When staff start or leave: the access checklist
Every venue has a former employee who technically still has a login somewhere, and a new starter who spent their first shift unable to do half their job. Both are fixable with one email at the right time. Here's what to tell us, and when.
On this page
On this page
Staff turnover in hospitality is normal and constant. The problem isn't the churn — it's that access tends to be granted urgently and removed never, so a venue slowly accumulates live accounts belonging to people who left years ago. Every one of those is a way into your systems that nobody is watching.
If you only read one thing
- Tell us a week before someone starts, not on their first morning. Accounts, email and access take a little setting up.
- Tell us before their last day when someone's leaving — while their account still exists, getting their files is easy.
- One account per person. Never a shared "office" or "reception" login. This is the single most valuable habit on this page.
- Ask for the least access they need. Most people don't need administrator rights to do their job.
- If someone leaves badly, ring us immediately. Don't wait for the paperwork.
01 — StartingSomeone new is starting
Email us about a week ahead with the details below. A day's notice usually works too, but a week means everything is tested and waiting rather than being set up around them while they're trying to learn the job.
Copy this into an email to support@cyberry.com.au
- Full name
- As it should appear on email and in systems — and the name they actually go by, if different
- Job title and department
- "Functions Coordinator, front of house"
- Start date
- And their first shift time, if they need to be up and running from the start of it
- Do they need an email address?
- And what it should be. Tell us if they're replacing someone whose mail should redirect for a while.
- What do they need to get into?
- Computer login, email, shared folders, the booking system, the POS, the roster system, membership system, our own systems. List what they'll actually use.
- Who does the same job now?
- The most useful line in the whole email — "same access as Michelle in reception" saves a lot of guessing
- Anything they should NOT have
- Payroll, financials, gaming systems, staff records, CCTV
- Do they need a phone or device?
- And whether they'll be using their own phone for anything work-related
If you're not sure what they need, tell us the role and who does it now. We'll work it out and come back to you.
Worth doing on day one
- They set their own password, and it's not the same as anyone else's, and it isn't the venue name with a number after it.
- Show them where files belong — the server or cloud storage, not the desktop. Habits set in week one tend to stick.
- Tell them how to report a fault and that they're allowed to. New staff often struggle silently with something broken for weeks because they assume it's them.
- Point them at any guide that's relevant — these pages are public and free to share, so send the links.
- Warn them about scam emails aimed at venues — fake invoices, "the GM needs a gift card urgently", supplier bank-detail changes. New staff are the usual target because they don't yet know what's normal.
02 — LeavingSomeone is leaving
Tell us as soon as you know, and give us the last day. There are things that are simple before it and awkward after it.
Let us know the name and the last day
That's the minimum. Add whether it's an amicable departure or not, because it changes the timing of what we do.
Tell us what should happen to their email
Usual options: forward to a manager for a period, convert to a shared mailbox the team can access, set an auto-reply pointing people elsewhere, or simply close it. Most venues want mail redirected for a month or two — say who to.
Work out what only they had
The one that catches everyone. Files on their computer, a social media account only they could post from, a supplier portal login, the only copy of the function diary spreadsheet, a phone with the club's number in it. Ask them directly, before the last day, while they're still helpful.
Collect the physical things
Keys, fobs, access cards, phone, laptop, tablet, chargers, that USB stick. Write a list at the start rather than remembering in pieces.
Tell us who takes over what
So access moves rather than just disappearing. Otherwise the job comes back as an urgent request a fortnight later.
We disable on the last day
Disabled rather than deleted, initially — that keeps their files and mail recoverable while removing the access. Tell us if you want it left open longer for a handover, and for how long.
"Is there anything that only you can get into, or anything saved only on your machine?" Ask it in the exit conversation. People answer honestly and helpfully, and it surfaces the supplier portal, the Instagram login and the spreadsheet nobody else knew existed. Once they've gone, that same information takes days to reconstruct.
03 — UrgentWhen someone leaves suddenly or badly
Dismissal, a walk-out, or a departure under a cloud. Ring us on 1300 755 242 — don't email, and don't wait for HR paperwork. Access can be cut in minutes.
- Tell us the timing you need — immediately, or at a specific time. If they're being spoken to at 3pm, we can be ready to disable at 3pm.
- Say what they had access to, as best you know. We'll work through the rest.
- Don't delete anything yourself, and don't have someone log into their account. If there's any chance of a dispute, the record needs to stay intact — and mailboxes have a habit of being needed later.
- Remember the shared credentials. If they knew a shared login — a social account, a supplier portal, the guest Wi-Fi password, an alarm code — those need changing too. This is where shared logins really cost you.
