Hiring your first employee, what IT to arrange before day one
Laptop, account, mailbox, access to the right folders. In that order, not all of it at 9 a.m. on day one.
Try this first
- 1Order the laptop at least two weeks before the start date. Business models often have one to two weeks lead time and you want it imaged before they walk in.
- 2Create a mailbox and a personal account. Do not let them log in under your name. A personal account means you can see what they did and close access cleanly later.
- 3Turn on MFA during the very first login and let them set up their own authenticator app. Saves a round of panic at the first phone swap.
- 4Pick one shared location for files (SharePoint library or Drive shared drive). Grant access to the folders relevant to their role, not blanket access.
- 5Write half a page about which systems you use and how to reach them. First-week onboarding is usually "ask someone" and that does not scale.
When to bring us in
If this hire will work with client data or financial systems, you want more than a checklist. A real starter-policy with logging and device management is not a luxury.
See also
- First IT setup as a freelancer, what do you actually needNot everything at once. One laptop, a mailbox on your own domain, a password manager, a backup. That covers the first year.
- Moving to a new office, IT checklistInternet and power have the longest lead times. Plan at least three months out, not three weeks.
- Picking internet for a small office, fibre vs business DSL vs 5GFor most offices fibre is the answer. DSL and 5G are fallback or bridge, not plan A.
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