Dealing with leavers is an inevitable part of being an employer. According to a survey by LinkedIn average staff turnover globally in 2022 was 10.6%. Staff leaving your business is a natural part of the employee lifecycle and how your company deals with the process of a member of staff leaving often says a lot about your business and its culture.
You can see it coming
If you have a culture in which open, honest conversation is encouraged then it is unlikely to come as a total surprise when an employee hands in their resignation. They’ll probably already have spoken to you or their manager about looking for a new job or there may at least have been some hints that a move for them was on the cards. The reasons behind someone leaving their job are far too numerous to list here but if we focus purely on resignations then it can be career progression, an offer of enhanced salary and benefits, a change of location, not getting on with colleagues or even a complete change of career. If you know that there is potentially an issue before you receive a resignation then on occasions you can resolve things so that the employee actually stays. That could be by offering to provide support for training or funding for a relevant qualification, perhaps a pay increase or to clear the air between colleagues if there has been a dispute. There will be instances though where no matter what you say or do the employee’s mind is made up and the decision is totally beyond your control. No matter how the resignation comes about though it’s important to end the working relationship well and to deal with things professionally.
Acknowledgement & Practicalities
When you’re made aware of the resignation make sure that you acknowledge it with a letter or an email. If you know the leaver well and it’s possible then go and see them and have a chat. Most people are nervous about resigning as they don’t want to upset their manager so a quick conversation to show there are no hard feelings is a good idea and should help with a smooth notice period. In your acknowledgement letter you should confirm the leaving date, set out any arrangements for any untaken annual leave, would you like the leaver to take it or will it be paid, communicate how, when and to whom any company property should be returned, remind the employee of any restrictions in their contract and also thank them in writing for their service and contribution to the business. On a practical level you’ll need to notify your payroll and pension provider of the leaver and make sure that their IT access is removed. You might also want to inform their clients so that there is a smooth transition and business continues normally.
Exit interviews
It’s always a good idea to hold an exit interview with the employee to gather feedback from them. An exit interview is an opportunity for an open and honest discussion and should allow you to gather information which could prove useful in helping you to address issues, fix problems and reflect on what you could do differently to prevent future resignations. Y. ou should ideally carry out an exit interview with all leavers regardless of their role or seniority, everyone’s opinions are valuable. It’s important that the person carrying the exit interview is prepared, if they have a pro-forma to guide the meeting that will help. Whatever information is gathered in the exit interview it is important to take it seriously and review it, otherwise it is a waste of everyone’s time and a pointless paper exercise.
Handover
Often, when an employee leaves a business the most valuable asset they take with them is knowledge and so a handover is vital. If you’ve managed to recruit a replacement before the employee leaves then they can show the new starter the ropes and hand over to them. In reality, that seldom happens and so the handover should either be to their manager or a colleague who is taking on their responsibilities. Sometimes, it’s impossible to know what you don’t know so ask about current clients, workload and projects, find out who their key contacts are and ideally do some introductions and if they are the only person who works on certain tasks then ask them to produce some simple process maps or guides which can easily be picked up once they’ve gone.
Failure to achieve a happy ending can have wider implications. You could be left with a knowledge vacuum, remaining staff may become unsettled by how things were handled and might also look to leave and with a range of review sites and social media options your leaver might decide to paint a negative picture of your company online which could lead to lasting reputational damage. It’s important therefore to part on good terms, to treat the leaver courteously until the end and to send them on their way to pastures new with your best wishes.
Do you have any questions about todays blog, need help in becoming legally compliant with contracts/policies or can we support you in taking away any people pains to give you peace of mind?
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Why not also check out our blog on a similar topic Good Leavers v Bad Leavers
We also have a YouTube channel with loads of handy videos outlining various HR related scenarios.
