ARTICLES

Day 26 of 31 Days of Better Workplaces — offboarding is the business process that most SMEs have never thought about deliberately. They have an onboarding process — or at least the beginnings of one — but when someone leaves, it’s often managed reactively, inconsistently, and incompletely. 

That creates risk. Here’s what a proper offboarding process covers. 

 

 

Knowledge transfer 

When someone leaves, their knowledge leaves with them — unless you’ve deliberately captured it. Before their last day, critical processes, contacts, client relationships, passwords, and institutional knowledge should be documented and handed over. This is particularly important for long-tenured employees or roles with high operational dependency.

 

System access

On or before their last day, all system access should be revoked: email, CRM, finance systems, cloud storage, social media accounts, and any other platforms they had access to. Failing to do this promptly creates security exposure that may not be visible until there’s a problem.

 

Client and stakeholder communication

For client-facing roles, manage the transition actively. Who tells key clients? When? What’s the narrative? Who takes over the relationship? A poorly managed departure can cost you a client who would otherwise have stayed.

 

Return of company property

Laptops, phones, access cards, company credit cards, and any other physical assets need to be returned and logged. This is legally required where these items are specified in the employment contract, and practically important regardless.

 

Exit interview (see Day 9) 

Already covered earlier in the series — but it bears repeating here as a structured part of the offboarding process. The exit interview should happen in the final week, conducted by someone the departing employee trusts to use the information constructively.

 

Final pay and documentation

 

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