Create onboarding packets for new hires

Why teams automate onboarding packets

Onboarding often involves multiple documents: offer letters, tax forms, NDAs, and company policies. When handled manually, teams juggle PDFs, email attachments, and inconsistent processes. This slows onboarding, creates errors, and leaves new hires with a poor first impression.

This isn’t theoretical. In a recent HR-focused onboarding test, teams using structured onboarding packets with templates, guides, and contextual help completed setup faster and activated at significantly higher rates. When onboarding documents arrive together, pre-filled and clearly guided, HR teams move from setup to execution quicker and more easily.

Automating onboarding packets ensures new hires complete all required paperwork in a single flow, and your team sees progress in real time.

What this means for your business:

• Faster onboarding completion

• Fewer errors and missing documents

• Better first impression for new hires

• Full visibility into onboarding status

Is automated onboarding packet creation right for your use case?

You’re a strong fit if:

• Onboarding requires multiple documents per person

• Data already exists in an ATS, HRIS, or CRM

• Manual onboarding creates delays or compliance risk

Consider alternatives if:

• You onboard infrequently

• Documents vary heavily case by case

• No centralized system holds onboarding data

How automated onboarding packets work: Step-by-step

Create reusable onboarding templates

Instead of managing separate files, create standardized templates for each onboarding document: offer letters, tax forms, NDAs, and policy acknowledgements.

Here’s how with PandaDoc:

Create individual templates or a combined onboarding packet template with placeholders like {{Employee.Name}}, {{Start.Date}}, {{Compensation}}, and {{Role}}. These templates ensure consistency and compliance.

Example:

An HR team creates:

• Offer letter template

• NDA template

• Employee handbook acknowledgment template

Each uses the same employee data variables such as:

• Employee name

• Date of hire

• Address

• E-mail

• Job title

• Start date (often separate from hire date)

Trigger onboarding when a new hire is approved

Your system determines when onboarding should begin — for example, when a candidate is marked “Hired” in the ATS.

Trigger approaches:

• ATS workflow event

• CRM stage change

• Internal approval flag

Generate the full onboarding packet automatically

When onboarding starts, your system creates a PandaDoc document (or set of documents) using the relevant templates and passes in all required data.

Here’s how with PandaDoc:

PandaDoc merges the data into each document and prepares the packet instantly.

Real-world HR example:

An HR team onboarding a new hire triggers PandaDoc when the candidate is marked ‘Hired’ in their ATS. The system automatically generates an offer letter, tax forms, NDA, and policy acknowledgements using approved templates. The new hire receives one onboarding packet, completes everything in a single session, and HR sees completion status instantly.

Additional examples:

When a candidate is hired, the system generates:

• Offer letter

• W-9 or tax form

• NDA

• Policy acknowledgements

All pre-filled and ready to sign.

Send the onboarding packet for signature

Speed matters in onboarding. As soon as documents are ready, send them automatically with clear instructions and next steps.

Here’s how with PandaDoc:

Use the send document endpoint to deliver the packet with a customized email message and signer roles. All documents are signed in a single flow.

→ Take it further: Embed the signing experience directly in your onboarding portal so new hires never leave your app.

Track completion and update your systems

Once onboarding is sent, track progress automatically. Know exactly when documents are viewed, signed, or completed.

Here’s how with PandaDoc:

Subscribe to document status and recipient completion webhooks. Update your HRIS, ATS, or CRM when onboarding is finished.

Common workflows:

• Packet signed → Mark onboarding complete

• Packet viewed but not signed → Send reminder

• Packet completed → Trigger equipment provisioning or system access

Example:

An HR system can automatically provision accounts in Slack and Google Workspace once the onboarding packet is fully signed.

Implementation timeline and requirements

Typical scope: 1–2 weeks

Team requirements:

• HR Ops or RevOps for template setup

Ongoing maintenance:

Low. Templates are updated as policies or forms change.

Many HR teams pair this setup with a short onboarding email sequence and embedded demo videos to guide first-time users through templates and packet creation.

Results: Faster onboarding, better experience

Teams that automate onboarding packets see:

• Faster onboarding completion and time-to-start

• Fewer errors and missing documents

• Higher onboarding and activation rates for HR teams

• A more professional, consistent first impression for new hires

In recent HR onboarding tests, tailored workflows and packet-based onboarding drove double-digit activation gains, especially for teams managing larger employee volumes.

Case study:

As part of our initiative to personalize the PandaDoc experience for key personas, we launched a new HR-specific onboarding workflow test on July 30th. After more than a full month of testing, here are the results:

• Overall activation increased by +13% (24.6% → 27.7%)

• 50+ segment activation jumped by +33%! (20.8% → 27.7%)

This progress showcases the power of tailored in-product experiences and the potential we have as we expand to other personas!

Resources / Examples

Explore HR onboarding templates, demo videos, and onboarding packet examples designed specifically for People Ops teams.

• PandaDoc for Developers: API tutorial

• How to track documents

Ready to try it for yourself? Start a free 14-day trial today