Reaching 10 employees is an exciting milestone. But it’s also often the point where the IT setup that worked when there were only two or three of you starts to show its limitations.

Perhaps everyone has a slightly different laptop. Files are stored in several different places. New starters are set up by whoever has time and one person has gradually become the accidental IT manager simply because they’re quite good with computers.

None of this is unusual. But as your business grows, these little inconsistencies can become bigger problems.

Everyone needs the right equipment

When you first started the business, using personal laptops or buying whatever was available may have made sense. By the time you reach 10 employees, it’s worth introducing some consistency.

Business-grade devices generally offer better security, reliability and manageability. Keeping a record of who has which laptop, how old it is and when it may need replacing also makes budgeting much easier.

Otherwise, your first warning that a laptop needs replacing is often when it stops working on a Monday morning.

Microsoft 365 needs managing

Microsoft 365 gives small businesses access to excellent tools, but simply buying licences doesn’t mean everything is automatically configured securely.

Someone still needs to manage:

• User accounts and licences

• Multi-factor authentication

• Access to files and mailboxes

• Security settings

• New starters and leavers

• Shared mailboxes and distribution lists

• Updates to devices

It’s also worth checking that you have the right licences. Microsoft 365 Business Premium, for example, includes additional security and device-management features that can be particularly useful as your team grows.

Your files should have a proper home

With 10 employees, documents can quickly become scattered between laptops, inboxes, OneDrive accounts, SharePoint sites and perhaps the odd personal Dropbox folder.

This makes it difficult to know which version is correct or whether important information would disappear if someone left.

Your team should know:

• Where business files should be saved

• Who is allowed to access them

• How they can be shared securely

• Who owns them if an employee leaves

• How they will be recovered if something is deleted

A clear structure in SharePoint and OneDrive can make collaboration much easier, provided it has been set up thoughtfully.

New starters and leavers need a process

When someone joins a small business, it’s tempting to set things up as you go along. Create an email address, find a spare laptop and ask another employee to share the folders they might need.

This becomes risky and time-consuming as the team grows.

A straightforward checklist ensures every new starter receives the right device, accounts, software and access from day one. It also makes sure leavers are removed promptly and that their files and emails remain available to the business.

You don’t want to discover six months later that a former employee can still access company information.

Security can’t rely on people remembering

Small businesses don’t need complicated enterprise security, but some basics should be in place consistently.

These include:

• Multi-factor authentication

• Encryption on laptops

• Automatic security updates

• Endpoint protection

• Secure password practices

• Email filtering

• Regular staff awareness training

• Restrictions on administrative access

Cyber Essentials can provide a useful framework and help you identify gaps without turning security into an enormous project.

Microsoft 365 is not a complete backup

Microsoft provides reliable cloud services, but that doesn’t remove the need for a separate backup.

Files and emails can still be accidentally deleted, overwritten or affected by a compromised account. A dedicated Microsoft 365 backup gives you another way to recover important information when the normal recovery options aren’t enough.

The key question isn’t simply, “Do we have a backup?” It’s, “Could we restore what we need—and how long would it take?”

Someone needs to keep an eye on everything

At 10 employees, you may not need a full-time IT manager. But you do need someone taking responsibility for your technology.

That means more than fixing things when they break. It includes checking device health, applying updates, reviewing security, managing licences, planning replacements and making sure your IT continues to support the business.

Without clear responsibility, technology tends to develop by accident. Problems are only noticed when they interrupt somebody’s work or when something more serious goes wrong.

Is it time for outsourced IT support?

If your most technically confident employee is regularly setting up laptops, resetting passwords and dealing with Microsoft 365 problems, outsourced support may already make financial sense.

It gives your team somewhere to go when they need help, while also ensuring that somebody is looking after the bigger picture.

Reaching 10 employees doesn’t mean you suddenly need a complicated corporate IT department. It does mean your technology should become more consistent, secure and planned.

A little structure now can save a lot of disruption later and allow your employees to concentrate on the jobs you actually hired them to do.

If your business has grown but your IT has developed on an ad hoc basis, we can help you understand what’s working, what needs attention and what can wait. Get in touch with Rethink Your IT for a straightforward conversation about your current setup.