Somebody needs to tell you this, so here goes.
Employer-provided computers, software, information, data, customer lists, phones, phone numbers, hard drives, jump drives, backups, storage cards, file servers, pricing, and work-related electronic or hard copy information belong to the employer. Even though you did the work and entered the data (for which you were paid), and even if you use some personal equipment to store or use the data, it belongs to the employer.
There are lessons for both employee and manager as technology blurs the lines between work and home.
Employers
Most employers do a poor job securing important information. Too often they give access to people without a need to know and make duplication easy. FBI agents speaking to employer groups tell horror stories of hacking, theft by interns, international crime rings and foreign students stealing for their country - not to mention the opportunistic employee leaving with key data in hand. Somehow, employees may view making an electronic copy of a file less of a moral or legal problem than stealing a paper file.
A best practice is developing a policy that the company will provide all necessary hardware and software for the job and that none of it may be used for personal reasons. Only those with a need to know will have access to files. Work must be done on that file on local or cloud servers. Warnings of criminal or civil penalties for unauthorized use should be visible. Think about the advantages of clarity in an employee departure where the lines are clear and any blurring is a plain violation of policy. This best practice is most valuable where the data is mission critical, of course.
Employees
If you value your personal data, photos, email, Facebook accounts and such, keep them entirely separate from your work. Yes, that means storing your photos on a website or home computer that stays with you when you change jobs. Use a personal account for personal social media and minimize mention of your employer. Your only copy of a holiday list or that draft novel has no place on your work computer. Even if your employer allows personal use of email and such, realize if you leave the job, that computer is probably not leaving the building. You may or may not get your personal information. Anything that you value should be backed up on personal equipment even if company policy allows personal usage.
There's another good reason to keep work and personal data apart. The temptation to spend large amounts of time on fun sites, getting pinged all day by a kid in college and trading excess produce from the Facebook farm, may just be too much for you. Most managers eventually learn who is addicted to such things and it cannot be good for your career. "Like" your job, not the latest photo of your friend, and show that you know why you have this job.
Know your company's rules on use of hardware, software and social media to prevent serious problems at work or when changing jobs.
Bruce Clarke is president and CEO of CAI Inc., a nonprofit human resource management firm with locations in Raleigh and Greensboro, and more than 1,000 member companies.
