This online retailer was familiar with selling products and serving its customers through digital channels. When it came to HR documents, however, paper files and manual processes were the norm. All HR employee documents were stored in a dedicated file room at company headquarters.

The HR Operations team recognized that they needed to update their incumbent process to enable better efficiency and streamline file access for HR specialists. One of the biggest challenges to the HR Operation was the time it took to locate and access employee documents; approximately 20-30 minutes – hampering productivity. Prior to the implementation of the CartaHR solution, in order to access sensitive employee information, the team needed to walk to the file room, unlock the door, search through physical files to locate the required documents, ensure the room was locked again before leaving, and return to their desks to process specific requests, up to five times per week. Their goal was to digitize this process so they could reduce the time to access their information to just minutes.

Additionally, the safety and protection of employee documents was a high priority. “We also wanted to proactively ensure business continuity in case of a fire or other disaster, make accessing and updating employee information quicker and more feasible, and move into the digital age,” explained the HR Operations Team Lead.

The Solution

After evaluating different employee document management solutions, the HR Operations Team made the decision to deploy CartaHR by Access. The HR Operations Team handled the initial document preparation and Access then completed the scanning of termed and active employee files. The implementation process went smoothly and lived up to the team’s expectations.

CartaHR is integrated with Workday, the company’s HCM system. To maintain security, the team implemented permissions that dictate which HR specialists can access various records and folders. The Information Security department particularly appreciates this functionality.

The HR Operations Team scans new employee files and CartaHR will then manage these digital documents for the remainder of their lifecycle. Within CartaHR, the HR team can send e-form campaigns to target groups or to the entire organization. After employees e-sign documents, CartaHR automatically sorts them into the employee files. Employees can use the CartaHR dashboard to review and complete documents, add signatures, and forward documents for approval. In addition, CartaHR’s electronic file rooms provide secure online repositories to facilitate document audits, legal holds, and discovery.

Ease of access is the best way to describe our experience with CartaHR. It’s a game changer – the convenience is a luxury. We have peace of mind, knowing that our HR files are safe and secure.”HR Operations Team Lead, Online Retail Company

The Results

Digitizing employee records in CartaHR has significantly increased the HR team’s productivity and efficiency. These benefits were magnified during the COVID-19 pandemic; with employees working offsite, digital access to employee files was incredibly valuable.

“With paper employee records, retrieving information was never as simple as grabbing a file from a nearby cabinet. Now, using CartaHR, it’s possible to retrieve a digital employee file in between responding to emails. The new level of convenience is such a luxury,” said the HR Operations Team Lead.

Everything is now searchable within CartaHR and it takes just a couple of clicks to access and share information quickly and easily. Pulling paper employee files used to take 20 to 30 minutes. Today, the process requires just a few minutes, representing a 50% to 60% time savings over the old manual system.

“The biggest benefit has been the ease of finding what we need online. The increased peace of mind has really been significant,” said the HR Operations Team Lead.

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Previously, Eclaro utilized a manual process of printing, collating and filing essential documents. The paper-based process was labor intensive, exposed the business to risk of lost or mishandled paperwork and wasn’t in alignment with the global growth of this leading IT and business consulting organization. The Eclaro team knew they wanted a solution that would integrate with Microsoft Dynamics GP and would provide secure access to a remote workforce.

The Solution

Eclaro’s CartaDC implementation allowed them to transform their processes from paper-based to digital and provided them with a document management solution that integrates with their ERP, Microsoft Dynamics GP. The document management solution enables the finance and human resources teams to work collaboratively. The document repository, along with the continuous import integration with Microsoft Dynamics GP gives the team timely and accurate information. Today Eclaro team members can perform 95% of their paper processes in a fully digital environment. Through CartaDC, Eclaro team members can find, view and share invoices, time sheets and contracts essential to their role.

The finance and human resources team routinely handle sensitive PII making security paramount to Eclaro. The teams required the ability to share documents on both an ad hoc and project basis. CartaDC’s privacy protocols ensure that sensitive information contained in documents is protected by allowing Eclaro team members to limit the recipients’ ability to print, download and forward documents. Eclaro’s team members are also enjoying the ability to setup virtual file rooms for larger projects. CartaDC’s virtual file room allows team members to setup a folder containing a group of documents under review. In addition to the security features available for ad hoc sharing, CartaDC file rooms can include restrictions regarding the period of time the information is available to viewers.

