Strategies for Dealing with Files from Offboarded Staff
Orphan
PROS
- Zero effort
- Files are readily identifiable as orphaned since there is no valid owner
CONS
- Orphaned files are unmanaged
- With staff turnover, the volume of orphaned files grows over time
- Orphaned files increase storage costs
- May reduce the efficiency of searching for files, or retrieving other files from storage
- Possibly presents legal, privacy or security risks
Inherit
PROS
- Minimal effort
- File ownership is assigned to an appropriate person
- Files will be managed to the same standard as all other files in the organization
CONS
- The new owner may not be aware of what is in the files, and so may not be able to effectively manage them
- If the new owner cannot effectively manage the files, they are effectively orphaned with all of the disadvantages of orphaned files
- Files cannot easily be identified since they have been assigned a valid owner
Big Bucket Retention
PROS
- Files can be managed in place or exported to archive
- Content is now owned and managed by the organization, not an individual
- A specific retention policy is applied and all files will be disposed of
- Minimizes management effort by managing everything together
CONS
- Does not provide a fine-grained approach to managing the files
- Temporary files, duplicates or convenience copies may be retained longer than necessary
Review and Reclassify
PROS
- Every file is effectively repurposed or disposed of
- Using AI technologies may allow all files to be automatically processed in a reasonable amount of time
CONS
- Reviewing each file takes significant effort
- Manually reviewing each file may be cost prohibitive