- Think about physical access as well as digital — keys, fobs, alarm codes. Different suppliers may be involved; we'll tell you which parts are ours.
Where there's any suggestion of theft, fraud or misuse of systems, tell us that up front and don't start looking through their accounts yourself. Preserving things properly matters if it ever goes further, and your GM may need advice before anyone touches anything. We'll take direction from you on what's needed.
05 — PermissionsAsk for the least access needed
The instinct is to give a new starter everything so they're never blocked. It's the wrong instinct, and it's the reason most accidental damage happens.
- Website editing doesn't need administrator rights. An editor-level account can change content and can't break the theme or install anything. See the website guide.
- Signage doesn't need full control either. Most people scheduling content need to publish, not to reconfigure players. See keeping your screens current.
- Not everyone needs the finance folder. Or staff records, or payroll, or CCTV. Access to those should be a deliberate decision with a name against it.
- Review it when people change roles. Access accumulates — someone who's moved through three jobs in five years often holds all three sets. Worth a tidy-up.
- Ask us for a list once a year. We'll tell you who has access to what, and you'll almost certainly find two people on it who left. That's a good half-hour's work for any GM.
06 — BoundariesThe systems we don't control
We can only close what we manage. A venue typically has accounts with a dozen other parties, and those are yours to handle — worth keeping your own list:
- Gaming, TAB, keno and membership systems — usually the supplier's own logins
- Banking, payroll and accounting — never ours, and the most important to get right
- Booking, function and delivery platforms
- Supplier and distributor portals — often set up in one person's name
- Alarm codes, safes and physical keys
- Social media — if a staff member's personal Facebook account is an admin of the club's page, that needs handling on their way out. Ask us to check how yours is set up; it's a common and awkward gap.
Tell us which of these you'd like us to keep a checklist for, and we'll build one you can work through each time — even for the systems we can't touch ourselves.
07 — QuestionsQuick answers
How much notice do you need for a new starter?
A week is comfortable. A couple of days is usually fine. Same-day we'll do our best, but expect a few things to trail in over the first shift, which isn't a great start for anyone.
Can we reuse a leaver's email address for their replacement?
We'd advise against it. The new person inherits years of unrelated mail and every supplier keeps addressing them by the wrong name. Better: a new address for them, with the old one forwarding for a couple of months. Role addresses like functions@ are a good idea alongside a personal one.
Do casuals need their own accounts?
If they use a computer or any system, yes. If they only use a POS terminal, that's usually its own staff-code arrangement inside the POS — worth checking that those codes are also being retired when people leave, because they often aren't.
Should staff use their own phones for work email?
It's common and it can be done sensibly. What matters is that the phone has a passcode, that we can remove the work account remotely if the phone is lost, and that it's dealt with when they leave. Tell us who's doing it and we'll make sure it's set up so that's possible.
We've got old accounts and no idea whose they are. Where do we start?
Ask us for the list. We'll tell you every account we manage, when it was last used, and what it can reach. You tell us which ones you recognise and we'll disable the rest. It's an hour's work and most venues find something worth finding.
Someone left two years ago. Is it too late?
Not at all, and it's worth doing today. Send us the name and we'll check what's still live.
08 — Print thisBoth checklists on one page
Print it for whoever handles staffing. It pairs with your onboarding paperwork.
Staff access — starting and leaving
Cyberry Know-How · cyberry.com.au/know-how
Starting — email us a week ahead
- Full name and the name they go by
- Job title and department
- Start date and first shift time
- Email address needed?
- What they need to get into
- "Same access as [name]"
- What they should NOT have
- Device or phone needed?
Day one
- They set their own password
- Show them where files belong
- Show them how to report a fault
- Warn them about scam emails
Leaving — email us as soon as you know
- Name and last day
- Amicable, or not?
- What happens to their email
- Who takes over their work
- Ask them: anything only you can access?
- Files saved only on their machine?
- Keys, fobs, phone, laptop, USB sticks
- Shared logins they knew — change them
- Are they an admin on our social accounts?
- POS staff codes retired
Leaving badly?
- RING 1300 755 242 — don't email
- Don't delete anything or log into their account
Last reviewed 25 July 2026. This covers the systems we manage for you. Employment process, record-keeping obligations and anything contentious are matters for your GM and your own advice — we'll act on your instruction, and we'll tell you which parts aren't ours to close.
Not sure who still has access?
Ask us for the list.
We'll tell you every account we manage, when it was last used, and what it can reach. Most venues find something worth finding.