An employee is leaving; now what?
It is critical to conduct an exit interview. Confirm the new employer, the nature of the new employment and that the employee has returned your corporate property, and have them acknowledge their obligations under agreements that continue post-employment. The information should be reported in an exit interview acknowledgement form and signed by the departing employee.
Provide departing employees with a copy of agreements. Discuss continuing obligations. Even if no agreements were signed, departing employees should be reminded that they continue to have obligations to not use or disclose your confidential, proprietary or trade secret information.
The departing employee should acknowledge receipt of agreements that continue subsequent to their employment and confirm that they do not have and will not use confidential, proprietary or trade secret information. Evasive answers or a refusal to sign the acknowledgement form should be a red flag.
What steps can you take if a former employee violates agreements or takes corporate assets?
If you discover that the departed employee is violating his or her agreement or using your confidential, proprietary or trade secret information, take immediate action to protect these assets. Failure to address violations can affect not only issues related to this employee but future enforcement actions, as well. It is critical to move swiftly, aggressively and with a finely tuned strategy that incorporates your needs, governing law and state nuances.
What if personal information is taken?
One of the biggest areas of exposure for employers is the protection of personal information. Personal information — a name, coupled with a Social Security number or financial information — of employees and customers requires heightened protection, and, if taken or disclosed, requires a certain response. The average data breach costs a company more than $500,000. In addition to lawsuits from individuals, you are also open to actions from states’ attorneys general offices. It is critical to talk with an expert in this field to review what protections you have in place, what protections you must have in place and what you must do, pursuant to state statutes, should personal information be compromised.
Without question, protecting your company’s assets and avoiding substantial losses as a result of a data breach should be at the top of your list. You spend far too much time and far too many resources building and developing your business assets to just have them walk out the door.
