People are terminated or leave positions for multiple reasons. In order to protect your company, it is essential that rigorous practices be in place when someone leaves. It is crucial that your IT support team be looped in ahead of time whenever possible. If you are unable to give advanced notice, make sure Wingman IT Services is notified as soon as possible. Failure to do so allows the departing employee continued access to your systems leaving the door open for destructive consequences.
Here are 5 steps to keep your organization safe and make the transition as smooth as possible.
Option 1: Contact your IT support to keep them in the loop – let them do all the work 😊
Option 2: (do it yourself):
- Disable the employee’s ability to log-in
The first step in protecting your business is to prevent the person leaving from being able to access to proprietary information - Remove access to cloud services, especially email
Even if company equipment has been recovered, a person may still be able to get into email and cloud services - Make sure that any currently used devices are locked out
If a device is currently logged in, the employee will still have the same access until they are logged out - Evaluate mobile devices with company access
Remember to revoke permission on any and all mobile devices the employee has had access to - Get all your equipment back
Ensure any company issued equipment is returned. This includes laptops, cell phones, tablets, access card, and any other tools given to the employee during their time with you.
You may be thinking this all makes sense for a person being terminated, but ‘what if I like the employee’? The same separation steps should be taken for a staff member departing on good terms. Even if you like them, there is no telling what tomorrow brings and it is not worth leaving your company vulnerable.
Our job at Wingman IT Services is protect your business and we need you to help us keep you safe. While it may seem like there is no rush to disable accounts because the worker is leaving, keeping accounts open to ‘rot’ leaves room for security breaches. The only time the account shouldn’t be disabled is if the employee will be returning (FMLA or a leave of absence). Should circumstance change and the person stays with your company, the process is reversible.
To streamline the process, ensure that your organization has a dedicated person – such as a specific HR representative to reach out to us. Rather than opening a ticket, this task should be done at least 24 hours in advance via email or phone call to ensure the process is done correctly and quickly. The sooner we’re aware of the upcoming separation, the better. If you know the upcoming date of a termination, we can schedule when access should be revoked. If you don’t wish to divulge who is leaving/being fired that’s ok, but letting Wingman IT know when it will be happening is beneficial to all parties.
Unexpected terminations happen. If this occurs with a worker at your company, be sure to call us immediately. Time is of the essence, we want to keep your company safe but can only do so if we’re in the know. We will make the time to make the transition as smooth as possible.
This process should be used for both on-site employees as well as remote employees.
Protecting your business starts with proactive planning and communication. At Wingman IT Services, we’re here to help you secure your company during employee transitions—whether planned or unexpected. By following these steps and keeping us informed, you can ensure a smooth process and safeguard your organization. Together, we can make your workplace safer and more resilient.