30 Oct Exit interviews: Employees

You have handed in your notice and have been advised that you are required to attend an exit interview. This is usually performed by someone in HR or management. This should not be done by your immediate supervisor. The meetings will be conducted either straight after you have handed in your notice or they may leave it until your last day within the business.

There are a few key things to remember:

What the company want from an exit interview

The point of an exit interview is so that a company can gain information about an employees experience within the company. The information you provide them during this meeting will assist the company in gathering relevant information that can be used on its own or alongside several other exit interviews that have been conducted.

Vent ahead of time, not during the exit interview

There are a number of ways you can do this so that you don’t just “slam” the company and then regret it later on down the track. Why not sit with someone you trust and vent out all of your frustrations or write out an honest letter to “management” and give your honest/angry feelings … and then burn that letter (or just put it in the bin – whatever is more satisfying).

Plan and prepare for the session

It’s extremely important to plan what you are wanting to say ahead of the meeting. Planning ahead means you won’t blurt out the first thing that comes to mind and you are able to provide facts and not just opinions. The best way to look at this is thinking of the feedback you are wanting to provide in a way that you are able to give the company feedback for the long-term.

Exit with grace by focusing on the positive

If all you have to say are negative things, then this may come across as you just wanting to “have-a-go”, being bitter or wanting to “attack” someone. It’s important to make sure your comments are fact-based and professional. Talk about things that you learnt or the things you loved most about working with the company (Maybe they did fun group outings?). It’s all well and good to speak about negatives but it’s also beneficial to tell a company all the things they are doing right.

Provide useful facts.

I know I’ve spoken about facts throughout this but again it’s so important. Especially if one of the main reasons you’re leaving is because salary is much more competitive within the company you’re moving to. Maybe there wasn’t a chance for you to move up within the company and your new company gives you this opportunity.

Leave with grace.

Remember not to storm out after the meeting with your middle finger in the air. You may be moving on to better and brighter things but that doesn’t mean you will never need that company again. They may implement internal changes that make you want to return. What happens if your new role doesn’t work out and you can use them as a reference so you have to call this company back? You need to remember to not burn your bridges

There you have it. Remember the above and you should be fine! You will still have those working relationships for the future if you ever need whilst being able to move onto your next exciting adventure!

Kirsten Splatt