ICT Management > Making Policies & Best Practice, Staffing Issues

ICT Induction Manual

By Lasa Information Systems Team

This article looks at the type of information that could be included in an ICT induction manual.

ICT Induction Manual

It's day one for your new member of staff. They arrive, are shown their desk and sit down in front of their computer for the first time. What happens then? Will they know how to log on to the network? What's their password? Where should they save their work? Do you use Outlook, Outlook Express or Thunderbird for email?

Most organisations include ICT as part of the general induction process for a new staff member. They may also get given a copy of the staff handbook which they'll be expected to wade through. As part of the handbook, or as a standalone document, it's a good idea to write a short ICT guide or manual which staff can refer back to.

What information gets included in the manual will vary depending on the individual circumstances and size of the organisation. Here are some pointers:

General

General introduction to the IT systems

• About your computer and who uses it (perhaps it's shared between more than one staff member)
• Shutting down PC at night (or not!)
• About the network - is there a server? Wireless or cabled?
• Whether you have full Internet access on your PC
• How information is backed up and whose responsibility it is

User name and password

• What user name has been allocated
• What the initial password is and how to change it
• How regularly passwords are changed and how much warning time you'll get to change it
• Tips on what to use and what not to use as a password
• What to do if you forget your password
• How to log in and hints if your log in fails (e.g. caps lock on etc.)

Email address info

• What email address has been allocated
• Organisation's website address(es)

Applications in use

• Office applications
• Email, calendaring and contacts software (e.g. Outlook, Groupwise, Ximian Evolution etc.) " Organisational database(s)
• Any advanced information on using applications e.g. public folders in Outlook
• Intranet information if appropriate
• What to do if you require specialist software

What to save where, permissions on drives and folders

• Drive mappings on the server or other shared drives
• Whereabouts your work is saved
• Where your personal files can be saved
• Any conventions on document management, file deletion etc.
• Saving to your PC - use of My Documents

Policies

ICT Acceptable Use Policy

• What it is and how it's used
• Organisational requirements (whether you need to read, agree to it, sign it etc.)

Other policies affecting ICT

• Health and safety
• Data protection
• Confidentiality

Help & support

Who to get help from for hardware, network and file issues

• Internal support staff
• Liaison with external support and how to contact them

Dealing with viruses etc.

• What to do if you suspect you have been sent a virus
• What to do if an error occurs on your PC
• Who to call for help

Super-user help on applications

• Who in the organisation is skilled in certain applications or operating systems
• Help on special applications such as organisation database

Training

Training & training needs analysis

• How to complete a training needs analysis
• What external training is available
• Any internal training availability

If you wish you can download the induction manual template (44KB RTF file), complete details as required adding any extra sections as appropriate for your organisation.