Smart Access Management / Visitor Management solutions will help you move a step closer to ‘business as usual’

Adhering to Government Guidelines

For many businesses, it’s a major challenge reopening offices for employees that need to return, adhering to evolving government guidelines. Actively welcoming visitors from outside organisations requires further thought and careful planning. Companies are required by law to protect their employees and others from harm, and organisations with more than five people are advised to carry out a safety audit on their premises to assess an adequate level of protection from Covid-19. The government’s document ‘Working Safely During Coronavirus’ lays out clear guidelines, requiring that businesses:

• Provide clear guidance on social distancing and hygiene to people on arrival, for example by phone, on the website or by email
• Limit the number of visitors at any one time
• Limit visitor times to a specific time window and restricting access to required visitors only
• Determine if schedules for essential services and contractor visits can be revised to reduce interaction and overlap between people, for example, carrying out services at night
• Maintain a record of all visitors, if this is practical
• Revise visitor arrangements to ensure social distancing and hygiene, for example, where someone physically signs in with the same pen in receptions
• Review entry and exit routes for visitors and contractors to minimise contact with other people

As a business reopening its doors, conforming to new safety requirements is likely to require changes to your visitor check-in process. For the time being, guests won’t be able to congregate in the same area, or cluster around a reception desk to check-in. Sign-in books will no longer be appropriate and sharing pens won’t be an option.  The information you provide when they arrive at your premises is likely to be more important than ever in terms of keeping them safe, but passing them pages of printed documents to read isn’t advisable.

The benefits of contactless visitor sign-in

Smart access management / visitor management solutions eliminates these risks while providing a secure visitor experience – even before guests arrive on site. As well as delivering a professional sign-in experience for visitors who check in via a tracking management console, the apps are optimised for use on a smartphone and desktop.

Hosts can pre-register guests and send them a branded email with meeting time and location details, plus a QR code they can scan from their smartphone on arrival. At the point of sign-in, visitors are required to read and accept the latest health and safety requirements customised by the business they’re visiting. This can include information on hygiene, expectations around social distancing, requests to look out for safe distance physical markings and procedures to follow if they become unwell.  Businesses can present visitors with virus-specific questions which they must agree to before proceeding, such as:

• I have no current symptoms known to be those of Covid-19 – in particular a cough or high temperature
• I have not had direct contact with a person or persons displaying these symptoms in the past 7 days

Visitors’ details are stored in a secure online portal, and privacy features ensure they, and their data, are protected.

Businesses can access their visitor history, so if they need to look back at their visitor list for any reason, they can do so quickly and easily. Real-time reporting functionality helps organisations improve traceability, should they need to.

Improved security

As well as helping businesses conform to new safety requirements, digital visitor sign-in systems can improve security. While online crime is a growing threat, ‘traditional’ or physical crimes against commercial organisations such as theft, assault and fraud are still more common. A business’ first line of defence is its employees but this isn’t always straightforward, as they swipe a visitor through reception turnstiles until they have access to a pass or leave a door open for a contractor. Smart visitor management removes the burden of security from employees, while containing and minimising risk.

Reopening your business requires careful planning, process and systems changes, as well as education and behavioural change. Automating your visitor process is simple, fast and secure. It mitigates risks for employees and visitors to your organisation, and is a step towards a return to business as usual.