“Our old process wasn’t scalable, and remote teams did not have secure, easy access to documents. CartaDC is a game-changer that allowed us to digitize a formerly paper-intensive process.”Luke Ruzek | Assistant to the Director of Operations, Eclaro

Benefits

Global Collaboration Reduces Labor Costs

The Eclaro team is now able to collaborate with team members in the Philippines. The finance and human resources departments are able to create dynamic, highly focused teams for increased efficiency and cost savings.

Secure Remote Access

Eclaro initially sought remote access to digitized files to enable better collaboration between their NYC and Philippines locations. Remote work flexibility has become essential to business continuity giving the investment in CartaDC an even more significant impact. Eclaro’s ability to digitally access and securely share information from any location means greater business resiliency.

Why Access?

Eclaro chose to partner with Access because CartaDC was the right solution that could integrate with their existing ERP. The partnership deepened during the implementation process when Eclaro’s NYC offices were hit hard by the pandemic. The Access team worked with Eclaro to successfully complete the implementation while keeping members of both teams healthy and safe.

In Summary

Eclaro was able to digitize 95% of what had been a paper-intensive process. The ability to work remotely when it matters has been priceless. This increased efficiency has allowed Eclaro to service their clients more quickly and with a higher degree of accuracy.

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TMC was looking to implement a highly structured information governance (IG) program as envisioned by the information management department. This rigorous approach  was needed in order to address the high degree of complexity and challenges associated with improving TMC’s long-standing records program. The underlying opportunities for improvement included solving for the lack of knowledge and structure regarding boxes, files, and their contents, across multiple departments. This challenge restricted the ability to defensibly dispose of information and created a burden on the ability to produce records in a timely fashion. Charts were pulled manually, which added to their overhead.

Furthermore, with the healthcare industry’s transition to an Electronic Medical Records (EMR), a large subset of these patient files needed to be converted to electronic format.

The Solution

With the design and approach in hand, Access was a willing and able partner in solving the intricacies and resource requirements needed to implement the new IG policy. This included solving for indexing and cataloging thousands of existing boxes across multiple facilities and vendors. Identifying records suitable for defensible disposition and shredding created a stable and sustainable model for future record additions. The volume of physical files and a rapidly changing healthcare environment presented a unique opportunity to work with Access’ document management solutions; including scanning, records storage, and secure destruction.

TMC and Access developed a creative solution that met TMC’s operational and budgetary requirements and created value for the long term. It was in this partnership that Access was able to differentiate itself from other options in the marketplace and solidify the foundation for a great relationship.

We needed a partner who knew and understood our commitment to the community and was willing to work with us, financially. Access quickly became our one place to go for all of our information management needs.Seth Katz, Associate Chief Information Officer

Benefits

Through well-defined governance policy and procedure, the information management department has become the “backbone” of TMC, supporting the records and document needs for several crucial disciplines within the organization.

Over the course of the project, approximately 1,000,000 patient records were properly disposed through Access’ secure shredding services, which is the equivalent of nearly 30,000 records boxes. This reduction in physical inventory resulted in more than $5,000 in monthly storage savings.

The hospital staff now has the ability to locate and retrieve stored records back on-site and deliver to their stakeholders in an expedited fashion. FileBRIDGE® Records software provided easy identification and retrieval of records, while the scan on-demand system, provided speed and prompt delivery for all daily requests. Each of the benefits were a result of a searchable database that has been customized to the organizations specific needs.

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There was a time when charts and other patient records were completely paper based. The thousands upon thousands of records grew into millions and became incredibly burdensome to the physical footprint of Penn State Health’s facilities. Managing all this paper required arduous processes and extensive manual labor resulting in expensive overhead and ongoing training costs for new employees. There was also a major disconnect with the electronic medical record (EMR) system which had been implemented in Penn State Health’s physician clinics. The new system was there, but the records were still paper based offering limited visibility and time wasted in retrieving patient records.

“Prior to Access, our records were completely paper-based. Our process was labor intensive and systems were limited.”Tony Wood, HIM Program Manager

The Solution

The organization knew it had reached a point where documents needed to convert to digital, and into a system that would help manage an ongoing and scalable process. The task ahead was daunting, but Penn State Health had a trusted partnership with Access and turned to them to manage the transition. The project to convert hundreds of thousands of paper records to digital required expertise in security, chain of custody and regulatory requirements that Access was ready to provide.

To prepare for the implementation of its initial electronic medical record (EMR) solution within its physician clinics, the organization developed a strategy for scanning patient records using internal resources and ultimately leveraged Access for the rest

The Result

Space and Time Savings

An entire file room of floor space opened up in the health and information management (HIM) department, which provided new space that now houses 20 to 30 HIM workers. In addition, a football field’s worth of storage in the basement freed up, which provided crucial resources to focus on training the staff on day-forward and EMR processes. The new process eliminated the need to hire additional resources to manage the paper system.

