Avoiding the ‘Silent Killer’: Interviewing the Exits

Former employees know your company’s strengths and weaknesses. Most are even willing to speak frankly about them after they walk out the door…but not to you. People on their way out often don’t want to be too candid, in hopes of receiving a positive reference in the future. Or they’re just apathetic: What’s the point of enduring an awkward conversation about a company’s or boss’ shortcomings when you only have to put up with those problems for a few more days?

Unwanted employee attrition has been described as a “silent killer”. It is ‘silent’ because these soft costs become hard costs that are invisible on your balance sheet.

Current average replenishment costs in relation to salary are calculated as follows:

• Non-exempt – .9x
• Individual Contributor – 1.5x
• Manager – 2x
• Executive – 4x

Organizations that think “who first” take voluntary resignations seriously. The challenge is: How can you be certain you are getting honest and accurate feedback from your exiting employees?

Whether the goal is to save money on human capital replenishment costs and/or validate performance criteria, more and more organizations are considering a process that provides the real reasons why their people are leaving..

Most people have a difficult time articulating their reason for leaving because it’s either too emotional or for fear of retribution. They take the path of least resistance – the ‘more money’ answer.

A blatant appeal for your business begins here.
Partnering with a third party expert allows you hear what you are not hearing. Utilizing behavior interviewing techniques, we conduct the interview by phone, three to five weeks after the exit date. These confidential conversations are transcribed verbatim and submitted to the company in the aggregate. A report is generated based on the number of interviews conducted over a specific period.

This method can also be useful as a follow-up ‘re-recruiting’ tool because we also call them again, usually within six months to see if they are happy with their new position and company.

Benefits:

• Provides accurate data that can reduce high attrition costs
• Helps direct development dollars to a specific person or department
• Reduces recruiting expenses
• Avoids unwarranted salary adjustments
• Validates suspected concerns

The ROI can be measured by saving the next mission critical employee…

An exit interviewing form gives you the answers to the questions you ask. This method tells you what you really need to know.