Introducing Nicole, DocuSign Admin at New Mexico Educational Retirement Board
Driving a team to adopt a new process or technology is no small feat. For this spotlight, we’re thrilled to introduce you to Nicole Jaramillo, IT Business Analyst turned DocuSign Admin extraordinaire who played a critical role in helping to jumpstart digital agreement processes at New Mexico Educational Retirement Board (NMERB). This blog explores how Nicole and her team rolled out electronic signatures to keep pace with increasing retirements while creating a seamless member experience.
NMERB provides secure retirement benefits for New Mexico’s educational employees—serving over 160,000 members and retirees. Today, the organization manages one of the highest-ranking public pension plans in the country in terms of return on investment.
Paperless processes became more critical when COVID-19 triggered shutdowns across the state during NMERB’s busiest time of the year. We talked to Nicole about her experience launching new technology and driving change management in the new work-from-home world.
How did you get your start as a DocuSign admin?
My role continues to evolve and shift due to the different demands and needs of NMERB. When we need a new tool or enhancement I am always willing to learn and help in any way I can
What do you love about your current role?
What I love about my current role is having the ability to continue to learn and expand my knowledge base.
What led you down the path to DocuSign eSignature?
By the end of March 2020, we all moved to remote work—so our schools and offices were closed. That was the really big push—finding the easiest way to keep things moving.
How long was the implementation?
We went live with our DocuSign production site in about six weeks—and we rolled out our first document—the retirement application—that day. The two weeks prior to that is when I started my training. We only rolled it out to a handful of employers at first. As we worked out the kinks, we added more employers and processes.
What was the typical turnaround time then versus now?
Before, it took at least two weeks, if not longer, for a member to get the application to us. With DocuSign, that timeframe—from start to finish—has decreased to two days (max), and we’ve greatly reduced the number of applications that we’d have to send back due to them being incomplete or having errors. So, we’ve seen a lot of great successes with DocuSign.
What kind of feedback have you gotten from NMERB employers and members?
I get a lot of emails from our employers who used to have to fill out everything on paper— and they're very pleased with the process. They’re like: It takes so much less time. It's so efficient. Not only is it helping our employers and our members, it's helping us as well. It's easier for everyone—from the member to employer to ERB. Everything I’ve heard has been really positive.
What do you like most about using DocuSign?
I really like how DocuSign has helped members, their employers, and ERB make the retirement process faster and more efficient. I look forward to doing the same for more processes in the future.
What is one piece of advice that you would give a new DocuSign admin?
Do not hesitate to reach out to your Customer Success Architect. They have been a tremendous help to me in getting DocuSign up and running. Still to this day, I reach out with questions about new features DocuSign has launched.
What’s next? How do you envision the future of digital at NMERB?
2022 is looking to be a great year for NMERB and our digital efforts. E-Notary becomes law of the land which will allow NMERB to launch additional forms making it easier for NMERBs members to update their information and refund their retirement contributions.
What are some things you like to do in your down time?
I enjoy spending time with my family. I’m appreciating the extra time we are able to spend together recently.
Read New Mexico Educational Retirement Board's full DocuSign success story.