Adding a new employee

Keka allows you to add new employees individually or in bulk, giving HR teams flexibility based on hiring volume. Depending on your role and permissions, you can quickly create new employee profiles or upload multiple records at once using a simple Excel import wizard.

This article covers how to add employees, who has access to this feature, and how to manage both individual and bulk employee additions efficiently.

Who can add employees to Keka?

Only users with the right privileges can add employees. By default, Global Admins and users with HRIS permissions can perform this action.

To configure who can add employees:

1. Click on the Global Settings icon at the top of the portal.

2. Go to the Roles & Permissions tab.

3. Find or search for the role you want to update.

4. Click the Edit icon beside the role to open its configuration page.

   

5. Under Features → HRIS, enable:

   • Add Employee

   • Bulk Add Employee

Once these permissions are checked, users assigned to that role can add employees individually or in bulk.

Adding employees in Keka

Keka gives you two options to add employees:

• Add Individually: For adding one employee at a time using a step-by-step wizard.

• Add in Bulk: For uploading multiple employees using an Excel import template.

To access these options:

1. Go to Org → Dashboard → Summary.

2. In the Quick Links section, select:

   • +New Employee to add one employee.

   • Add Employees in Bulk to upload multiple records.

Adding employees individually

To add a single employee:

1. Click +New Employee from the Quick Links section.

2. The Add Employee Wizard opens, which includes 4 steps:

Step 1: Basic Details

Enter the employee’s personal details such as:

• First Name, Last Name

• Phone Number

• Email Address

Click Continue to proceed.

Step 2: Job Details

Add the employee’s job-related information, including:

• Job Title

• Joining Date

• Reporting Manager

• Legal Entity, Business Unit

Click Continue once done.

Step 3: Work Details

Configure work-related settings and onboarding details:

• Invite the employee to log in.

• Assign an Onboarding Flow.

• Set up Time & Attendance details such as Shift, Leave Plan, and Weekly Off.

• Assign Expense Policies, Overtime Policies, and an Attendance Number.

Click Save & Continue.

Adding employees in bulk

To upload multiple employees:

1. Click Add Employees in Bulk from the Quick Links section.

2. The Import Employee Personal Details Wizard opens.

This process includes three simple steps.

Step 1: Upload Template

• Download the Excel Template using the provided hyperlink.

• Fill in all required fields (highlighted in red) for each employee.

• Once ready, click Upload Excel File to import the data.

Step 2: Match Columns

If your uploaded file’s column names differ from Keka’s fields, you can map them here.

• Match columns manually using the drop-downs.

• You can ignore non-mandatory fields if they’re irrelevant.

Note: Required fields must always be mapped correctly.

 

Step 3: Preview Data

Keka validates the uploaded data and displays any errors found.

• Errors are grouped by type to simplify correction.

• Fix the issues in your Excel file and re-upload if needed.

• Click Complete once all records are error-free.

After successful upload, all new employees will appear in your Keka system and be ready for onboarding and payroll setup.

Before adding employees, ensure the following entities are already set up in Keka:

• Legal Entities

• Locations

• Job Titles

• Departments / Business Units

These are required fields for creating any employee record.

Please let us know if you find this article helpful.