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Conducting an Exit Interview

Written by: John M. Beane

Article Overview: An exit interview can be a great way to improve the hiring process by finding out what needs to be different initially. Should you hire a different kind of person, should the process be modified, what caused the mismatch between the person leaving the firm and their job.

Conducting an Exit Interview

The exit interview provides us with a good mechanism to take a hard look at how a company is perceived. Since the employee is leaving, they will often be more open and frank in their discussions about the company as long as they understand they either get a good recommendation or do not regardless of what they say. If they fear you would not give them a good recommendation then they will lie to you in order to get the recommendation. So making certain they understand the ground rules is imperative for the exit interview to succeed.

Here are some thoughts on the exit interview for you:

1. Interviews can be conducted orally or written. I prefer the oral interview since you can get better information and may see an opportunity to delve deeper into certain areas.

2. Think carefully about the information you would like to get before the interview. What is it you are trying to ascertain. This greatly increases the odds of a successful interview. Develop a series of questions you can use.

3. Save the hardest questions for the latter part of the interview. Work up to the tough stuff!

4. A good question to break the ice is ‘would you like for us to be a reference/recommendation for you’? Do not make this offer if you would not recommend the employee!

5. Be prepared for some bombshells. Expect the unexpected – if it ever is to happen it will happen in an exit interview.

6. Carefully select the interviewer. Look for someone that listens well and is open-minded. It serves no purpose for the interviewer to get into an argument to defend the firm with the departing employee.

7. Throughout the interview stay focused on the employee!

8. Look for open-ended questions that allow for plenty of expression. An example of this might be “How did you feel you were managed during your employment with us?” or “How do you feel the company is run.”

9. Other excellent questions are "Under what conditions would you have stayed?" and "If you had a magic wand, what would you have changed?"

10. At some point in the interview ask "Why are you leaving?" if they have not already given you the why.

11. Good general questions are "What did you like most (least) about your position?"

12. Try to find out if there were things the departing employee would suggest to improve conditions, production or morale.

13. Try to get a good feel for how they viewed their compensation and benefits package.

14. Leave room at the end of the interview for general comments.

15. Take notes of the high points. Get the general idea – it is not essential to get exact quotes.
It is more important to listen than write.

16. Immediately after the interview determine if you would rehire the employee. Assume they will reapply.

17. Make use of the information gathered. If you do not use this new information then why do an exit interview?

People can be helpful in numerous ways, many times, without even realizing they are helping us, so use that help to make your workplace a better place.

Related Articles
  Job Advice: How to Handle the Exit Interview
  Guidelines for Effective Interviewing
  The Importance of Exit Interviews
  One On One with Pierre Omidyar
  What Good Are Exit Interviews

Article Tags: bombshells, exit interview, expression, good question, interview work, interviewer, magic wand, odds, open ended questions, oral interview, tough stuff



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