Comment Re:I'd never do it, but (Score 1) 783
With the massive economic downturn, I.T. (in the U.S., at any rate) is more frequently called upon by Human Resources deptartments in large organizations to ferret out misuse of I.T. assets in order to terminate employees in such a way that unemployment compensation can be legally denied. This allows the company to perform RIFs without the penalty paid in higher unemployment insurance costs.
Never assume that I.T. exists only to help the end user. In many cases, if not most, I.T. is in place specifically to prevent the end user from overstepping their bounds or using information and assets in ways not approved by the governing body of the business.
I don't mean to suggest that this adversarial relationship is correct, nor excuse the dismissive attitude many I.T. pros have toward end users, but it is one of the chief purposes of current I.T. work. Were most companies to use I.T. assets to their full potential, they would need far less of those assets.