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Offboard someone securely
When somebody leaves, the goal is to keep everything they created and remove everything they can reach — in that order, and on the day they go.
What it looks like
- ·Someone has resigned or been let go
- ·A contractor's engagement has ended
- ·You need their mail and files kept but their access gone
- ·You are paying for a licence nobody uses
How this gets fixed
- 1
Block sign-in and revoke sessions
First action, and the only urgent one. Blocking sign-in without revoking the active sessions leaves them signed in on their own devices until the tokens expire.
- 2
Deal with their mail
Consider a shared-mailbox conversion or delegated access after checking retention, capacity, and licensing. Colleagues still need their own licensed Exchange Online mailboxes. Review external forwarding as part of offboarding.
- 3
Move the files that belong to the business
Work in their OneDrive is theirs by storage but yours by ownership. We transfer what the team needs into SharePoint before the account is removed, because it does not survive deletion indefinitely.
- 4
Remove their access to shared resources
Team sites, shared mailboxes, Teams memberships, and any app that used their account. This is where old access quietly survives an offboarding.
- 5
Reclaim the licence once the retention window has passed
Only after mail and files are secured. Removing a licence early is the usual cause of losing a leaver's data.
Questions people ask about this
Can we keep their email after they leave?
A shared-mailbox conversion can preserve mail and the address. Check retention requirements, the 50 GB unlicensed limit, and advanced-feature licensing before removing a licence. Delegates need their own licensed Exchange Online mailboxes.
What happens to their OneDrive files?
OneDrive contents are retained for a limited period after the account is deleted and then removed. Anything the business needs should be moved into SharePoint during offboarding rather than left to that clock.
How quickly can you cut off access?
Within business hours, quickly — blocking sign-in and revoking sessions is a small change. For a departure that has to happen at a specific moment, phone us and tell us the time in advance so it is not sitting in a queue.
Do we stop paying for their licence straight away?
Once their mail and files are secured, yes. We would rather carry a licence for a few extra days than delete the only copy of something you needed.
When to hand it to us
Tell us before the last day, not after. If the departure is not amicable, phone us so sign-in is blocked at the moment you need it rather than the next business morning.
If the fault turns out to be in the Microsoft service rather than your setup, we take it from there — you keep one point of contact.