see how vital and sensitive these records are to a company’s operation, we can advise where and how they should be stored. Safety and organization are the two top priorities, respectively.
Local/On-premise Human Resource System
The task of adequately storing vital employee records falls to the hands of the Human Resources department. Each business has its own system designed for this purpose. Although crafting this system may seem daunting and time-consuming, implementing an effective filing system is crucial to the success and safety of your business. This system should be concise and easy to use, all while remaining accurate and secure. It is important to consider that operating your system from within your physical office, also referred to as “On-premise Human Resources,” may be expensive to run and time-consuming to maintain.
Employee Records Stored Paper-Based
Perhaps one of the most basic storage systems that Human Resources may use to organize the vast amounts of employee records and data is a physical filing cabinet. There are, of course, many drawbacks to this system. For one thing, manually sorting and storing large amounts of records is just as time-consuming as it is impractical. Also, and perhaps more importantly, a physical filing cabinet does little to ensure that sensitive information is protected from theft. What is going to stop someone from breaking into the cabinet and stealing the privy information of your valued employees? A lock? Hello Lock, meet Mr. Crowbar!
Employee Records Stored Manual Electronic
This system, while computer-based, does not include a searchable database. This method takes up a large amount of space on the computer’s hard drive, which can cause obvious issues for a modern-day business. Though the cost may be less, this is not an ideal method and should only be used when a company cannot afford an adequate HR system.
Electronic Employee Records Through Cloud Storage
If you are used to using spreadsheets and text documents on your computer, consider using Cloud storage to preserve your employee’s records. This is our most favorable solution. The Cloud does not take up space on your hard drive, as all the documents are stored via the internet. This system is also far less costly than an HR database. More and more companies are turning to Cloud-based technology and software due to it being cost-effective, user-friendly, and more protected.
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