Offboarding checklist

Use this once the leaving date is confirmed by HR.

Confirm the facts

Ask for the last working day, the manager, the systems and tools the person uses, equipment they hold, work in progress, and whether the leaving is public yet. Leave the reason for leaving out of the checklist. Ask HR which steps they own, such as final pay, benefits, and documents.

Build the checklist

• Knowledge: open work, documents, contacts, and who takes each over.
• Access: every account to remove or transfer, at the separation time approved by HR and security. Use the end of the last day only for an ordinary departure when they confirm it.
• Equipment: what to return, and how.
• Customers and partners: who needs to know, and who tells them.
• Farewell: how and when the team hears, and any goodbye.
• HR items, listed as owned by HR.

Owner and date for each item

Put an owner, a date, and a status on every line. Flag anything with no owner.

Never comment on the reason for leaving, pay, notice, or legal terms; send those to HR. Do not remove access, message staff, or change an HR record yourself; each owner does their item.