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Heinen’s Grocery Store
Grocer expands with cloud-based HR solution from Hyland.
The challenge
In 1929, a small butcher shop opened on Cleveland’s east side. By 2010, the Heinen’s business had grown into a successful premium grocery store chain with 17 stores across Northeast Ohio.
Heinen’s next goal was expansion into the Chicago area, but the company realized its human resources (HR) processes wouldn’t keep up. Its tiny file room already housed four associates, as well as personal and medical associate files that threatened to consume the space.
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The solution
Prior to implementing Hyland's OnBase platform, Heinen’s manual HR processes created too much paper waste and required employees to spend hours filing paper and tracking down information.
“We just had to get out from underneath all the paper. Prior to 2012, we had a smaller organization. Over the next years there would be significant growth, and we realized the current processes were going to be counterproductive to that growth,” said Jennifer Artino, manager of health and safety at Heinen’s.
From duplicate processing and disparate spreadsheets to problems with stores using outdated forms for associate status changes, it was clear processes needed to change.
Heinen’s chose a cloud-hosted OnBase solution to simplify associate information management. Housing more than 90 types of digital HR documents for each associate, OnBase provides a faster, more secure way to store, access and share associate files. Sharing documents for an HR case, for example, is now enabled by Outlook integration. Staff can securely send files from OnBase, as well as upload files to the system — all without leaving their email client. And with remote access to associate documents, HR representatives have the flexibility to work from various store locations.
From 2011 to 2012, the company grew by 20% to 25%, opening four new stores. But the number of bodies doing the work stayed the same in HR.
— Bob Walters, Business Analyst, Heinen’s
With the addition of OnBase workflow automation, Heinen’s has accelerated vital HR processes, like associate status changes, time off requests, and tracking acknowledgement of policies and procedures. HR staff also utilize OnBase WorkView Case Manager to manage extended leave requests like FMLA and short-term disability. From one screen, the solution provides a 360-degree view of all the information and paperwork surrounding each request.
Why cloud hosting? Bob Walters, Business Analyst and OnBase System Administrator for Heinen’s, said the company felt that hosting information on premises was inefficient and risky.
“We’ve hosted solutions before, and we knew we didn’t want to be in the data center business,” Walters said. “It’s expensive and difficult. Managing a server is a job in and of itself. What if something happens and the server gets destroyed? We wanted to know with certainty that the data was being cared for outside of our building.”
Another bonus of having a cloud-hosted OnBase solution? The upgrades, which are fully handled by Hyland.
Incredibly, Heinen’s kept up with growth during their expansion into the Chicago market without adding staff at their main office.
“From 2011 to 2012, the company grew by 20 to 25%, opening four new stores. But the number of bodies doing the work stayed the same in HR,” Walters said.
Today, the HR documents and processes for Heinen’s 3,393 workers, employed by its 23 grocery stores, corporate office, two warehouses and recently opened manufacturing facility, all flow seamlessly through the company’s centralized HR department. Walters flags improved customer service as one of the most influential benefits of this streamlined processing.
“Having OnBase in place gives us the ability to serve customers better,” he said. “We’re a grocery store, and now we get to focus on our strengths.”
The difference
Provides immediate access to documents and information: HR associates can access associate information whether working in the main office or remotely at a store, warehouse or manufacturing facility.
Improves customer service: The organization and its associates have been freed from frustrating, paper-based processes to focus on providing great service to grocery store customers.
Reduces risk: Cloud hosting ensures that all associate information is stored securely off premises.
Scales seamlessly: HR associates can spend their time more efficiently, reducing the need for additional headcount as the company continues to grow.
