The Ceremonial Exit

This was the spontaneous outpouring of some of my thoughts when I saw a friend going through a 'not so pleasant' exit from his organisation.

This article was published by Economic Times dt 28th Sept 1998
 
The inevitable happens - your employee leaves you. He leaves you because he wants to, or even maybe sometimes you want him to. This is one of the things a dynamic and fast changing economy brings with it- turbulence in the work environment. When times are good, your employees are wooed for better compensation, better job status and a better job environment and on the contrary in tough times the employees are shown the door by way of VRS or simply due to non-performance/ non-conformance. Sure no employee is indispensable and thus a voluntary / involuntary exit of an employee from your organisation may not be a big deal after all. But the trail he leaves behind could say a lot about the undercurrents within an organisation. It is these undercurrents in the organisation that drive the grapevine circuit and cause the rest of the employees to form an opinion about the goings on in the organisation. And it is prudent on the part of the senior management to have a pulse on these undercurrents. An Exit Interview is one way to keep a tab on these undercurrents and the grapevine mill that runs overtime in these times. An Exit interview is a forum in which a conversation is facilitated with the outgoing employee and he is invited to identify some major/ minor or even apparently non-issues but persistent aggravations which have been difficult during the period of his employment. Thus Exit interview is a very useful tool to obtain feedback on what you are doing good and what you are doing bad that you could do better 

The way an Exit interview is conducted is the single most important factor determining the depth and nature of the elicited information being divulged 

A moderator can make or break the chord of trust between the employee and the interviewer. Effective moderation and listening are the key for a useful and effective Exit Interview. The interview should be conducted by a person at least one (if not two) rungs above the normal reporting level of the outgoing employee in the presence of an H.R person. The general climate of such a discussion should be congenial, which will help the employee get into a receptive mood. Effective listening which involves paying attention to the spoken word (cognitive message) as well the non verbal communication forms the key to understanding the feelings and concerns of the individual at a subconscious level. And it is this information that is the most valuable feedback you can ever get. 

Questions can magically facilitate the conversation. They help in getting more information, establish mutuality, clarify matters and most importantly stimulate thinking. The questions posed to the interviewee should be in the form of short, light and loose-ended remarks that invite a thoughtful and verbose response from the interviewee. Questions like " Tell us one single thing you would do in the organisation, if you were given a magic wand…" or "What is the most interesting part of the job you are leaving behind? …." Or "How could we make life easier for your successor?" normally do the trick and sets off the interviewee into spewing out deep-rooted thoughts of his mind. A very frank and openhearted discussion can be expected at this stage as the occasion is devoid of any stakes, biases and prejudices from either side. Carefully and uninterruptedly listen to what is being said. Remember this interview is primarily a time to listen not to debate. Defensiveness and arguments serve no purpose at this stage and in-fact could hinder the process of information gathering. Cursory remarks like "…. Okay... Tell us more…" and ell us more…" and " So... That explains it…" should keep the interviewee going. 

During the interview always elicit information about 

• The interesting, frustrating, demanding, constraining and unpleasant aspects of the job 
• Gaps in rewards and benefits he is now going for - but you didn’t offer. 
• The work environment and the relationships between co-employees 

Therefore the interviewer should be prepared for the unexpected - bombshells disclosures, accusations, admissions etc. In fact these ingredients often make up a successful Exit Interview. Remember- would you have ever got such information from a current employee? 

The Exit interview is also a perfect opportunity to form an opinion about whether to re-employ the person concerned. It may not be bad idea after all to consider his re- employment, if the roadblocks that caused him to quit are removed some time in the future and also the employee concerned shows willingness. Did someone say that a known devil is better than an unknown one is? 

It is also observed that though most well meaning HR personnel understand the importance and use of an exit interview, they tend to go about it as a mundane ritual rather than as a serious exercise. This is because they suffer from what is called " Know it all syndrome". They think they know what the outgoing employee feels and also why he feels that way. They work on assumptions rather than reasoning, they are victims of selective perception and look forth to corroborate their hypotheses rather than reach out for and elicit some useful, unusual and critical information being sent out by the Interviewee and thus end up making the whole affair nugatory. 

A very likely situation is where the outgoing employee gives and so also seeks feedback about his ways of functioning. If ever you come across such a situation - do oblige. The feedback you offer should be constructive and not vindictive Fortunately for us here in India, the Indian employment scene is not deteriorated to the extent that an employee sues an employer for giving ‘unsatisfactory reasons’ for his termination. (Something that the employers dread abroad and thus shy away from an Exit Interview.) Such an excellent feedback exchange session just shows that you have gained enough trust of the outgoing employee and thus successfully transformed him from a colleague to a friend for life. What better way to bid adieu ?