Is employee data uploaded anywhere?

Merge, page numbers, and compress run in your browser, so the onboarding documents stay on your device.

Can I reuse the pack for every hire?

Yes — keep it as a master and swap the role-specific pages. That's the fastest way to keep onboarding consistent.

How do I keep the file size down?

Run the finished pack through Compress — it trims embedded images and fonts so it sends over email without hitting size limits.

Use case · 8 minutes

How to build a new-hire onboarding pack as one PDF

Combine your handbook, policies, and forms into one clean, fillable onboarding PDF.

For: HR, people-ops, and small-business owners putting together a new-hire packet

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STEP BY STEP

The workflow

Combine handbook, policies, and forms

Merge the employee handbook, policy documents, and any forms into a single file in reading order. Drag the thumbnails so the welcome letter lands first.

Open Merge PDFs

Add page numbers and a footer

Run Page Numbers so the pack reads like one coherent document and a new hire can be pointed to 'page 12' during onboarding.

Open Add Page Numbers

Make the forms fillable

Use Form Fill so tax, direct-deposit, and acknowledgment forms can be completed and signed digitally instead of printed and re-scanned.

Open Fill PDF Form

Compress for easy sending

Shrink the finished pack so it sends cleanly over email or fits your HRIS upload limit.

Open Compress PDF

WHY IT MATTERS

The case for doing this

Onboarding is a first impression, and a stack of separate attachments — handbook here, tax form there, policy PDF somewhere else — makes that impression a confusing one. Combining everything into a single, page-numbered, fillable pack turns it into a guided experience: the new hire opens one file, sees a welcome up front, and completes the forms digitally without printing anything. It's also consistency insurance — build the pack once and every hire gets the same complete set, instead of whatever you remembered to attach that day. Because the merge, page-numbering, and compression steps run in your browser, the personal data on those onboarding forms stays on your device. Keep the finished pack as a master and swap only the role-specific pages for the next hire.

COMMON MISTAKES

What to avoid

Burying the welcome and the to-dos

Lead with a one-page welcome and a checklist of what to complete. A 40-page pack with the action items on page 30 doesn't get finished.

Shipping flat (non-fillable) forms

A form a new hire has to print, sign, and re-scan kills momentum. Make forms fillable so the whole pack is digital.

TIPS FOR THE BEST RESULTS

What works

Keep a template pack

Build the pack once, then swap only the role-specific pages for each hire instead of rebuilding from scratch.

Add a checklist page up front

A simple 'Day 1 / Week 1' checklist turns a document into a guided onboarding.

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FAQ

Questions about this workflow

Yes — once you make the forms fillable, they complete them in any PDF viewer or right in the browser.

Try the workflow on a real PDF

Free tools run in your browser. No signup, no watermarks.

Start with step 1