Running a successful business requires effort, focus, drive and systemisation.
The last word may bring you out in a rash or make you yawn, but it can be the difference between scalability and forever treading water.
When you want to grow your business, this usually means more people. And with people comes complexity and a whole lot of assumptions – from you and from them.
Systemised processes that detail what happens when someone starts or leaves are important processes that must be followed to achieve consistency and reduce risks to your business.
1. Getting New People Is EXPENSIVE Right?
Let’s face it, recruitment is a painful process. You may have to go through a costly agency, spend hours wading through CVs, first and second interviews, get references. All crucial to increase your confidence that you have found the right person.
Don’t you want them to hit the ground running? If anything to get the best return from your investment (their salary!).
2. Fight Against “The Great Resignation”
They will most likely want to as well.
Having the right tech equipment, email accounts and access to what they need *before* their start date, gives you confidence that they will be ready to be shown the ropes immediately.
And it will make them feel looked after and welcomed. In the current employee’s market – first impressions can give the new starter a positive or negative vibe. If it’s a bad start, maybe they will look elsewhere. And you have to start again? OMG!
3. Security For Onboarding: You Want To Ensure That The New Starter Can ONLY Access What They Need
Poor onboarding processes increase the risk that a new hire may see the wrong data: imagine they see your financials. HR data (think GDPR) – or what about your company’s intellectual property or secret sauce?
Robust onboarding safeguards against this. So that before the newbie gets through the door, their accounts have been set up, access to folders, drives and other systems have been configured.
4. Get Your Team Looped Into Security Awareness
If your team members have access to a company email account or device that can access company data, they pose a risk to your business. In most cases, without awareness of course, but discussing cyber security *as part of their onboarding process* makes it very clear on day one what you expect from them.
There are many inexpensive online training courses available that can be easily added to their induction day. And you can test if they have been paying attention with mock or simulated phishing attacks that send (safe) but clearly suspect emails that if clicked on force the clicker to watch some “re-educational” video content to remind them why they should not click on every link they get.
5. Get Them To Sign An Acceptable Use Policy/ Data Protection Policy Document
This does not have to be a 40-page document: it needs to spell out what is and is not OK on company devices and systems. It covers them and it covers you: write it once and review it annually.
6. And When Someone Leaves, You Have To Consider How To Protect Yourself
Most leavers are not going to “do bad things”, but think about anyone who leaves under a cloud or has a grudge against you. Are you confident that all systems they had access to have now been locked down?
ITGUYS provides bespoke on and off-boarding processes for our clients that integrate with their internal HR set-up – as part of all our managed service plans.
- We can offer support with writing policy documents, security awareness training, as well as other features upon request.
- We can order tech equipment, M365 or G Suite licenses and have most things pre-configured so that new starters are good to go on day one.
- And of course, when they leave, we can comprehensively remove access as directed.
To find out how we can help you reduce risk whilst running a successful business get in touch today.
