Exits: Exit interviews, are they worth it?
I’ll put my cards on the table now- I don’t think so. I have my reasons, but I am in the minority. If there is a motif across of all of these articles, it is ‘it only works if you do it right’ and that certainly applied here.
What is an exit interview?
Exit interviews, are all very corporate, and this may not be for you or your company. If you don’t want to do, or don’t see the value, don’t feel compelled. It’s not a natural fit for small medical teams.
An exit interview is gathering data about the organisation from employs as they exit. It can either be a survey, or in person discussion (face to face, or online). Typically it gathers data on why people left, what their experiences were in the company, what they thoughts are on the company direction. Basically, it’s sitting down with the employee leaving and asking; why, and how things have been, and what the team culture is REALLY like.
Why is it worth doing them
Most of the time, employees leaving is a loss. We can’t expect people to stay forever, but understanding why people leave is important, because if there is a factor that caused them to leave, it might cause others to leave, and if we can fix it, then we can stop it causing others to leave. If an employee leaves because the pay is too low, and we didn’t think it was, that might cause us to fix it, before others leave as well. An exit interview can help us shut the gate before the horses have bolted.
Why it’s not worth doing them
Are you actually listening to them? Or specifically- you are genuinely open to feedback and prepared to change? Depending on how they are done (i.e. survey or interview) they can be time-consuming, invasive and confrontational- asking someone to tell you what they really think can be cathartic for some, but for many it’s an imposition. From my experience, sitting with someone to ask them introspective questions about themselves and their relationship with others is both emotionally and time intensive.
Self justification, platforms and defensiveness
Nothing is simple, and personal bias and agendas get in the way. These aren’t guaranteed, nor are they automatic deal breakers, but these potential potholes you might hit:
Leaver self- justification: Ever read an autobiography (particularly a political one). Whether intended or not, they stray inevitably to self-justification. ‘I was actually right’ is the perpetual subtext.
Platforms: This can happen in exit interviews; the nature of the interview (we are sorry you’re leaving, why are you?) can give people a platform. “Oh and another thing, X has been bugging me for a while..”
Defensiveness: This is you. Whether the two above, or something else, or just feedback, it’s easy to not listen, it’s easy to rebut, it’s easy to also end up with the position of ‘things are fine, we keep going with how things are’. This may be fair, so long as it’s not just because we don’t like bad news.
How to do them well
Listen with an open mind. Accept it is their truth, give them the benefit of the doubt that these are their genuinely-held feelings, that motivated their decision to leave. You don’t have to agree, or accept blindly that they are right, but accept it is how they felt.
Fix accidental risks. We can’t keep people forever, and people will leave. Some factors we can’t fix at all or easily (e.g. the pay, the location, or the type of work), but sometimes we took accidental, avoidable risks that people would disengage and look elsewhere. Cutting their expectations of hours, not giving them opportunities, etc- decisions that we didn’t anticipate would result in them looking elsewhere for work. It’s too late now, but we can stop it happening accidentally for another employee.
