Automated Onboarding Solutions for Manufacturing: A Game-Changer for Productivity

How Automated Onboarding Solves Manufacturing Challenges

Automated onboarding uses technology to simplify and speed up the manufacturing onboarding process. It makes it possible by replacing manual paperwork with digital solutions, providing mobile-friendly training, checking for compliance issues, and more in between.

When onboarding employees manually, you’ll likely face obstacles that automation can help overcome:

• High turnover rates. Between 2024 and 2033, the manufacturing industry could need 3.8 million new employees, with 1.9 million jobs potentially going unfilled. To retain workers, you need to train them and make them productive quickly.

• Compliance and safety training. Manual tracking of certifications and safety protocols is time-consuming, let alone dangerous for your workers. Plus, consider that employee health and safety is a top strategy for 30% of manufacturers looking to retain talent.

• Inefficient document management. Many HR teams still rely on paper-based or outdated digital systems that slow everything down. Optimizing HR technology is a huge focus, but 55% of HR leaders still state their tech isn’t cutting it, and 51% can’t even measure their ROI. 

• Knowledge gaps. New hires need fast access to critical operational knowledge. Employees who feel they can acquire the necessary skills are 2.7 times less likely to leave within a year.

But how does automated onboarding actually make a difference? It’s owing to the following components:

• Digital walkthroughs. These are interactive training modules that help new hires get started faster.

• Automated workflows. These allow for seamless tracking of compliance, certifications, and safety training.

• HR system integration. This lets you connect onboarding with payroll and performance tracking for a smoother experience.

“Manufacturing industry still has two challenges to overcome — high turnover and strict compliance. Automated onboarding tackles that with streamlined paperwork, training, as well as certification and safety checks.” — Roman Hutnyk, СЕО of Bits Orchestra

To make things even clearer, here’s a recap of how automation, particularly our custom software development company, helps:

How Automated Onboarding Works in a Manufacturing Environment

Manufacturing onboarding software is a tool that lets you welcome new employees with ease. It does more than just replace paper documents and forms with PDFs. In fact, it integrates with every step of the employee’s journey — offering centralized data, real-time tracking, role-specific training, and continuous updates.

1. Pre-Boarding

At this point, you should provide new hires with the necessary resources before their first day and gather their personal information.

• Digitized documentation. Send digital contracts, safety manuals, and onboarding materials before new hires even step onto the factory floor.

• Centralized data collection. Gather all the details — personal information, emergency contacts, compliance forms — in one online portal. No more misplaced documents and delays.

2. Role-Based Training

Next, increase your manufacturing onboarding efforts with efficient training. Here’s how software helps:

• Targeted learning modules. Assign training specific to a new hire’s role — whether it involves operating specialized machinery, following standard operating procedures, or handling quality control.

• Progress tracking. Monitor completion rates and other employee performance metrics in real-time. Use these insights to identify who needs additional guidance before starting full production work.

“Everyone learns at a different pace, so it makes sense for training to adjust along the way. For example, AI algorithms can personalize training modules based on each trainee’s progress and performance. When someone needs more practice or is ready to move on the system responds accordingly suggesting additional resources or practice sessions.” — Serhiy Sydorchuk, CTO, co-founder of Bits Orchestra

3. Compliance Management

Automated onboarding software also lets you stay ahead of compliance, offering: 

• Certifications, licensing, and recertifications. Log and track certifications on equipment operation, safety, and regulatory standards, with automated reminders. Keep employees up to date with changing industry regulations and company policies through scheduled ongoing training.

• Centralized dashboards. Provide managers with a real-time view of each worker’s compliance status so nothing falls through the cracks.

An example of an analytics dashboard developed for Hiller Plumbing, Heating, Cooling & Electrical  by Bits Orchestra.

4. Progress Tracking and Analytics

As in the manufacturing onboarding best practices, you’ll be able to use progress tracking and analytics solutions, including:

• Real-time reporting. Generate reports on training completion, onboarding speed, and productivity levels to optimize resource allocation.

• Data-driven improvements. Use analytics to identify patterns or bottlenecks — for example, if one department consistently struggles with safety training, the system can adjust module intensity or offer more hands-on hours.

• AI-enhanced insights. Leverage machine learning to correlate onboarding performance with long-term productivity metrics to refine your training programs. Or consider using generative AI in manufacturing to create custom training modules.

