Exit Interview

denjen · April 2007

Does anyone have an effective exit interview? I have an EE that actually wants to discuss concerns with HR. I need probing questions that keeps whatever the situation is positive.

mlbarker · April 2007

We use one with some basic questions:

What did you enjoy the most about working here?
What did you like the least?
How was your relationship with your supervisor?
What could we have done to help you be more productive?
How was the pay compared to others doing the same thing at other comments?
What other comments would you like to make.

While simple, it has helped us surface some issues that needed addressing.

Good luck!

LarryC · April 2007

I like to ask about the company's strengths and weaknesses. Ususally, in exit interviews an exiting employee doesn't want to "burn bridges" and will give light answers if asked about perceived problems. A good way to get them to open up is to ask, "What was the most common complaint of fellow employees?" They are more prone to be honest with answering that question than one that asks them directly about his/her complaints.

njjel · April 2007

Personally, I have never been an advocate of Exit Interviews. Aside from the COBRA info and accrued leave time they haven't proven to me to be of any value because as stated above, the exiting ee doesn't want to burn any bridges.

AJ SPHR · April 2007

I politely disagree with njjel. I have always conducted exit interviews and we've had some in the past couple of years that have provided valuable and honest input about situations that needed correcting. I shared the results with the department VP - most were things he knew about - and he developed an action plan to address some of the concerns.

Sure, there are some who don't tell you anything, but in the right environment where an exiter feels comfortable and respected, you can learn a lot.

Indiana Catbert · April 2007

Some disgruntled departing employees will be very honest in their comments which could be of great value to you (e.g. my supervisor sexually harassed me). Your company should want to give every opportunity for an employee to raise a complaint (even if you have a complaint policy they haven't followed) so you can address it.

Another value in litigation matters is that if an employee has been given an opportunity to raise concerns via the exit interview and says everything was fine, then sues the company later, the exit interview will undermine that person's credibility.

Beyond risk management issues, I have learned some valuable information about my management team or work environment from frank comments by departing employees. Getting them to open up is obviously the key and that takes a personal touch many times. They won't always talk, but those who do make it worth your time.

Dutch2 · April 2007

Yep, same here. I stongly recommend them. I have the ee complete the "Exit Interview Form" and then I go over it with them in detail in an attempt to dig a little deeper to any comments they have made. You will of coure sometimes run across the problem ee with a burr under his/her saddle and eveything about the company and their managers is just awful, but these are seldom. The good information we get from others is worth going through the bad ones.
Good luck.

LarryC · April 2007

We also find great value in exit interviews.

mbeam · April 2007

An add-on that we have found helpful is to also do an exit interview with the manager. We periodically have people reapply with our organization and that helps us to determine if this individual is someone that we would consider rehiring.

We also ask the manager if they would recommend hiring the individual back into (a) their department and (b) the company in general

Other bonus is the manager has their turn to give feedback and doesn't feel that it's only one-sided.

Paul in Cannon Beach · April 2007

Often an exit interview simply confirms my take on the employee's experience but sometimes the exit interview can be very enlightening and helpful.

Recently, it became clear in the exit interview that a position we had was not titled correctly. Specifically, the position had a title that implied more authority than the individual really had.

As a result of the exit interview, we advertised a position with a title and responsibilities that was more in line with reality.

Exit Interview

Comments