Cost Savings

The health and information management department was able to save the company a significant amount of money by going digital. Physicians were no longer required to request the retrieval of documents, which also saved time, as they were now able to access vital patient records regardless of their location.

The Future

Penn State Health continues to work towards better program insights and ROI metrics by collaborating with Access and leveraging the FileBRIDGE® Records platform. Identifying and analyzing how often charts are requested and how long documents need to be retained will continue to provide value to the teams at PennState Health.

Why Access?

Penn State Health, a world-class healthcare provider, needed a partner that could provide a scalable records and information program that met their unique needs.

In Summary

Penn State Health is largely digital now and the HIM team has online access to their inventory and order processing. Access has been a partner of Penn State Health and their records management program for over 20 years and has packed, picked up, transported and inventoried over 1.4 million records across 40 different locations . With over 800 file requests processed on a monthly basis, records are delivered electronically to their RIM (records and information management) and ECM platforms. Access continues to support and streamline acquisition processes through the FileBRIDGE Records platform and other business processes.

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With over 4,000 locations and more than 24,000 employees in the U.S. alone, this retailer of professional beauty supplies experiences a significant volume of HR document and compliance requirements for its rapidly changing workforce.

“We’ve enjoyed working with Access throughout our transition to digital employee HR documentation. The CartaHR team has acted as a true partner to our organization, helping us to drive new initiatives and delivering a product that is easy to use while saving us time and money.”Director of HR Operations

The retailer maintains an enormous volume of employee files for both departed and active employees to meet compliance laws. Over time, these records became increasingly burdensome due to storage requirements locally and at headquarters. Finding and retrieving documents when needed became a real challenge.

The nature of this high volume retail business means natural seasonal and cyclical high turnover which leads to a larger number of employee files to manage, store and track for compliance and retention. In planning for digital transformation, HR leadership sought a streamlined solution to converting paper employee files to a digital document management platform both retroactively, and a go-forward process. The company needed to free up space for newly-hired employees at corporate headquarters, and the desire to save on costs vs. continuing to store paper documents on-site led to a digital transformation strategy.

The Solution: An Efficient Transition From Paper to Digital Employee Records

The rapidly-growing company chose CartaHR to manage their HR records. They were able to use the valuable space at headquarters that had been occupied by documents for a much more important goal: adding new employees without paying for additional space.

CartaHR provided an ideal, secure platform for managing and archiving employee files, while Access’ physical document-handling capabilities made the transition to cloud-based documents quick and painless. The retail managers simply boxed all their HR files and shipped them to Access, where the CartaHR team scanned and indexed each of the approximately 60,000 employee files that were stored on-site before handling secure destruction of the original files. Regional and corporate HR saved time and reduced the administrative work associated with finding, retrieving and accessing employee documents for audits and other needs.

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Perkins Coie is headquartered in Seattle, WA and currently has 19 offices across the United States and Asia. Perkins Coie consists of a wide variety of different practices from Business to Product Liability, Intellectual Property to Tax, Benefits and Compensation. Patrick Benedict is the Firm’s Director of Records Management Services.

How were you handling your records and what were the challenges you were facing?

Before the switch to Access, we had one primary offsite storage vendor and a handful of smaller vendors servicing smaller accounts. We began to see more and more complaints from the local offices regarding the level of service they were receiving from our primary vendor. We attempted to address these concerns with the vendor but saw very little or no improvements. The billing process for the offsite accounts had become confusing and inconsistent. We had several different contracts with varying rates for services and we wanted to consolidate and streamline the billing process. It was difficult to get accurate information regarding our inventory because of the number of different accounts. We wanted to consolidate all of our inventory under one account to more accurately monitor the entire inventory.

How did Access address these challenges?

Access began by just listening and understanding our concerns . We were impressed early on by not only the depth of knowledge the Access team had regarding the legal offsite process, but also the solutions they were proposing. We explained the current service related concerns we had with our current vendor and how we envisioned a future offsite vendor relationship. It was obvious from the very beginning that the values and service related philosophy at Access were exactly what we were looking for in an offsite storage vendor. This service related philosophy was evident throughout their company from the CEO, to the management team, to the drivers dropping off boxes. In regards to the billing process, we explained what our challenges were with the current process and how we would like future invoices to look. Access presented us with straightforward invoicing solutions and tailored it to better represent what was being billed for each local office.

We moved approximately 152,000 boxes in seven locations. The entire move took just about a year. The majority of the offices were moved in a matter of months but the largest account in Seattle took the year.