How Automated Onboarding Can Improve Manufacturing Operations

Now, let’s talk about the tangible advantages of onboarding solutions for manufacturing. Here are just several ways they improve your processes:

Reduces Administrative Workload

Manual onboarding involves paperwork, data entry, and endless compliance tracking. All of these go away with automation.

Digitized employee records, contracts, and compliance documents, automated data entry, and centralized document storage let your HR team focus on more critical tasks. Compliance tracking also becomes a breeze owing to automated certification logging, reminders, and reports.

Speeds Up Employee Integration

The faster new hires adapt to your processes, the better for your operations. Structured, automated onboarding helps with that by providing role-specific training and readily available resources from day one. And because such training is efficient, senior employees don’t have to spend hours hand-holding new recruits.

Creates a Consistent Onboarding Experience

Inconsistency is a common challenge in manufacturing onboarding. For example, what one manager teaches may differ from another. Automation, in turn, makes sure every new hire receives the same standardized training (based on the role, of course) and follows the same compliance procedures.

Offers Real-Time Insights

On top of the above benefits, automation always comes with valuable workforce data. Using HR analytics in manufacturing, you can track training completion rates, safety modules, productivity benchmarks, and other metrics — all to further refine your strategies and address skill gaps quickly.

Not sure if your onboarding is efficient?

Identify gaps in your current onboarding process and discover how you can improve workforce productivity with automation.

Real-World Impact: Case Studies

Let’s get to the practical part of onboarding automation in manufacturing. Here are real-world examples of how companies use software to streamline their onboarding processes:

Rovo by Atlassian

Rovo is an AI-powered teamwork tool recently introduced by Atlassian. Acting as a virtual teammate, it provides personalized answers across Atlassian products like Jira and Confluence, along with third-party tools. The company says 75% of users get their work done faster with this tool.

For onboarding, Rovo delivers real-time, context-based guidance. New hires no longer have to dig through multiple platforms or wait for a response from HR. Instead, they can simply ask Rovo questions like, “Who do I contact for log-in credentials?” and receive instant answers pulled from company resources.

Our Case Study: TruTech Test

Hiller Plumbing, Heating, Cooling & Electrical was spending too much time on slow, manual onboarding. The process caused delays, created confusion, and pulled managers away from their day-to-day work.

To fix it, we built TruTech Test — a custom tool that helps companies onboard new hires faster and smarter. It lets managers run short, role-based tests to check skills, spot gaps early, and get people job-ready without all the paperwork. We built it using .NET Core and React, so it runs fast, looks clean, and works smoothly on any device.

In just one month, 160 companies started using TruTech Test. They ran over 100 tests, quickly improving how they onboard and train new employees. Hiller cut their onboarding time by 50% and saw a big jump in training completion rates.

An example of an onboarding tool developed by Bits Orchestra that evaluates employee skills through testing. 

How to Automate the Onboarding Process in 3 Steps

So, you’ve decided to implement onboarding solutions for manufacturing. Smart move! To ensure a smooth rollout, you need to follow three key steps:

#1. Prioritize the Processes You Want to Automate

Start by identifying the biggest pain points in your current onboarding process. Are paperwork delays slowing down new hires? Is compliance tracking a constant problem? Are your training methods inconsistent? Once you pinpoint these, automate the most critical, time-consuming tasks first.

Plus, keep in mind that not all manufacturing employees have the same level of tech expertise. Make sure your onboarding platform is easy to use, with clear instructions and a user-friendly interface. If you need help with this, check out our UI/UX design services.

#2. Choose or Build the Software

Once you know which parts of your onboarding process need automation, select the right technology. At this point, you’ll need to decide between off-the-shelf software and a custom solution.

If pre-built software doesn’t fully meet your needs, a custom software development partner can come up with a solution that matches your operations. Here’s how they help:

• Define a roadmap. Establish clear goals, timelines, core features, integration points, and training requirements.

• Build iteratively. Use agile development to roll out features in sprints, refining along the way.

• Long-term support. Ensure continuous improvements to keep your onboarding platform relevant and compliant.

#3. Integrate with Existing Systems

Once you have your onboarding software, whether ready-made or custom, integrate it with other systems you’re currently using. In particular, connect it with HRIS/HRM, payroll, ERP, training, and existing manufacturing execution systems (MES). To ensure smooth integration, look for platforms with robust APIs and microservices architecture.

Besides that, be ready for some challenges, like data migration and training your staff on the new software. But with careful planning and a reliable partner, you can make it happen.