The Importance of Conducting Exit Interviews

Exit interviews are oftentimes dreaded because that means you’re losing an employee, BUT they provide so many benefits that every employer can use to grow and address areas for improvement. So, what exactly is an Exit Interview? 

An Exit Interview is either a physical interview or a form an employee completes on their final day of employment to gain insight into their experience as an employee, gain useful feedback, reason for leaving, their view of company culture, etc. Many employers lean towards a form because they believe the employee can be more transparent, but in-person, physical interviews are always an option!

What is the purpose of an Exit Interview?

As mentioned above, an Exit Interview is an opportunity for the employee to share their experience and for the employer to gain insight into areas of their workplace they may not be able to see. The only way for employers to grow, improve, and make positive changes is by receiving feedback from their employees! Now even though we recommend checking in with employees regularly about their experience to ensure a happy, healthy workforce, it is inevitable that employees will leave and when that time comes, these interviews are the perfect procedure to improve your employee retention, understand why employees are leaving, gain insightful feedback to prevent employee departure, and leave that employee with a positive impression of you as an employer.

How to conduct an Exit Interview?

There are two ways to conduct an Exit Interview. You can have the departing employee complete a detailed questionnaire or you can have them meet with a leader of the organization or someone from the HR department. Whichever method you choose, you want to ensure that you let the employee know that whatever they share with you will stay confidential between the company’s leadership and HR. This will help the employee share their thoughts and experiences freely!

When determining what questions you will ask, whether in a questionnaire or an in-person interview, make sure you ask open-ended questions. Remember, the point of conducting these is to get as much information as possible, so avoiding one-word answer questions is key. Ask questions like:

“What did you like best about working here?” 

“What did you like least about working here?”

“How could leadership have helped you more in completing your work?”

“What is the main reason behind you leaving your current position?”

If you are performing an in-person interview, make sure you use a neutral interviewer if possible! You want to create an unbiased environment, and if it is the employee’s direct supervisor, it might be harder for them to be completely honest.

What to do after an Exit Interview?

Once the interview is complete you will want to analyze the employee’s answers and create a plan to address the issues or enhance the areas where there is the most room for improvement. The biggest mistake employers can make is to not do anything with the informatio the employee provided! The changes you can make could help you retain more employees in the future and create a better work environment. And a better work environment means happier employees and happier employees means more productivity, and… you can see where this is going!

If you’re in this situation and an employee is leaving, we’d love to help you find their replacement. Visit our hiring page to learn more about how you can find your next rockstar employee!