Thought Leader Q&A: Erin Rice

How Can You Streamline Onboarding Processes With The Right AI Tools?

Erin Rice is an HR expert and the People & Operations Specialist at Process Street, an AI-powered platform that automates organizational processes and improves efficiency. Even before venturing into the world of HR, her teaching background gave her valuable insights about introducing employees into a new work environment. Erin is also the host of the Employee Onboarding Podcast, where she combines her own expertise with that of other thought leaders to uncover the secrets of successful onboarding. Today she speaks with us about AI platform misconceptions, welcoming new hires, and automating workflows.

Do you feel that your teaching background has given you deeper insights into employee onboarding, particularly when it comes to introducing new hires to their work environment?

Definitely! As a school leader, I didn’t have an HR team. When it was time to onboard a new employee, the team and I juggled the onboarding and training process while still running the school and ensuring our current employees had everything they needed to succeed. As you can guess, caring for and educating kids under five can be a lot! On top of that, there are so many regulations and compliance aspects to onboarding in a school, and missing a step could cost you your ability to operate, which would keep many parents from going to work because they relied on you. The looming domino effect motivated me to do the best job I could, and I have carried that passion into employee onboarding in the tech space. The coolest part about it is that Process Street is a process management platform, so not only does my company benefit from that passion, but so does the product, which helps thousands of other companies as well!

Is there a common misconception that you believe prevents organizations from fully leveraging AI-powered platforms, such as Process Street, to streamline the onboarding process?

It is clear that a lot of organizations are worried about AI taking their jobs, and that has created some apprehension about jumping right in. I get it, and there was a day that I felt the same, but as I have used different AI tools, I have realized that AI is just enhancing what humans are already doing. It is making us better, faster, and in some cases, smarter. Sure, I could write 20 prompts for an icebreaker bank to have on hand for all-hands meetings, but why waste my brain power on that when I could be using it to figure out a complex HR issue? With tools like Process Street, I think it can feel daunting to put in the effort to get all your processes into the platform, which is why we built Process AI. Process AI allows you to scan your SOPs in a Google sheet, or Excel doc, or even handwritten SOPs in a PDF, and Process AI will write the tasks for you, and then you can use your human powers to make it even better. Having all my tasks and processes saved in Process Street has saved me so much bandwidth because I can rely on those automated processes instead of having to remember so much.

What is one of the most memorable discussions you’ve had with a fellow thought leader on the Employee Onboarding Podcast?

My most memorable discussion was the first time I was a guest before taking over as the host! It was more of a conversation with our Director of People & Operations, Ashley Chain, and I about all the magic we infused in our internal onboarding. One of the most memorable takeaways was the importance of balancing structure with personalization in onboarding. Automating workflows in Process Street helped us create a smoother, more engaging onboarding process that fosters connection from day one—a core element in making new hires feel valued and ready to contribute. The structure offers clear expectations and hopefully less overwhelming in the process! You know, let machines do what machines do best so we humans can do what we do best, and that is be human!

You can read the whole article here and, of course, listen to the podcast episode as well.

Is there a recent development project, product launch, or another initiative our readers should know about?

Process Street recently launched a flagship feature to our platform: Data Sets. Customers can store any data they need and pass that information in their Workflows and Forms. Think about having an employee or company data set where you can re-use that information to pre-fill values elsewhere. This means not only that all their information is stored under one roof (i.e., there’s no need for third-party tools to store data) but also vast improvements in data accuracy and time saved.

This launch aligns with our mission to make streamlined processes accessible for teams of all sizes. We’re excited for our readers to explore these capabilities and gain more control over their workflows and forms!

Can you share a standout success story that showcases how a client has used Process Street to overcome their onboarding challenges?

Answer: Yes! Raw Capital Partners faced extensive onboarding and regulatory compliance challenges, especially in mortgage processing. By implementing Process Street, they cut onboarding time by 70% through streamlined, standardized workflows that ensured accuracy, compliance, and efficiency across tasks. This transformation enabled faster employee productivity, minimized risk, and scaled operations without sacrificing quality, showcasing how structured workflows can drive growth and operational excellence in regulated industries.

You can read all about it here! It is amazing to see how creative clients can get with their business processes, saving them so much time and money, myself included!

Wrapping Up

Thanks so much to Erin Rice for sharing her expertise and insights with our virtual community. You can also find her on our Employee Onboarding Tech Experts list, which highlights HR trailblazers who fuel innovation and offer organizations the insights they need to engage new hires.