Automating Employee Onboarding: The Complete IT Checklist

IT onboarding is a defined sequence of accounts, licences, devices and access. Done by hand, it leaves new starters waiting on a mailbox that isn't live or a laptop that is still being set up. A workflow automation runs those steps on the start date so IT doesn't repeat the same work for every person who joins.

The problem with doing it by hand

Without automation, most businesses still provision people like this:

1. HR emails IT with the joiner's information
2. IT creates a Microsoft 365 account by hand
3. IT assigns licences from memory of what that role usually gets
4. IT opens accounts in line-of-business applications, one system at a time
5. IT prepares the laptop, installs software and applies settings
6. IT adds the user to the right security groups and shared drives
7. A phone extension is requested later, if anyone thinks of it
8. The new starter turns up and a licence, a group or an application is missing

The sequence takes two to four hours per person. Items get left out.

How the automated process runs

HR submits a form, or the HR system sends a webhook, with the new starter's name, role, department and start date. The automation then runs on that date, in minutes rather than hours:

• Opens a Microsoft 365 account and applies the matching licence
• Places the account in the security groups for that role
• Opens accounts in the line-of-business applications
• Gives them a Teams Phone extension
• Applies the email signature
• Emails the joiner their credentials and instructions for the first day
• Tells the line manager that provisioning is complete

The laptop is enrolled in Intune and registered with Windows Autopilot. The new starter signs in and the configuration downloads without IT preparing the device.

What this setup requires

Microsoft 365 with Intune. Account creation, licence assignment and device provisioning all sit here. It's included with Microsoft 365 Business Premium.

A platform to run the steps. Power Automate comes with Microsoft 365. n8n is the better fit for more complex workflows.

Role templates. Define a template for each role type, such as Sales, Operations or Finance. Each template sets the licences, groups and applications that role receives.

Windows Autopilot. Pre-register devices so they configure themselves at first sign-in. Nobody prepares the laptop manually.

Offboarding

The same automation runs in reverse when someone leaves:

• Disable the account and revoke all sessions
• Convert the mailbox to a shared mailbox for handover
• Remove licences
• Wipe company data from devices through Intune
• Transfer ownership of files and documents
• Disable accounts in connected applications

A former employee whose account is still active is a cybersecurity risk.

How Wanzo runs this

Joiner and leaver provisioning is workflow automation, sitting on the managed IT we already operate. We set the role templates, build the workflows and keep them running. HR submits the details. We provision from there.

Next step

If you want this running for your joiners and leavers, use the contact page or email hello@wanzo.co.uk. Say how provisioning works today and which systems a new starter needs. We'll turn that into a monthly service.