And what better way to find out?

It's almost noon, and this pilot fish is leaving his dentist's office after a particularly traumatic root canal when his BlackBerry vibrates.

"It's a message from a longtime friend, the VP to whom I reported before his discharge the week before," fish says. "His sudden departure was part of the usual aftermath of a forced sale of the company during involuntary bankruptcy."

The message is short and to the point, if a little obscure: "Check your e-mail when you get a chance."

When fish finally arrives home and looks at his company in-box, he finds a forwarded e-mail from the HR department. The subject line: "Approval required: Involuntary termination."

And it's not for fish -- it's about him, addressed to his ex-boss.

"Because nobody had removed his e-mail account, nor removed him from the approval chain for HR actions, he received a 'Click here to authorize terminating this employee with less than 24 hours' notice' message," sighs fish.

"The company had absolutely no way to let me know that I had been zapped -- the only person on the org chart who could have transmitted this happy news to me had been rendered dead beef a week before."

Don't wait for a root canal. You can send Sharky your true tale of IT life anytime at sharky@computerworld.com. I'll send you a sharp Shark shirt if I use it. Add your comments below, and read some great old tales in the Sharkives.

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