How to Create a Workplace Visitor Policy

Over the past few years, we've seen the office go through plenty of changes. Right now we're seeing more and more people utilize the office for collaboration and in person connection.

This increase in in-person time also seems to be driving more office visitors. Since January, we’ve seen a 147% increase in guest visits. The office is a social hub again and everyone is invited. As more and more guests start visiting it's important you have some kind of management system in place to eliminate confusion and keep track of guests and office utilization.

Letting guests come and go freely can increase security risks, jeopardizing your data and intellectual property as well as your employees. Visitor management systems can help secure your office and create a positive workplace experience for everyone who stops by.

To make sure your entire team is on the same page it's best to create a workplace visitor policy. Let's take a closer look at what visitor management is and how you can create a foolproof and effective workplace visitor policy for your office.

What is Visitor Management?

Visitor management refers to the process of tracking individuals who enter your office. It's a security measure many companies take to regulate the efficiency and safety of their workplace. Implementing a visitor management system can help streamline the check-in and check-out process, enhance security, and maintain accurate records of workplace visitors.

A visitor could be a job candidate, a family member, a vendor, a business partner, or anyone else who isn't regularly working on-site. The best way to manage your guests and prevent security risks is by creating guidelines for your guest check-in process, otherwise known as a workplace visitor policy.

Creating a workplace visitor policy ensures you, your team, and your guests are all on the same page. It's a helpful way to outline what's expected of everyone throughout this process, from check in to check out. Workplace and visitor safety policies will look different for everyone depending on the size of the office, the reception area, the number of visitors stopping by, and the amount of confidential information on-site.

No matter what your organization looks like, a workplace visitor policy is a necessity.

4 Important Elements of a Workplace Visitor Policy

A workplace visitor policy is unique to your company's needs. It defines how employees should handle workplace visitors and ensures guests have a consistent experience when they come to your office. While every company's visitor policy will have different rules, there are a few aspects that are crucial to include if you want to maintain a secure workplace and enhance visitor experience.

1. Check-in Process

Are employees required to schedule guest visits in advance? Should visitors expect to sign in when they get to the office? Will they be asked to carry a name tag or visitor badge? How will guests check into your space upon arrival?

Effective workplace visitor policies should be as clear and concise as possible, so guests and employees alike know what to expect on the day of their scheduled visit. That solid visitor policy may look like:

• A list of information needed to check in (name, email, reason for visit)
• Directions to parking, the lobby, or the front desk
• Information on visitor badges or required name tags
• Office rules and regulations

Prepare your guests before they arrive on site. You may consider pre registration or using a check-in software to help you stay organized and streamline the process.

2. Authorization Procedures

Your company or workplace visitor policy should clearly outline who has the ability to authorize guests and how they should do so. Employees may need managerial approval before pre-registering a guest, or maybe they only need approval for personal visitors.

Either way, a workplace visitor policy should breakdown which company locations, teams, roles, and individuals can host guests on-site, and what steps they need to take to schedule their visit.

3. Types of Visitors

There are different ways to handle different types of visitors. For example, the protocol for hosting personal guests will most likely look different than the protocol for hosting business partners.

Consider creating a list of the types of guests allowed in the office and detailed instructions on how each scenario should be handled. This would be the place to outline how frequent or long term guests, like contractors or vendors, should handle checking in.

You can also limit visitor access and create restricted areas that only security personnel and certain guests or employees can access. Defining the different types of visitors you allow in your office and what they have access to when they arrive will help prevent any security risks.

4. Required Documents

Depending on the work you're doing you may require guests to sign non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) or other documents to protect sensitive information before entering the office. Make sure to include what documents need to be completed ahead of time in your policy, so employees and guests don't waste time getting things together on the day of their visit.

Workplace Visitor Policies: Security, Safety, and Experience

Yes, visitor management and access control systems are a crucial part of maintaining security and safety in your office, but they also play a key role in enhancing workplace experience for your guests and employees. When someone visits your office, you want them to have an exceptional experience just like when you have visitors in your home.

A workplace visitor policy can help ensure guests feel comfortable and welcome throughout their entire visit. Set visitors up for success by sending them all the information they'll need beforehand, like parking instructions, office procedures, and other important information like the wifi password and network access.

You can also improve their experience by making the office easy to navigate. Utilize maps and signage to help guide guests around your office, so they don't get lost in between meetings or events.

Visitor policies can help guarantee all of your guests have a pleasant time during their visit, whether they're job candidates, family members, or business partners. Make sure you put your best foot forward, so you can improve workplace experience and create a welcoming environment for everyone.

Set Yourself and Your Guests up for Success

Creating a workplace visitor policy will help streamline your office and improve workplace experience. The next step is putting it into action. Manually checking people with a sign in list will do just fine, but setting up a digital visitor management system will make things easier for you and your visitors.

There are plenty of tools and software available that can help you oversee and implement your visitor management system. Things to look for in visitor management technology are easy to use workplace analytics, customizable screening questionnaires, and digital check in systems.

Want to learn more? We've got you covered. Read our blog to learn more about using software to streamline your workplace visitor policy.