The key Role of ITAM in offboarding and onboarding

ITAM in Onboarding: Getting Employees Up to Speed 

Starting a new job is an exciting (and sometimes nerve-wracking!) experience. The last thing new hires need is to spend their first days waiting for access to essential software or hardware. An IT asset management software helps by tracking, assigning, and managing all the assets needed for quick and effective onboarding. 

ITAM makes sure that every piece of tech a new hire needs is ready to go from day one. It pre-assigns assets like laptops, smartphones, or software licenses. This way, employees won’t waste time waiting for approval from the IT department. They can easily find and set up what they need. 

An ITAM tool makes this process very automated. It helps with setup, assigning licenses and managing access permissions. Especially for new hires, the ease of logging in and finding everything you need is more important than you assume.  

See how that works in practice via this video.  

ITAM and HR: A Team Effort in Onboarding 

Onboarding doesn’t happen in a vacuum. No matter the size or level of bureaucracy, in most organizations ITAM and HR teams work hand-in-hand to manage both digital and physical assets.  

When you have HR asset management solutions in place, employee records connect directly to assigned assets, which helps keep every detail on track. This helps cut down the follow-up exchange between the two departments, as it automatically syncs the information about employees’ roles and needs.  

HR stays in the loop on which devices or software are allocated, and IT gets notified when they’re needed to act upon those needs – which helps everyone save time and focus on other high-value work. 

Why ITAM Makes All the Difference in Offboarding 

When an employee leaves, there’s much more at stake than handing in their key card and laptop. Data security and cost control both hinge on proper ITAM management during offboarding. ITAM addresses three main concerns from different departments: It reclaims assets, wipes data securely from devices, and revokes access to accounts and software. 

When an employee leaves a company, it doesn't mean they lose access to sensitive information, unless ITAM is involved. Offboarding through ITAM means making sure all devices and accounts are securely closed out.  

When devices are collected and wiped, and software access is rescinded, organizations stay protected against data leaks or unauthorized use.This helps prevent situations where former employees might unwantedly or deliberately access company information long after they’ve left. 

A very important benefit of thorough offboarding is to reclaim and repurpose assets rather than constantly purchasing new ones. ITAM handles the retrieval, reset, and reallocation of assets, stretching their lifecycle (as an example, reassigning a laptop to a new employee).  

Real-Life Wins: How Companies Use ITAM in Onboarding and Offboarding 

Now, I want you to visualize two companies: a large enterprise and a mid-sized firm. They both use an ITAM tool to manage their onboarding and offboarding processes. This will help you see how everything works in real life.  

• Company A: At a large food logistics firm, onboarding used to mean waiting several days (sometimes a week!) for employees to get the right equipment. This meant that employees would spend meaningless hours in meetings that could have been prevented by providing access to key company documentation.  

With an ITAM solution, they reduced the waiting time to one hour, which means that the HR representative would automatically prepare and distribute the equipment based on the specific needs of each role. The result? New hires were productive almost immediately, and the HR team wasn’t bothered by asset-related inquiries. 

• Company B: A mid-market denim producer discovered they were overspending on software licenses. Having onboarded an ITAM tool, they reclaimed software licenses when employees left and reallocated them as needed. This simple adjustment cut software costs by thousands each year, which helps reinvest in areas where it made a bigger impact.  

Best Practices for ITAM in Onboarding and Offboarding 

Even though you might have an ITAM tool at hand, you still need some good practices that will come handy when you navigate on the tool. Here are three practices that you should implement:  

1. Set Very Clear Policies on Asset Use – Setting policies about asset ownership, responsibilities, and returns from the start reduces misunderstandings and improves accountability. This can be especially helpful for remote employees who might work from anywhere, where assets are more likely to go missing if policies aren’t crystal clear. 
2. Automate Workflows for Consistency – Automation simplifies onboarding and offboarding. Automated workflows, asset provisioning, configuration, and even deactivation during offboarding would follow a consistent, reliable process, reducing human error and speeding things up.    
3. Forecasting Needs with ITAM – ITAM helps teams plan ahead based on trends and needs. For example, if the data shows that hiring spikes around a specific time of year, IT can prepare assets in advance to avoid shortages and delays. Similarly, monitoring offboarding trends helps forecast when asset inventory might need replenishing or reassignment.  

Final Thoughts: Why ITAM is Essential to Employee Lifecycle Management 

From onboarding to offboarding, ITAM secures valuable assets, protects data, and saves money. If you’re interested in keeping your HR & IT processes in better order and want to kick-off your ITAM journey, see how ALVAO's HR Service Delivery and Service Management works here, and see how users rate ALVAO’s ITAM for HR processes here.