by Wahidabi Sulaiman

Created on: July 22, 2009

Exit interviews can be hard and usually not very appealing to the Human Resource professionals. Therefore, the more preparations you take, the smoother the exit interview would be for you as well as the employee. There are a few important things you need in order to ensure a smooth exit interview.

Firstly, you need to review employee personal file. This would give you the idea of how long the employee has been working. Also, it will shed light onto letters and documentations pertaining to any disciplinary actions or commendations. Therefore, if the company contract do not specify, you can decide on the compensation package upon termination.

Next, get the termination letter or the acceptance of resignation letter ready. This would require some time. Although every Human Resource department would have a template to follow, it would be advisable to personalize and word the letter according to the situation. This would make it easier for the employee to understand the letter.

Also, ensure that the Payroll department is duly notified that the last payment should be issued in cheque instead of wire transfer. This would give you ample time to ensure that all accounts are in place and the employee do not owe anything to the company. This payment mode would also ensure that the organization would not have to recover back any money if needed.

Next, prepare a checklist of items that the employee has taken from the company. This should have already been filed into the personal file upon joining. However, if this is not part of the file, ensure that you check with relevant supervisors of the items that are taken by the employee. This could in terms of company passes, medical card or even company uniforms. These items need to properly documented and used in the final settlement calculation to ensure that you do not overpay the employee.

The following step is to arrange for the exit interview. This is necessary and every organization should religiously conduct an exit interview before letting the employee go. This would help you in identifying the flaws in your selection process, the loose ends in the contract, the shortcomings of the employee benefits program and many others. This would give a venue for the employees to vent their grievances as well.

Anticipate questions that the employee could ask during the exit interview. This would ensure that you are well prepared to answer the questions and that you are not tongue-tied when it comes to the exit interview. Also, you may be able to provide help to the employee in understanding the decision of the organization should the employee decide on not asking any questions.

Exit interviews can be hard on the employees who may be faced with many new challenges because of the loss of job. Therefore, try as much as possible to ensure that the process is smooth and is conducted in a respectful and professional manner.

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