ZEN Energy powers HR and IT security with Employment Hero

A growing energy business with evolving workforce needs

ZEN Energy is an energy generation and retailer helping businesses and communities switch to clean power. With a growing workforce spread across three offices and various project sites, ZEN Energy’s HR and IT teams needed systems that are reliable, secure and easy to manage.

HR Coordinator, Erin Dybvig, and Head of Systems and Information Security, Wes Bloss, are using Employment Hero to support everything from onboarding and compliance to reporting and recruitment.

Before Employment Hero: disconnected systems and manual processes 

Before switching to Employment Hero, ZEN Energy was using a combination of manual tools and disconnected systems to manage HR processes. Policies were stored on SharePoint, onboarding relied heavily on back-and-forth emails and there was no clear way to track whether employees had read critical documents.

“We didn’t have a way to verify if someone had actually read a policy,” Wes said. “From a compliance and cybersecurity perspective, that was a risk, especially given our ISO 27001 requirements.”

HR processes like onboarding and offboarding were time-consuming and inconsistent. Erin shared that managers were often unclear on their responsibilities and HR had to follow up constantly to ensure tasks were completed.

“It was messy. We had to ask managers to fill in forms manually, pass them to IT and follow up over email. It wasn’t the smoothest experience for new employees either; sometimes they’d start without having access to the systems they needed,” said Erin.

The limitations of these systems created extra work and impacted ZEN Energy’s ability to present a polished, professional experience to new hires and internal stakeholders.

A smoother onboarding experience

ZEN Energy is now refreshing its onboarding process using Employment Hero’s checklist features. Erin is leading the update and working closely with Wes to ensure all departments are aligned.

“We’re working to improve how we connect with the service desk and the IT team,” Erin said. “Wes uses Employment Hero regularly, so it makes sense for him to help us build this out.”

Checklists automate the handover between HR, IT and other teams. Everyone knows what they’re responsible for and new employees have everything they need from day one.

“It probably saves us at least half an hour for every new starter,” Erin said. “We’ve been able to build out our onboarding with Employee Assistance Program registration and induction content, all of which now get sent out automatically. It means new hires have everything they need upfront, and we’re not chasing paperwork or repeating admin tasks each time someone joins.”

Managing compliance through policy acknowledgements

Operating in the energy sector means ZEN Energy is held to high regulatory standards. Employment Hero’s policy acknowledgement feature has given the business more confidence in its compliance and internal risk management.

“Before Employment Hero, we used SharePoint and had no way of knowing who had read what. Now we can ask employees to confirm they’ve read a document. That’s really important for ISO 27001 compliance,” said Wes.

The HR team can now confidently show that policies have been distributed and acknowledged, which is critical during audits and reviews.

Centralised employee data for better systems

ZEN Energy uses Employment Hero as its single source of truth for employee records. The system stores employment history, position descriptions and CVs all in one place.

“Employment Hero has everything. It makes managing employee information much easier,” said Erin. 

From an IT and cybersecurity perspective, Wes is confident in the platform’s protection measures. “The multi-factor authenticator and regular product updates give us peace of mind and meet our expectations for data security,” said Wes. 

Easy access to data for board and compliance reporting

Erin uses the platform’s HR reporting features to prepare monthly and quarterly reports for ZEN Energy’s board and compliance team. She can generate workforce data in minutes, which saves time and improves visibility.

“We report on Work Health and Safety incidents, headcount, turnover and diversity. That transparency helps us plan initiatives, especially around gender balance and Indigenous participation,” said Erin.

Previously, generating these reports required pulling data manually from different sources. Now, everything is accessible from one dashboard.

Flexible leave options that support employee wellbeing

ZEN Energy has created flexible leave policies that include four wellbeing days per year in addition to standard annual leave. Employment Hero makes it easy to track and manage these custom leave types.

“We’ve set up various types of leave. For example, we’ve set up leisure leave so employees can take a day off and recharge,” said Erin. 

This has helped reduce burnout, especially during busier periods. Erin said they’re even exploring ways to expand wellness leave without increasing costs.

“It supports retention and employee engagement. It’s a small thing that makes a big difference,” Erin added.

Smart hiring with built-in collaboration

ZEN Energy uses Employment Hero’s recruitment features for early-career and mid-level roles. The integration with SEEK allows them to advertise roles and manage applications in one place.

Hiring managers are set up in the system to review and comment on applicants. Erin handles the initial screening and scheduling.

“Hiring managers go in and shortlist candidates. Then I’ll organise a call with them for a quick screen. It’s easy to collaborate through the Applicant Tracking System.”

The notes feature helps hiring teams share feedback quickly and the platform provides a clear overview of where each candidate is in the process.

A trusted platform backed by support

Erin and Wes are both confident in Employment Hero’s support and resources. Erin regularly uses the help centre to learn and troubleshoot, while Wes appreciates the platform’s responsiveness.

“Compared to other vendors we’ve worked with, the support is excellent,” Wes said.

Adoption across departments is improving and the platform has become an essential part of ZEN Energy’s operations.

“It’s the sixth member of our team,” Erin said. “I use it every day for onboarding, offboarding, policies and more.”

Ready to empower your team like ZEN Energy? Book a demo to see how Employment Hero can make work easier and more valuable for your business.