That can be pretty stressful to keep organized through. How did it go?

I was initially nervous to begin the transfer, I was worried that the day-to-day monitoring of the move was going to be an all-encompassing task. I could not speak more highly of the transfer team that was put in place from Access. Their ability to organize multiple moves simultaneously, coordinate with our prior vendors, locate inventory “in transit” when necessary and report on progress was more than impressive. The transfer couldn’t have gone more smoothly and I credit the excellent team Access assembled for this enormous task.

Now that the dust has settled, what strikes you the most about the transition?

Now that the dust has settled, and the transition of our inventory is complete, I can say without a doubt that we made a great decision to go with Access. They listened to our concerns, were honest with us throughout the process, assemble an excellent transition team and we couldn’t be happier with the entire move. In hindsight, so many of the concerns that hindered us from considering a change sooner just turned out to be none issues. I’m extremely pleased with how the transition transpired and look forward to expanding our relationship with Access in the future.

Any advice to other firms battling those same challenges that prompted your firm’s decision to transition to Access?

The prospect of moving large quantities of inventory can seem extremely daunting when first considered. The “what ifs” prevented us from making a change for many years. My advice to firms considering a change would be simply do it. The Access team is top notch and will walk you through the process regardless of how complex the project may seem. I’m extremely satisfied with the move to Access and only wish we would have done it sooner.

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This American supermarket chain expanded quickly, and managing HR files across an increasingly spread-out footprint became more time-consuming and difficult.

Distributed locations

Management had limited centralized visibility of HR documents at the store level, and rapid expansion compounded the issue.

High volume of employees

The HR team was spending too much time on administrative work, including audit preparation and response, instead of focusing on strategic activities.

Industry-specific compliance

Food and grocery retail certifications and accompanying documentation were difficult to monitor to proactively maintain strict compliance.

HCM software limitations

The HR team was unable to easily identify missing documentation in employee records or securely share files.

Solution

A consolidated platform for digitally capturing all employee HR documents.

Centralized and digital

The company’s entire library of employee HR files is stored on a single secure, cloud-based platform.

Secure and permissioned

Employee files can be securely shared and accessed by authorized users eliminating the need to mail physical copies.

Insight across the employee base

The CartaHR reporting dashboard aids compliance by quickly identifying missing and incomplete documentation and certifications.

Easily integrated with HCM software

CartaHR integrates effortlessly with existing HCM software solutions, allowing for seamless and efficient tracking of employee documentation, regardless of the original format and point of capture.

“CartaHR has made our HR reps much more efficient. Previously, we were totally reliant on in-store HR or leadership to access local employee files. Now, regional and corporate HR can access employee files from anywhere, even if there’s nobody available to help us at the store.”Team Member Services Specialist

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The company’s 30,000+ employees serve in a wide variety of roles, ranging from corporate positions to hotel staff; a significant majority of these roles are field-based, and in some cases, the use of on-site digital employee HR documentation isn’t feasible. At the same time, the company’s breadth and scale, coupled with the structure of its workforce, make it critical to have an effective solution in place to bridge the gap between paper and digital HR files.

Geographically distributed workforce across time zones and continents

The company needed an easier way to quickly and securely share employee documents from their hotels and properties from continent to continent without the hassle of delays due to distance.

Not always practical or possible to create digital documents on-site

Many hospitality employees do not have access to computers on the job, so they are not able to complete digital forms on-site.

Security and access controls around sharing of information are mission-critical for HR team

The organization is committed to employee data security through permissioned online access rather than sharing via email or sending paper files.

The Solution – Migrating To A Digital Platform

CartaHR enables the organization to bridge the divide between digital and hardcopy records quickly, easily and securely, freeing up the HR team’s valuable time to focus on serving the needs of the business.

Efficient bridge between physical and digital employee documentation

In an environment where ready access to digital HR forms may not always be possible, capturing HR documentation in paper format and converting it to digital for storage within the cloud-based CartaHR platform enabled the HR teams to reduce the amount of paper stored on-property, while at the same time merge digital and physical documents onto a single platform.

Easy access to views of employee HR files in real-time from across the globe

Document indexing and retrieval allows quick and secure access to employee files no matter where the employee works. Compliance and certification or licensure reviews and audits that might have taken days in hardcopy format can be completed in a matter of minutes.

Straightforward mechanism for secure sharing of files within organization and with outside counsel

Secure file rooms with timed links and granular permissions on the CartaHR platform make sharing individual employees’ HR files (or if preferred, just individual documents within those files) quick, easy and secure.

