Introduction

Tufts Technology Services (TTS) is piloting the targeted use of Microsoft’s Ownerless Group Policy (OGP) as part of ongoing efforts toward improved data governance and retention practices.

This policy facilitates an automated process whereby Microsoft identifies M365 groups lacking an owner (for example, a Team that was created by someone who has since left Tufts). Active members of these groups are then notified and provided with the opportunity to assume ownership.

What is an M365 group?

A “group” in Microsoft 365 is an entity that is meant to facilitate collaboration via collective access to content and services. A group can be created in a number of different ways, like the creation of a Microsoft Team, for example. The person who creates the group will be the owner by default, but multiple additional owners can be added over time. A group becomes ownerless when all its owners leave Tufts University.

 Learn more about groups from Microsoft.

Why is ownership important?

Having one or more active owners is important for maintaining full group functionality and security. As such, active group ownership is one of the key data points Tufts Microsoft administrators consider when evaluating older, inactive groups for deletion. For example, a group that is 5 years old, has not had any activity in the past 2 years, and does not have any active owners would be a prime candidate for deletion.

How will my groups be impacted?

During this pilot phase, TTS is identifying batches of ownerless groups (maximum of 50 groups at a time) to apply this policy to. If the policy is applied to one of your groups, you and/or other group members may receive notifications like the one pictured below. From there, up to two (2) members can claim ownership. If no one claims ownership, the group will remain ownerless, which increases the chance that it will be deleted during cleanups.

How can we avoid the issue of ownerless groups?

To avoid ownerless groups, TTS recommends the following:

• Keep an eye on your M365 groups, including Teams, Outlook distribution groups, etc.
  • Visit the My Groups page and look under “Groups I own” and “Groups I am in”.
• If you own any groups that are no longer useful, delete them!
• Consider having multiple owners on each group. That way, even if one person leaves, there will be other owners remaining.
• Before you leave Tufts, pass off ownership of important groups to appropriate people.
• If you notice that any of your groups don’t have an active owner, email it@tufts.edu.

Who can I reach out to if I have any questions?

If you have any questions about this policy or about its implementation at Tufts, please contact it@tufts.edu.