How Should IT Onboarding be Done?

Introduction:

Onboarding is a demanding task for a company. They must be meticulous about it because it can make or break things for them. The employees might have their spirits dampened after the onboarding is not done correctly. They have invested so much energy in the onboarding process, and when it’s a failure, an employee resigns. This is a waste of time for an HR who scrutinizes many resumes before selecting one. Onboarding is critical to a company because it paves the way for the employee to adjust to his role. This is the company's job to see that during onboarding, employees are provided with the proper knowledge and skills to do their work correctly.

Duration and Variability: There can be distinct lengths of an employee’s onboarding depending on what his experience has been in previous roles. It also varies with the industry he will be a part of. For example, some industries require more extended onboarding roles so that employees are adequately accustomed. Generally, onboarding does not take more than three months for a new joiner.

Challenges in IT Onboarding: Onboarding in IT is a tough challenge because some employees work from different parts of the world. They will never meet each other in person.

Remote onboarding is challenging for every company because a company cannot judge the facial expressions of such employees. It's tough to evaluate whether the new employees comprehend the company's rules and don’t feel isolated from everyone else. The IT onboarding must have a different way of getting things done. Onboarding depends on the willingness of the team leader on how much he is willing to explain things. This kind of onboarding uses documentation to convey matters to such employees.

Virtual sessions are also necessary because employees need to be talked to, but there can be miscommunication. The VILT sessions are not enough because employees must also resolve their queries. Hence, it is the leader’s job is to see that the new employees have all the support materials required to carry out their jobs. The following things must be included in IT onboarding:

·?????? Technical Training and Support: IT onboarding also requires some depth because technical issues can also arise. Therefore, the company must provide employees with training materials and even helpdesk support if needed. With IT helpdesk support, employees can solve their queries on time.

·?????? Cybersecurity Awareness: IT onboarding also requires teaching employees about cybersecurity. They need to be made aware of the compliance procedures because companies contain third party data of stakeholders. This data can get leaked when the employees don’t know about the cybersecurity procedures, like not clicking on phishing emails. If the employees have not been given cybersecurity training, the company can face compliance issues. The employees can be at fault for letting the sensitive data fall into third-party hands.

·?????? Software Familiarization: Regarding IT onboarding, there needs to be teaching the various software used in the company. Every company has unique software; hence, new joiners should be trained to handle the software easily.The employees can’t function once they have not been given adequate training on using software in the company.

·?????? Permissions and Access Control: The onboarding also requires some hard work from the IT department. This requires deciding which employees can access which systems, hence choosing the permissions. The employees must be given the proper usernames and passwords as per their permission levels. The employees can’t function once they have not been given adequate training on using software in the company.

Conclusion:

With IT onboarding done, the users/employees have a great experience with the company. They feel great that the company will help them adjust to their new roles.

IT onboarding can be expensive for a company because it involves procuring a trainer from the software company, which can be costly. It adds to the cost of the software apart from licensing costs. A company also requires IT support resources, which the employees can consult after the trainer is gone. These resources must be satisfactory; otherwise, the employees can feel frustrated.

Security Concerns in IT onboarding:

The company can provide access to the wrong employees during the IT onboarding process. This can be risky for a company because it can lead to insider threats. These threats arise from employees who have all the information about computer systems. Hence, it's better to do background checks on employees before providing them access to security systems.

?

?