IT onboarding checklist: get new starters ready before day one
Name an owner, agree the new starter's role and access, prepare their device and individual work account, then test the tasks they need to do. Review the setup after their first week so missing access gets fixed and unnecessary access is removed.
This IT onboarding checklist gives an office manager a practical way to coordinate those jobs. It works best when every task has a named owner and a clear check that it is finished.
A laptop on the desk is a useful start. The real test is whether the person can sign in safely, find the right information and complete their first piece of work.
1. Agree the role before ordering or creating anything
Start with the manager and the person coordinating IT. Record the starter's name, start date, manager, work location and the date by which decisions are needed.
Then describe their work:
Which tasks must they handle in their first week?
Which applications, shared mailboxes and files support those tasks?
Which information should they be allowed to view, edit or share?
Will they work in the office, remotely or both?
Do they need particular equipment or accessibility adjustments?
Give the business manager responsibility for approving access and spending. Give an authorised IT administrator responsibility for checking licences, configuring accounts and devices, and applying the approved permissions. A named coordinator follows up anything that crosses between them.
Avoid copying a colleague's access wholesale. Their account may include responsibilities or exceptions the new starter will never need. An existing role checklist is useful, provided the manager reviews it for this person.
2. Prepare the account, device and sign-in method
Give the person their own work identity
Arrange an individual account with the correct name and business email address. Microsoft says each person needs a user account to access Microsoft 365. The administrator should confirm the appropriate licences and use the administrative role with the fewest permissions needed for the setup.
Agree when the account becomes available and how initial sign-in instructions will reach the starter securely. Keep passwords and recovery codes out of the onboarding checklist.
List the applications they need, including any supplied by another company. Someone must check those accounts and licences too; creating a Microsoft 365 account does not settle every application's access.
Make the device usable and supported
Confirm who supplies the computer, charger and any necessary screen, headset or other equipment. Allow time for delivery and setup before the person needs to use them.
Have IT check supported software, updates, required applications and the organisation's device protection. Record the device identifier and who it is assigned to. If personal devices are permitted, agree what business use is allowed and how company information will be protected before access starts.
Microsoft's Business Premium device guidance distinguishes managing a whole device from protecting business data through supported applications. The suitable approach depends on ownership, platform, licensing and your setup; let the administrator confirm it.
Plan multifactor authentication enrolment
Multifactor authentication, or MFA, adds verification to sign-in. Arrange time for the starter to enrol using the method approved for your organisation, with help available if they get stuck.
Ask IT to confirm the account is covered by the intended security policy. Microsoft's MFA guidance describes different configuration options with different licence requirements. Keep the enrolment instructions consistent with the policy already in use, rather than changing organisation-wide settings to get one person started.
3. Check access and explain where work belongs
Before day one, ask the administrator to confirm that approved shared mailboxes, sites, folders and applications have been assigned. Include who approves any extra access requested later.
Explain the everyday filing rules. Where do working drafts go? Where are current customer documents and standard templates? Our OneDrive vs SharePoint guide can help you agree a clear home for individual and shared work.
Give the starter their support contact and a way to reach help if they cannot sign in. For remote staff, check how they will receive setup instructions before their work email is usable.
4. Run a day-one working check
Set aside time with the starter to test their own account on their assigned device. Ask them to:
Sign in and complete the required verification.
Send and receive a test work email, if their role uses email.
Open the folders and shared resources their manager approved.
Create or update a safe test document in the correct place.
Open the key business application and try a representative task.
Find the support contact and explain how they would report a problem.
Use test information where appropriate. Never borrow another employee's password to get past a failed check.
In a hypothetical office team, a new coordinator needs to receive an enquiry, find the job template and save a draft in the shared jobs area. Completing that short sequence can reveal a missing mailbox permission or folder access before they handle live customer work.
Record the result and give any remaining issue an owner and due date. Agree a safe temporary arrangement with the manager and IT if a necessary tool is unavailable.
5. IT onboarding checklist: your task record
Copy this record for each starter and keep it where the appropriate manager and IT contact can update it:
Starter, role, manager and start date: ______
Task and required outcome: ______
Business approver: ______
Person doing the work: ______
Due date: ______
Evidence of completion and date checked: ______
Blocker or exception, owner and next action: ______
First-week review date: ______
Use a separate task entry for the account, device, applications, shared access and day-one test. Evidence can be a support ticket reference or a brief result, without copying confidential information into the record.
For example: “Shared jobs folder; manager-approved edit access; IT assigns access before start; starter opens and saves a test file on day one.” Mark it complete when that check succeeds.
6. Review the first week
Ask the starter and manager what remains difficult. Fix gaps, have authorised IT remove access the role does not need, and confirm training or support actions. Update your role checklist with useful lessons for the next hire.
Cache4's Managed Security & Support includes user onboarding and day-to-day Microsoft 365 administration, with the supported environment and work agreed in advance.
Book a free 30-minute Discovery Call with Paul. Bring your next starter's role and your current process. We'll talk through where preparation gets held up and whether we can help make it more repeatable.
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