How to Give an Assistant Access to Your Accounts Without Sharing Passwords

Security is the worry I hear most from owners who have never worked with an assistant. It’s a fair one. The good news is that most business tools were built with this in mind, and the safe way is usually the easy way too.

Option 1: Give them their own login

Many tools let you invite another user by email. Your assistant gets their own username and password, and you choose what they can see and do. This is the best option when it is available, because you can see who did what and remove them in one click.

Look for words like “Team”, “Users”, “Staff” or “Invite” in the settings. Business software such as Tekmatix, which I use daily, lets you add a team member with limited permissions instead of handing over your own account.

Option 2: Use delegate access for email and calendar

Gmail and Outlook both let you grant another person access to your mailbox without giving them your password. They can read, sort and reply on your behalf, and you can turn it off whenever you like. Calendars can be shared the same way, with a choice between view-only and full editing.

Option 3: Share through a password manager

Some accounts allow only one login. For those, use a password manager. You save the login once and share it with your assistant from inside the app. Many password managers let the other person use a login without seeing the password itself, and you can withdraw it at any time.

A simple access checklist

• Give the least access that gets the job done. View-only where editing isn’t needed.
• Keep bank and payment logins to yourself. Your assistant can prepare payments for you to approve.
• Turn on two-step verification on your important accounts.
• Keep a list of what you shared. One short document is enough.
• Put confidentiality in writing. A simple agreement sets expectations on both sides.
• Remove access when the work ends. Go down your list and switch each one off.

What to ask a provider

If you are hiring through a team or agency, ask how they handle client logins, who else can see them, and what happens to access when a team member leaves. A provider who has thought about this will answer without hesitation.

The bottom line

You don’t need to choose between getting help and staying safe. Separate logins, delegate access and a password manager cover almost every case, and all three let you take access back in seconds.

Disclosure: the Tekmatix link in this post is my referral link. If you sign up through it, I may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.