Bringing new employees on board should be an exciting and seamless experience, but for many companies, common IT onboarding mistakes turn it into a frustrating, time-consuming mess.
Without a clear, structured process, new hires are left waiting for access, HR teams get bogged down with manual setup tasks, and security risks start piling up. The worst part? This inefficiency is costing your company valuable time and money.
How much time is HR actually spending on IT onboarding?
Spoiler alert: It’s more than you think. HR teams often spend at least two hours per new hire coordinating IT access. That’s time that could be spent on strategic initiatives, but instead, it’s eaten up by back-and-forth emails, manual approvals, and troubleshooting login issues.
And here’s the kicker—most of the tech work is being handled by admins and HR managers, not IT specialists, which only adds to the inefficiencies.
If IT onboarding at your company still looks like this:
- Emailing IT to request accounts
- Manually setting up permissions
- Chasing down managers to approve access
- Following up with employees about missing credentials
…then you’re not alone. But you are losing valuable time, and even worse—creating security risks and inconsistent experiences for new hires.
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The Risks of a Poorly Structured IT Onboarding Process
A chaotic onboarding process isn’t just frustrating—it’s costly. Here’s what’s at stake:
🔴 Security Gaps: Employees may receive too much or too little access, creating security vulnerabilities. Without a structured approach, “access creep” can lead to former employees or unauthorized users retaining access to critical systems.
⏳ Delays in Productivity: If a new hire’s first week is spent waiting for tools, access, and approvals, that’s time wasted. A sluggish onboarding process can set a poor first impression and delay their ability to contribute.
🎭 Inconsistent Employee Experiences: Some employees might get set up correctly, while others struggle through their first few weeks with missing credentials and locked accounts. This creates a disjointed experience and affects overall morale.
⚠️ Compliance Risks: Missing documentation and improper access permissions can lead to audit failures and potential regulatory fines. If your company is dealing with sensitive data, manual errors in onboarding can lead to major compliance headaches.
How Automation and an IT Onboarding Checklist Can Help
The good news? IT onboarding doesn’t have to be this painful. Here’s how a structured, automated approach can turn things around:
✅ Standardized Processes: An IT onboarding checklist ensures every new hire gets the right access at the right time—no more last-minute scrambling or forgotten credentials.
📉 Reduced HR Workload: By automating access requests, approvals, and provisioning, HR teams can eliminate unnecessary back-and-forth emails and focus on strategic priorities.
🔒 Security-First Approach: Pre-defined permissions ensure new hires only get the access they need—nothing more, nothing less. This prevents security risks and keeps your IT environment in check.
🚀 Faster Ramp-Up Time: With automation, new employees can start working productively on Day 1 instead of spending their first week chasing logins and IT approvals.
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Real-World Example: Manual vs. Automated IT Onboarding
Meet Alex, a new marketing manager at a high-growth startup.
🚶 Manual Onboarding:
- Day 1: No laptop. No software access. Spends the day filling out IT access requests.
- Day 2: Still no access to email or marketing tools. HR is chasing IT for approvals.
- Day 3: Gets partial access but is still locked out of key systems.
- End of Week 1: Frustrated and behind schedule on projects.
🚀 Automated Onboarding:
- Day 1: Laptop is pre-configured and shipped before start date.
- Hour 1: Email, Slack, and marketing tools are provisioned automatically.
- Hour 2: Meets with the team and starts contributing immediately.
- End of Week 1: Fully integrated and working at full capacity.
The difference? Time saved, security improved, and a much better employee experience.
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How Interlaced Can Help
At Interlaced, we specialize in streamlined IT onboarding for startups. Our approach ensures that every new hire gets set up quickly, securely, and consistently—so your HR team can focus on what really matters.
Interlaced provides:
🔹 Automated IT provisioning for seamless account setup
🔹 Security-first onboarding to prevent unauthorized access
🔹 Comprehensive IT support so new hires hit the ground running
Let’s ditch the DIY IT onboarding chaos. Talk to our team today to see how Interlaced can help your team onboard smarter, not harder.
