You set up a new starter quickly with a standard, repeatable process: their account, hosted-desktop access, email, software and a ready device all prepared before their first day. Done this way, a new office or site starter is productive from their first morning rather than waiting around, and their access is correct and secure from the start. For a growing contractor taking people on regularly, this matters.
Onboarding done badly wastes a new person’s first days and creates security gaps. Here’s how to make it quick and clean.
1. Ready before day one
We set up the new starter’s account, email and hosted-desktop access, and prepare their laptop, before they arrive. They walk in to a working setup rather than a wait.
2. The right access, by role
We give them access to the systems and files their role needs, and no more. Granting access by role keeps it consistent and secure, and makes changes easy if they move roles later.
3. A secure, standard device
Their laptop comes with the standard build: the software they need, plus endpoint protection, encryption, allowlisting and MFA from day one. Security is part of the setup, not something added later.
4. A repeatable process
Because onboarding follows a clear process, it’s quick and nothing gets missed, even when you’re busy taking several people on at once. The same applies in reverse when someone leaves, so access is removed promptly.
A real example: new starters set up fast
We support a security and M&E contractor that takes on office and site staff as it grows. We handle new-starter setups as a routine, getting people onto the hosted desktop and email with the right access quickly. As one user told us after a setup: “Very helpful as always.”
For a security, fire or M&E contractor, this is part of managed IT and security that usually costs about £45 to £100 per user per month, scaling with your headcount, how many staff work from site, and the finance and security software you rely on.
Why security and M&E contractors choose First Stop IT
First Stop IT has supported businesses since 2002, including security, fire and M&E contractors and building-services firms with office and site-based teams. We know how these businesses run: hosted desktops for staff on site and in the office, QuickBooks and payroll, secure remote access for field engineers, Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace, and the layered security that protects a firm handling client sites and payments, from MFA and application allowlisting to managed threat detection. We support contractors in Harlow, Bishop’s Stortford and across Essex, Hertfordshire and London. Our credentials include:
- Cyber Essentials Certified
- IASME Cyber Assurance (Gold)
- NCSC Assured Service Provider (Cyber Advisor for Cyber Essentials)
- Microsoft Partner
- Crown Commercial Service Supplier (G-Cloud)
- Quality Principles Certified
We look after more than 2,000 endpoints across 50 companies, we’ve been named a Top 50 UK MSP for three years running, and we support organisations with 10 to 100 employees across Essex, Hertfordshire and London, including Harlow and Bishop’s Stortford.
Book a free IT and cyber security review
Want new starters productive on day one? Book a free IT and cyber security review with First Stop IT and we’ll make onboarding quick and secure.