Setting Up Your Workstation: A Day-One IT Checklist for New Employees

Welcome to your new role! To ensure your first day is seamless, ALCO USA has pre-configured your workstation in partnership with your company’s management. Follow this step-by-step checklist to get your physical and digital workspace running.

Step 1: Physical Desktop Setup
Unbox your laptop/desktop, monitor(s), docking station, and peripherals (keyboard and mouse).

Connect your docking station to a power outlet.

Connect your monitor(s) to the docking station using the provided DisplayPort or HDMI cables.

Plug the main USB-C or Thunderbolt cable originating from the docking station into your laptop. This single cable will charge your laptop and connect it to your external monitors and peripherals simultaneously.

Plug your network Ethernet cable into the docking station (recommended for maximum speed), or prepare to connect to Wi-Fi.

Step 2: First-Time Power On and Login
Turn on your computer.

At the login screen, enter the temporary username and password provided to you by your HR manager or in your ALCO USA digital welcome note.

The system will immediately prompt you to change your password. Choose a strong, unique passphrase containing at least 12 characters, including uppercase letters, lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols.

Step 3: Setting Up Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)
Security is vital to protecting your company’s data. On your first login, your corporate cloud account (Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace) will require MFA registration.

When prompted on your screen with “More information required”, click Next.

On your personal smartphone, download the Microsoft Authenticator or Google Authenticator app from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store.

Choose “Add Work or School Account” within the smartphone app and select Scan QR Code.

Scan the QR code displayed on your computer monitor with your phone camera.

Complete the verification test loop to bind your mobile device to your user account securely.

Step 4: Verify Core Applications
Open your apps to confirm everything is syncing properly:

Launch Microsoft Outlook or your corporate email client to verify your inbox is updating.

Open Microsoft Teams or Slack to ensure you can communicate with your team.

Verify that the ALCO USA Support Agent icon is running in your taskbar/menu bar.