Exit interviews

General Guidance Notes

'Exit interviews' are interviews carried out by an employer, or on behalf of an employer, with an employee who is departing the business. 

There is significant value as an employer in holding exit interviews when a member of staff leaves. While no employer likes to lose good staff, it's obviously in an employer’s best interest to work out why an employee has decided to leave the business. This allows for future performance monitoring in this area and to see what improvements can be made. 

There are many reasons why employees leave, including remuneration and benefits, career progression, family problems, travel difficulties, and so on. If an employer can find out the true reasons, it may be possible to retain staff by improving the terms of their contract or their working conditions. 

Also, by holding an exit interview when an employee leaves, trends and themes may emerge which can help a business to learn lessons and put in place measures to minimise losing valued employees in the future. 

In addition, exit interviews are an excellent method of uncovering and potentially resolving any unspoken grievances of the leaving employee which may have resulted in employment litigation in the future. 

Tips to conducting an exit interview

• Keep the meeting informal  
• Let the conversation flow 
• Keep the atmosphere positive 
• Purpose of questions is more to give it a format if required but not necessary 
• Ensure all the necessary administration is in place and the person leaving is supported in this [e.g. annual leave, P45, final salary payment, etc] 
• Although the format of the interview is an informal one, it is good to take notes 

Suggested outline for note-taking at an Exit Interview

Name of Interviewee: ___________________________ 

Name of Interviewer: ___________________________ 

Date of Interview: ________________ 

Suggested questions: 

• Please describe your general feelings about working here. If possible, please tell us what caused you to leave. 
• What did you enjoy most about working here? 
• If you could change three things, what would they be? 
• How well do you believe your work was recognised and appreciated? 
• Do you feel you were given adequate training and assistance? 
• Are there things you wish you had known earlier? 
• Do you think your work was aligned with your personal goals? 
• What could be done to make this company a better place to work?