In most school districts, there are hundreds of details to manage behind the scenes. But when it comes to welcoming new employees or updating existing staff records, those details often pile up quickly.
Franklin County Schools recognized the need for a more efficient, consistent system to manage something that touches nearly every employee: headshots, ID badges, and email signatures. What started as a small request turned into a fully automated process built for scale, clarity, and ease.
a district-wide challenge
Before this system was in place, there was no formal process to track or create headshots, badges, or email signatures. Each of these tasks had to be handled manually, often by different people on different timelines, leading to delays, confusion, and inconsistent branding.
What the district needed wasn’t just a one-time solution. They needed a
sustainable system.
what we built
The Alchemy Collaborative designed and implemented a
centralized, automated process that’s now a seamless part of the district’s onboarding and staff update workflow. Here’s how it works:
- Staff begin at their Design Lab site, where they fill out a simple form indicating whether they need a new headshot or just an update to their name/title.
- If they need a headshot, the system automatically emails them a scheduling link and notifies the HR staff member who manages photography.
- Before any headshots were taken, we also
designed and delivered branded pop-up banners for each school and the district office. These banners give the HR employee a clean, consistent background to use no matter where the photos are taken—ensuring every employee headshot looks polished and professional.
- Once the headshot is taken, the HR employee attaches it in our system. From there, everything flows into place:
- A new or updated
email signature is generated
- An
ID badge design is created and sent for printing
- All files are delivered automatically to the employee and/or HR
- For staff who don’t need a new headshot, the system pulls from a
fully searchable headshot archive already organized by location and employee name.
The result: less back-and-forth, no spreadsheets, and a much more polished first impression for every employee.
why it works
This isn’t just automation for automation’s sake. It’s about building trust through consistency—both in process and in presentation.
- New employees are welcomed with professional, on-brand materials
- HR saves hours of time previously spent tracking images and requests
- The district presents a unified, polished image across staff email, signage, and materials
Most importantly, it’s all built into the tools the district already uses, making it easy to maintain long term.
want to put your onboarding on autopilot?
We help districts take small, overlooked processes and turn them into systems that save time, reduce confusion, and create consistency. If you’re still juggling headshots, badges, or email signatures manually, we can help you build something smarter.
The details matter. Let’s make them seamless.
Book your free discovery call today!
