techport HR Suite
Digital Personnel File: Master Data, Contracts and Documents in One Place
The paper file sits in the cupboard, master data is stored in the payroll software, and the signed contract is a scan on a network drive. The digital personnel file in the techport HR Suite brings all of this together: master data, employment, organisation, documents, personnel measures, tasks and history for each person. Roles define who can see what, and every access to a document is logged. The personnel file is part of core HR administration and operates with recruiting, onboarding and leave management on the same database.
Does this sound familiar?
- For a certificate, HR first searches for the folder, then the current address, and then the right template.
- With paper files, it is impossible to tell who last viewed the file.
- A contract amendment has been approved, but the weekly hours in the file are still outdated.
- Part-time, second contract, new cost centre: the history can only be reconstructed from emails.
- Employees send address changes by email, and HR retypes them manually.
- At the second location, there is a separate file that no one reconciles with the first.
What is contained in the digital personnel file
Each file is structured into sections:
- Master data: personnel master data such as name, address and contact details. Custom additional fields supplement whatever else your company needs.
- Employment: contract type, FTE, weekly hours, pay scale group and cost centre, even across multiple contracts per person.
- Organisation: organisational unit, position in the staffing plan and line manager.
- Documents: PDF files and scans with category, visibility level, versions and access log.
- Measures: changes to working hours, contract type, team, position, manager or fixed-term status, each with before and after.
- Tasks and history: open tasks relating to the person and a history of all changes.
Clean master data forms the foundation of any personnel administration. How to clean up legacy data before migration is described in our consulting on HR master data.
Who sees what: permissions, visibility and audit log
Personnel files contain sensitive data. For this reason, each role only sees what it is permitted to see, and the server verifies this with every request, not just the user interface. HR works with the files, line managers see their team, and employees see their own data. An auditor role for internal audit or data protection has read-only access.
For each document, you select one of four visibility levels, specifying who is permitted to view it. Every access to a document is logged. The audit trail records who changed what and when, including before and after values. New versions of a document do not silently overwrite the old version.
The suite automatically deletes data once the configured retention and deletion periods expire. For access requests under Art. 15 GDPR and data portability under Art. 20 GDPR, you can export the data per person. Read more about data protection and AI in the guide GDPR-compliant AI.
Changes via approvals instead of emails
Personnel measures such as adjusted working hours, a team transfer or making an employment contract permanent run as a workflow with multi-step approval. The file displays before and after states. Following approval, the system applies the new values automatically without the need for manual updates. You configure these workflows in the workflow builder without coding, including deadlines and follow-up tasks.
Via employee self-service, staff update their own data, view their documents and submit requests, such as for a change of address or an employment certificate. Approved changes are applied directly to the master data by the system. Line managers initiate measures for their team via self-service.
Contracts and certificates from templates
Contracts and certificates are generated from templates with placeholders. The suite populates them with data from the file and checks whether any details are missing before creating the document. The resulting document is stored directly in the personnel file. Signing takes place as before, and the signed version is filed as a scan.
Digitising personnel files: how to proceed
- Take stock. What documents exist, where are they stored and which do you actually need?
- Define categories and visibility. Ideally together with the data protection officer and the works council. Implementation is subject to codetermination under § 87 Abs. 1 Nr. 6 BetrVG (Works Constitution Act).
- Migrate master data. From the legacy system or spreadsheets, checked in advance for gaps and duplicates.
- Scan and organise paper files. Documents subject to statutory written form requirements, such as fixed-term agreements, terminations and separation agreements, should also be retained in original paper form.
- Configure deadlines. With retention and deletion schedules, the suite automatically deletes records once the period expires.
New hires no longer require a paper file: upon recruitment, the digital personnel file is generated automatically, along with onboarding. Leave management also operates using the same master data.
Explore the digital personnel file in a demo
We will demonstrate the personnel file based on your questions: from file creation and approvals through to the access log. Afterwards, you will know how transitioning from paper or a legacy system can work for you.
Frequently asked questions
What is a digital personnel file?
A digital personnel file is the electronic version of the employee personnel file. Master data, contracts, certificates and other employee documents reside in a single system rather than physical binders. Robust solutions control access via roles, log document views and delete records after retention periods expire. In the techport HR Suite, it is part of personnel administration and connected to recruiting and onboarding.
Is a digital personnel file mandatory?
There is no general requirement to maintain the entire personnel file digitally (as of October 2026). What is usually meant is § 8 Abs. 2 of the Beitragsverfahrensverordnung (Contribution Procedure Ordinance): certain payroll records must be maintained electronically, with exemptions only possible until 31 December 2026. Find out more in the guide digital personnel file requirement.
What is permitted in a personnel file?
A personnel file should contain records relevant to the employment relationship, such as contracts, contract amendments, certificates, warnings and employment references. Private details with no bearing on work do not belong in it. Under § 83 BetrVG (Works Constitution Act), employees have the right to inspect their file and request that their own statement on its contents be appended.
May we destroy paper files after scanning?
For many documents yes, but for some no. Documents subject to statutory written form requirements should be retained as originals, such as the fixed-term agreement (§ 14 Abs. 4 TzBfG [Part-Time and Fixed-Term Employment Act]), termination notices and separation agreements (§ 623 BGB [German Civil Code]), because a scan does not possess the same evidentiary value. Define the procedure in a scanning policy and coordinate it with data protection officers and legal counsel.
Who is permitted to view the digital personnel file?
You determine this via roles. HR works with the files, line managers see their team, and employees see their own data and documents that have been released to them. An auditor role has read-only access. Every access to a document is logged, enabling you to verify at any time who opened which record.
How much does the digital personnel file cost?
The digital personnel file is part of core HR administration in the techport HR Suite. We provide pricing upon request; it depends on the number of employees and the modules you use. The offer is aimed exclusively at businesses. In a demo, you can determine beforehand whether the file fits your processes.