With a number of colleagues leaving this month on the enhanced early exit scheme, some of you are asking:

‘How can I help someone have a good exit?’  

This may feel different somehow to situations when colleagues have left the team in the past.  You may be thinking that what has worked before may not feel enough, or appropriate right now. You want people to leave with respect and dignity but you’re not quite sure which mechanisms to use.  

Firstly, it feels different because it is. Some colleagues may be ready to move on and are feeling optimistic about the future, whereas others may not be leaving if circumstances were different. Understanding where people are and how they feel will help you work out an exit plan tailored to them. However, there are some things which should be done as standard:  

• Give people space and permission to attend coaching, training and interviews to support their next steps, and enable them to do this. Sometimes saying “it’s ok” is not enough, many people will be prioritising getting work finished and doing a thorough handover plan, and could feel guilty about taking time for these personal development activities. Use your Positive Performance Conversations to make sure they are creating time for themselves. If they aren’t, help them make space.   

• Help them with that handover plan where appropriate. Be clear on what work is going where. If you aren’t yet sure then be honest about that and agree to hold it until you know more. Listen to any concerns, they might have information or suggestions which will help you re-shape how work is done going forward.  

• Make sure your communication is clear and empathetic. We recently ran a great webinar on this which you can watch here – empowered conversations.  

These three things form the basis of a good exit. But there’s more you could do to help people feel respected and valued as they prepare to leave: 

• Check-in with them regularly and follow up to see how they are coping. People who were enthusiastic initially may start to feel nervous as their leave date approaches. Ask them what you can do to help.  Make sure they are aware of the range of support.  

• Give them a voice. Let them decide how they want their departure communicated and respect their preferences – some may want a quiet exit whereas others might appreciate a goodbye event. This doesn’t have to be a big event, it could be cake in the office, a cuppa in Touchdown or breakfast in the Food Court.

• Acknowledge their contributions and talk about their strengths. Our next blog in this series will be ‘How can I help people feel valued right now?’ and will have ideas to help with this.   

• Help them with networking. Perhaps you have connections who could support them with next steps?

• Endorse them on Linkedin.    

• Offer an exit interview to understand their experiences and take a genuine interest. Learn from what they say and take forward any key points. 

Remember there are some things you can’t control, for example how they feel about how the organisation more widely, or the decisions which have been made. But you can make a difference to how they feel, and how they are supported, as they transition out of your team. Help them remember their time in your team with some positivity and consider it a good step onto whatever comes next for them.

Harriet Robb, Organisational Development Manager