Setting Up Your SFTP Integration with BuildWitt Improve

What Is the SFTP Integration?

The SFTP (Secure File Transfer Protocol) integration allows your team to automatically sync employee data from your HRIS into BuildWitt Improve. Rather than manually managing user accounts, your system sends a structured employee file to a secure server, and BuildWitt handles the rest, keeping your team roster up to date on a daily basis.

This integration is ideal for organizations whose HRIS doesn't have a direct native connection to BuildWitt but can export employee data as a CSV file.

Before You Begin

Make sure your HRIS system can export employee data as a .csv file
Decide which upload path fits your organization:

	Manual Upload	Automated Upload
Best for	Teams without IT resources or a one-time setup	Organizations wanting hands-free, daily syncing
How it Works	You export a .csv from your HRIS and upload it manually via BuildWitt Account	Your HRIS or IT team configures an automatic push to the SFTP server on a schedule
Ongoing Effort	Requires a manual upload each time you want to sync	Runs automatically once configured

Not sure which path to take? If your HRIS supports scheduled exports, the automated path is recommended. Otherwise, start with manual.

Step 1 — Prepare Your Employee Data File

Your IT or HR team will need to prepare a CSV file that matches the BuildWitt SFTP format.

Critical: The file must be named HRIS.csv exactly. Any variation in the file name will cause the sync to fail.

Fields:

Field	Required	Notes	Mapped to in BuildWitt Account
employee_id*	✅	Employee_ID is different from the Employee_Number. It is typically a system-generated identifier that remains constant for the life of the employee record. If your source system does not store a separate unique Employee_ID, the Employee_Number can be used instead.
employee_number*	✅	Company assigned identification number used for payroll, timekeeping, or other internal processes.	Employee Code
first_name*	✅		First Name
last_name*	✅		Last Name
username			N/A
work_email*	✅		Email
personal_email			Email (work email takes priority)
mobile_phone_number*	✅		Phone Number
manager_id			Supervisor
start_date		Employee Hire Date	Hire Date
employment_status	✅	Must be Active or Inactive
company_id
company_legal_name
company_display_name
employment_id
job_title	✅		Job Title
group_id		This functions as the unique identifier for the employee's department, division, or other organizational group.
group_name		This is the name of the employee's department or division	Division.
group_type		Group_Type identifies the type of organizational grouping (for example, Department, Division, or Team). It is primarily used when organizations choose to sync only specific group types. If your organization has a single grouping type, using a default value such as Department or Division works well.

Step 2 — Enable the Integration in BuildWitt Accounts

From account.buildwitt.com navigate to Company Settings>Integrations
Select Connect Now
- Note: The Generic SFTP integration must be enabled by your Customer Success Manager before it will appear as an available option.

In the Connect Now window, select Generic SFTP

Choose how you want to upload your employee data:
- Manual Upload – Upload a .csv file manually. After the upload is complete, proceed to the Division Setup step before employee records begin syncing.
- Scheduled Recurring CSV – Configure an SFTP connection to automatically import your employee CSV on a recurring schedule.
  
  Once your BuildWitt CSM has completed the setup on the BuildWitt side, you'll receive a set of SFTP credentials to configure in your HRIS or share with your IT team:

- - SFTP Host — the server address to connect to
  - SFTP Username
  - SFTP Password or SSH Key

Your IT team will use these credentials to configure your HRIS to push the HRIS.csv file to the SFTP server on your agreed schedule.

If your organization requires Merge's security certifications, you can request access directly at Merge Trust Center

Step 3 — Upload Your Employee File (First Sync)

Once credentials are in place:

Your HRIS/IT team uploads the HRIS.csv to the Merge SFTP server
The first sync is a full pull — all employee records in the file will be imported
Processing typically occurs overnight (default sync runs daily at 3:00 AM ET)
Your BuildWitt CSM will confirm when the initial sync is complete and validate the data with you

Step 4 — Validate Your Employee Data

After the first sync, your CSM will work with you to confirm:

Total employee count matches your expected headcount
Employee fields are mapped correctly (name, email, phone, job title, department, start date)
Active employees show as Active in BuildWitt Improve
No unexpected duplicates exist

Step 5 — Configure Your Ongoing Sync Schedule

Once validation is complete, your IT team will configure your HRIS to automatically push HRIS.csv to the SFTP server on the agreed schedule (default: daily at 3:00 AM ET).

After the first full sync, all subsequent syncs are delta-based — meaning only new hires, terminations, and changed records are processed, keeping things efficient.

What happens automatically with each sync:

New employees in the file are added to BuildWitt Improve
Updated employee records (name, title, department, etc.) are reflected
Terminated/inactive employees are archived in BuildWitt

Important Notes

Manual user additions

Admins can still manually add users before the integration runs (e.g., for pre-start-date onboarding). Once the integration is live, avoid manually setting a Hire Date — the integration manages that field.

Inactive employees

Terminated employees included in your file as Inactive will be archived in BuildWitt. They remain in the system but won't have active access.

File naming:

HRIS.csv — no variations.

Ongoing Support

Once your integration is live

Submit any issues or enhancement requests to support@buildwitt.com or the BuildWitt Product Portal
Your CSM will monitor syncs closely during the first 30 days post-launch to ensure everything is running smoothly
Questions about the setup process? Reach out to your BuildWitt Customer Success Manager directly