How to select an Employee Identifier in 15Five

In 15Five, the Employee Identifier is a unique value used to track and manage each employee’s account. By default, the Employee Identifier is set to the employee’s email address. While convenient, email addresses can change over time due to name updates or domain changes—sometimes causing duplicate accounts or login issues.

To avoid these challenges, many organizations use Employee ID instead. Unlike emails, an Employee ID is static and unique to each person, making it the more reliable choice.

This article walks Account admins through how to select an Employee Identifier for your company.

In this article, you will learn...

• How to select an Employee Identifier 🧑‍💻
• Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) ❓

How to select an Employee Identifier 🧑‍💻

1. Click on the Settings gear in the top, right-hand corner of 15Five.
   
2. Select "Company settings" from the dropdown menu to open the company settings page.
   
3. You're now on the "Company info" tab of Company settings. From here, expand the "Import settings" section.
   
4. Select whether you want to use email or employee ID as the unique identifier for your employees.
   
   
   
   ✏️

   Note

   This setting only impacts CSV imports, SFTP, and HRIS integrations. It does not affect integrations that are not hosted in 15Five, such as SCIM and SAML.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) ❓

Why should I use Employee ID instead of email?

Employee IDs don’t change, while email addresses can. Using Employee ID helps prevent login issues or duplicate accounts caused by email updates.

Do employees still need an email address if we use Employee ID?

Yes. Every employee must have an email address to log in to 15Five, even if Employee ID is used as the identifier.

What is the default Employee Identifier in 15Five?

By default, the Employee Identifier is set to email.

Will switching to Employee ID cause duplicate accounts during a bulk import?

No. 15Five uses logic to prevent duplicates when importing via CSV. If there are empty IDs or duplicates between 15Five and the import file, Account admins will see an error message.