Exit interview

An organization can use the information gained from an exit interview to assess what should be improved, changed, or remain intact.

This is the key time that an exit interview should be administered because the employee's feelings regarding his or her departure are fresh in mind.

An off-boarding process allows both the employer and employee to properly close the existing relationship so that company materials are collected, administrative forms are completed, knowledge base and projects are transferred or documented, feedback and insights are gathered through exit interviews, and any loose ends are resolved.

Today there are metrics, analytics, benchmarks, and best practices that help organizations make sense of and use the data towards proactive organizational retention programs.

However this method of conducting Exit Interviews has some significant flaws, most notably, that it identifies the wrong drivers of staff turnover.

Common questions include reasons for leaving, job satisfaction, frustrations, and feedback concerning company policies or procedures.

[1] Exit interviews play a pivotal role in understanding the dynamics of employee turnover and enhancing organizational success.

By asking the right questions and effectively interpreting the data, organizations can make informed decisions to improve workplace culture, boost employee satisfaction, and drive long-term success.

Passive methods of data collection such as online or paper surveys have the lowest participation rates of around 30%.

Outsourcing the exit interview process, while a relatively recent development, achieves the highest participation rates of 90% or more.

If the direct manager of the departing employee conducts the interview, only 26% of organisations achieve completion rates of 90% or more.

If junior or administrative Human Resources staff conduct the interview, only 31% achieve completion rates of over 90%.

This type of interview can also point to areas in which the institution should invest more or less resources to enhance a student's learning and development experience.

In addition, departing employees have a personal experience which may cause them to speak more positively about the company (affecting their 'employer brand') after they leave.

Also, if Interviewers are well trained, the content can be well structured and checked in real time to ensure accuracy of data, especially concerning reasons for leaving.

This method also allows high quality data to be collected from people whose literacy skills are not good.

It's also sometimes the case that the human resources professional who might conduct the interview, could be part of the employee's reason for leaving (e.g.

If Interviewers are well trained, the content can be well structured and checked in real time to ensure accuracy of data, especially concerning reasons for leaving.

Benefits: This is the least costly method of conducting Exit Interviews, with several free survey software tools available on the market.

However, IVRs have fallen out of favor due to the cost effectiveness of web based options that yield data at similar or higher quality.