9 reasons why you should do exit interviews

If you aren’t already doing exit interviews, consider the value they can bring to your company. [iStockphoto]

Exit interviews are important because they offer a deeper look at your workplace culture, day-to-day processes, management solutions, and employee morale.

The purpose of an exit interview is to assess the overall employee experience within your organisation and identify opportunities to improve retention and engagement.

Having a clear set of standards in place when conducting exit interviews can also play an essential role in risk management.

When employee issues are addressed justly and effectively within the workplace, there is no need for external investigations, litigation, or bad publicity.

When completed in a consistent and standardised way, these interviews can help you foster positive relationships and a welcoming work environment.

If you aren’t already doing exit interviews, consider the value they can bring to your company.

Reasons why exit interviews are important

Here are 9 reasons highlighting the importance of exit interviews to help your organization get the data and insights needed to create a more positive work environment and to protect your organization from risk:

1. You will learn the reason for an employee’s departure (it may be different than you think!)
2. The exit interview allows the employee to provide constructive feedback and leave on a positive note
3. That last touchpoint provides you with an opportunity to review continuing obligations with the employee (e.g. non-competes, intellectual property agreements, etc.)
4. It provides the opportunity to ask if there are any open issues of which you need to be aware. This can help reduce risk and identify matters that may require immediate attention.
5. Insight into recruiting, onboarding, and training needs may be revealed
6. The feedback will help you to identify areas that can help improve staff retention
7. Improvement opportunities in management development and succession planning can be detected
8. It’s cost-effective to facilitate quality exit interviews
9. No matter the size of your company, exit interviews provide an opportunity for an employee to discuss the workplace environment, concerns about misconduct, or issues within management.