It’s time to address one of the biggest IT blunders that businesses often face: employee offboarding.
Sounds like a straightforward process, doesn’t it?
“Oh, we have someone leaving unexpectedly, let’s cut off their access right away.”
But the lack of clear definitions and time-sensitive requests can lead to serious slip-ups.
The solution? Well, it’s quite simple: a checklist.
Yes, you heard that right. For both employee onboarding and offboarding, a checklist is an absolute must-have. Without it, you’re risking a myriad of issues, especially for small and mid-sized businesses.
Why is employee onboarding and offboarding so important?
Onboarding
Onboarding correctly is critical because it ensures that your new hire hits the ground running. They are going to learn all of your processes and procedures; they don’t have time to deal with tech hurdles.
Picture this: your new employee, all eager to start, but they can’t access the necessary applications and systems smoothly. It’s frustrating for them, and it makes their training even more challenging. To top it off, they’re probably paired with a senior colleague, who’s trying to help but can’t grant them the right permissions. We know this has happened to you, and it’s been a major time drain.
So, why does this keep occurring? Simple: your IT provider lacks a standardized checklist. That’s where the problem lies. You see, without clear access guidelines based on user roles, you might have a new employee wandering into sensitive areas, like payroll, unintentionally causing chaos.
Offboarding
When an employee leaves, there is a large list of things you need to process. We’ve done a write up on 5 steps for better offboarding you should review. That’s complex enough, but what about when an employee leaves abruptly? You need to act just as quickly, but what does that entail?
First, their email needs to be taken care of. What does that entail? Yes, lock them out of it but what do you do with the mailbox? Forward new mail to another employee? Do you keep their history? We typically suggest converting the mailbox to shared so others on the team can access their work, both current and historical.
Then, you must consider all the applications they were using. Which ones are locally run vs cloud based? Keeping all credentials in a password manager significantly helps manage scenarios like these (as well as being a big buff to your cybersecurity posture). Which require licenses? You don’t want to get stuck paying for a license you are no longer using.
Consider whether they can access anything from their personal devices. Are you able to wipe work access remotely?
Lastly, don’t forget physical access like keys or key cards, and alarm codes.
It’s a lot to think about, but it’s well worth it. A defined offboarding checklist tailored to different roles will allow offboarding to be handled smoothly. Without it though, there’s a higher chance of dropping the ball, leaving a former employee with lingering access to various systems and even your physical premises. This is a security risk we’ve seen happen all too often!
So, how do you tackle this issue? If you have a proactive IT partner, they should have already collaborated with you to create a checklist. But let’s face it, if you’re still reading this, chances are you haven’t had that discussion yet.
Here is a sample list you can start with as a template and adjust to your needs. Before diving into this consider two things.
Take the time to customize it to your business. There are generalities, but the aspects specific to your business and operations are where things will most likely fall short if not planned appropriately.
Your IT provider will handle the bulk of the tasks, but your internal staff will handle some of them as well, and communicate key details to your IT provider. It’s a team effort! That’s why we consider our customers as business partners.
Employee Offboarding Form:
Name: _____
What date with this need to be completed: ______
User role: _______
(Managed Service Provider Tasks)
- Remove Microsoft 365 account
- Turn into shared mailbox and forward to: (manager email account)
- Remove User from (Practice Management Software)
- Remove phone license
- Route this number to:______
- Remove Adobe license
- Does Wi-Fi password need to be changed?
- Remove User from (Web based Application #1)
- Remove User from (Web based Application #2)
- Notify (Vendor #1) to remove user
(Law Firm Tasks)
- Disable door key cards / change door access codes (if applicable)
Remember, this is just the IT Checklist. There are additional considerations from your firm’s side, but we’ll focus on the IT aspect, as it impacts your system’s integrity, including physical access to your premises.
Implementing a straightforward checklist can do wonders for your employee onboarding and offboarding procedures. Work with your IT provider for 30 minutes and it’ll save you countless hours in the long run.
That’s it! It’ll take a little work, but it’s a simple process. Committing to it is a commitment to your firm’s security and efficiency.
If your IT provider hasn’t discussed this checklist with you yet, and you feel it could be a benefit for your business, don’t hesitate to reach out. We specialize in supporting small and mid-sized businesses in Los Angeles and can ensure your firm’s security while boosting your team’s productivity and profitability. Say goodbye to Day 1 hurdles!