A question that often arises in the context of employees who will be departing is what steps should an employer take in order to best protect their confidential information and client good will from following that departing employee out the door.
The First Steps That Smart Employers Should Take to Protect Their Confidential Information When an Employee Gives Notice
In reality, there is no one, stock answer to this question, as it largely hinges on what the actual risk to the company's goodwill is posed by this particular employee or salesperson leaving the company, and the departing employee's openness about their future employment plans.
For example, if the departing employee is evasive about where he/she is going, that immediately raises the employer's suspicion.
But there are other things that should be done as a matter of course in just about every instance, most importantly, that once someone gives notice, the company's IT team should be notified right away so they can review the past month or two of this departing employee's activity—looking for unusual downloading, forwarding, or anything else concerning confidential, trade secret or client information.
To that end, the more suspicious the departing employee's behavior, the more likely the company should be to terminate the employee immediately. And if credible evidence of the departing employee's misconduct is uncovered, that may furnish the company with grounds to terminate them for cause.
In that regard, such a determination can have far-reaching consequences because, at least in New York, a for-cause termination can affect how enforceable a departing employee's restrictive covenant may be under the law.