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As the largest provider of inpatient and outpatient services in the state of New Jersey, Hackensack University Medical Center (HUMC) began to look into ways to enhance the management of patient records while achieving HIPAA compliance. After careful review it was evident that HUMC’s current document management process restricted growth due to the lack of technology. After researching a number of options, HUMC recognized that a records storage provider with reliable tracking and retrieval processes, and highly scalable systems was the solution. That provider was Access.

“By partnering with Access, we now have a long-term partner for all our document management needs.” Barbara Siegel, Director of Health Information Management at HUMC

The Solution

By utilizing Access’ off-site Records Center facility HUMC has access to a cost-effective process complete with barcode tracking, system-driven workflows, and sophisticated records management systems. Access’ hard copy records storage services support all of HUMC’s document management requirements. This includes records pick-up and delivery, filing, retrieval, refiling, vital records maintenance, document destruction, and custom reporting. As part of a comprehensive solution, Access also physically relocated over 1.2 million patient records and migrated database records for over 75 departments at HUMC.

For emergency situations, HUMC was also interested in a solution that would deliver medical files as quickly as possible. Access’ Digital Delivery service allows highly active documents to be delivered in a secure, electronic format for staff to view instantly. This provides an opportunity for HUMC to further improve patient care through immediate access to information. By using Access’ Digital Delivery document conversion services HUMC can request hard copy records and view them as electronic files from their desktops in less than an hour. Destruction services also provided for the medical center.

Benefits

With Access’ comprehensive, off-site, hard copy records storage services, HUMC has moved to a scalable solution allowing for rapid retrieval of patient records. The policies and processes set in place with the Access solution have effectively streamlined HUMC’s records management efforts while complying with HIPAA regulations and its state laws.

The Access solution enables staff to track the organization’s entire hard copy inventory by the box or file. Requests for records can be managed remotely with Web-based access to hard copy records and 24×7 customer service. Siegel reports the responsiveness of Access’ services has also resulted in a significant decrease in time spent by staff finding patient files. With new, easy-to-use capabilities that supply immediate access to information, HUMC employees can focus solely on providing the best patient care.

The innovative Access technology also compliments the technical support already in place at HUMC. By partnering with a service provider, the internal technical department has expanded their technology resources.

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UFCW Local 1262 & Employers Benefit Funds receives an average of 2,700 new membership applications each month. Maintaining a comprehensive database of memberships requires labor-intensive scanning of those applications and manual data entry of specific information. The organization was using an in-house system with one dedicated resource to accomplish it all. The result: A continuous backlog of applications was making it difficult for the fund office to provide desired levels of service to its members. In addition to wrestling with a significant volume of membership data, UFCW Local 1262 & Employers Benefit Funds was anxious to increase the efficiency of its in-house records management system. The organization evaluated other in-house systems, but all required additional staff—and that was an expense that it wanted to avoid. Looking further, the organization determined that a broader solution would best meet its growing needs and offer the greatest return on investment. The next step: Find a provider whose depth and breadth of services offers unlimited flexibility going forward. UFCW Local 1262 & Employers Benefit Funds found Access.

“They asked illuminating questions and made sure they understood our exact needs. Access is a world-class operation, a finely tuned machine.”Harvey Whille, President, UFCW Local 1262

The Solution – Hosted Imaging and Data Entry

Access implemented a hosted document imaging solution to capture, index, and redundantly store membership applications for UFCW Local 1262 & Employers Benefit Funds. Now, Access converts weekly volumes of membership application documents into images, which the organization retrieves through a standard, secure, browser-based interface. Access also conducts a comprehensive data entry function that provides a weekly data feed of all membership application information.

Access uploads this data into the organization’s in-house system within 48 hours. The Access solution enables the organization to easily meet its growing need to provide
more users with access to membership information—a number that is expected to increase by nearly ten times the current amount.

Results – Processing Time Reduced by 85%

UFCW Local 1262 & Employers Benefit Funds provides the highest possible levels of service to its members by processing applications and accessing critical information in a more timely and efficient manner. By providing document imaging and records management, Access has enabled the organization to regain and better align the focus of a valuable resource to perform other critical tasks. New membership applications are now processed in two days instead of two weeks. Data entry is cleaner and records are more accurate.

Access provides an unprecedented level of quality control in its imaging operation and especially in its data entry process, which includes multiple check points for accuracy and error correction. Without investing in hardware, software, or technology of any kind, UFCW Local 1262 & Employers Benefit Funds has gained significant business continuity and disaster recovery capabilities that are inherent to the Access hosted imaging solution.

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