General policy question

sharptech

Hello!

I know each company is different and has different policies, however wanted to get some insight on this.

When a person leaves your company etc.. do you allow them to keep their email? I know its hard to not let people keep .PST files, however even if you do let them keep it - is it your responsibility to back it up for them?

I am not talking about backing up to the server, just backing it up for them to take with them.

I wanted to see what some others did as I am looking over some policies here -

thanks!

cgrimaldo

Well, most places I have been it is pretty much understood that email address and the email transmitted back and forth is the property of the company and nobody else. It is just assigned to the person who happens to be filling the role that they hired for. Over here, when we have someone leave, they leave empty-handed when it comes to that. Especially working in a hospital environment we have some very sensitive items being sent and received through our email system. Thats how we do it over here. Once you are gone, I get that account shut down and deactivated

sharptech

cgrimaldo -

Thank you - very helpful. I think that is the case with most places and it makes complete sense. Its good to see what other companies or workplaces do - thanks for your response.

blargoe

By no means do we provide them means to take their email or other data with them. On one or two very rare cases, I have been asked by someone much higher up than me to save the contacts file for someone who left the company but that's it.

sharptech

Thanks blargoe -

OK let me spell out the situation and you guys tell me what you think.

Our policy states that when someone leaves their network account and email account is to be terminated immedietly!

We had a user leave and the CEO of the company said to keep his email address so he could use it for a while longer. He was no longer working for the company.

Now three months later I needed his license and was told to go ahead and remove his account once I talked to him about it. He told me it was OK to go ahead and remove his account.

I go ahead and back up his email to a mbox file (We have linux servers and use Scalix) and then delete his account.

He comes back to me a day later and asks where did his email go? I told him once your account is deleted you lose email etc.. he then tells me to retrieve it right away. I told him I was not sure if I could do that since it was not in the policy etc..

He told me he is going to the CEO of the company and going to take care of it - he was very upset.

I know that he is a close friend of the CEO and that is why he could keep his email longer etc.., but now what am I to do? I am worried about what the CEO is going to do -

I think I am in the right since I went w/ the policy etc..

I also tried to get back his email, but I could not get it back from the mbox - not sure how to - when I joined the company I was just told what to do to back it up to the server.

So what do you guys think about this?

ajs1976

I don't know that any of my clients have a specific policy. It seems to depend on what terms the person is leaving.

Before removing a mailbox, if I am not told to make a backup I will ask or recommend that one be made. If they decide not to have me make one, I usually try to keep some type of record of the decision. The higher ups can then decide if the person should have it or not.

sharptech

Yeah the good news is I still have the backup and I will tell the CEO that and if he wants the user to have it, then I can send to him on CD etc.. good thinking ajs.