What should be set up for a professional offboarding process?
A proper offboarding process not only helps companies avoid problems but also protects the employer brand, especially backlashes in case of mass laying off, and part away with employees on good terms.
1. Develop a detailed checklist:
To conduct a proper and emphatic offboarding process, HR specialists must first map out all the necessary tasks that needed to be done. Some of the tasks could be conducting an exit interview, notifying all the related parties (the employees, direct managers, compensation team, labor unions, etc.), retrieval of company-owned devices and systems, and so on. So many tasks with so many sides involved that it would produce loopholes if you are not thorough. So, it is best to have a powerful checklist to keep a tap on the progress and ensure the departing employees are completely offboarded.
2. Prepare questions for the exit interview:
Strategically speaking, one of the top important nodes in the offboarding process is having the exit interview. Involuntary or voluntarily, your employees depart for a reason, which is your responsibility to find out. The insights generated from exit interviews could help you identify and improve company culture, leadership, and management drawbacks that drive away talents (or make them unsuitable to continue with you). Try to develop a set of questions to target all aspects surrounding the employees to dig deep for potential problems.
Here are a few questions for your reference:
Question 1 - What do you think of our company culture?
You should not be looking to get a specific answer to this question. Instead, you should listen to employees' responses to notice the trend. What the majority of them say is the perceived workplace culture of your company.
For example, if most employees say you have a transparency culture, then that is an accurate depiction of your company culture. However, you should ask the other employees who say something else to give you an example of why they think so. Their answers to the follow-up question may give you an insight into minor problems that may be affecting your company culture.
Question 2 - Have you been harassed or discriminated against at work?
Often, employees seek to leave a workplace because they are being harassed or discriminated against based on their gender or race. A direct question like this will let you know if you have a problem in your workplace. Also, it allows you to identify the person(s) allegedly responsible for the violation of your equality policy.
Question 3 - What can we do to change your mind about leaving?
The aim of asking this question is not to fulfill the employee’s request. Instead, it will help you dig deeper into the factors leading to their decision. The employee will be more open to telling you the real catalyst behind their decision to get a new job.
For example, if the employee says a better pay package will keep them from leaving, this means you may need to review your salary package compared to the market for specific talents to prevent the loss of another employee.
Question 4 - Have you ever shared the concerns you stated here today with your manager before?
Asking this interview question reveals either one of two problems:
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A “no” answer means you need to work on your company culture and maybe implement an open-door policy.
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A “yes” answer shows that either the direct manager didn't listen to the employee’s feedback or they refused to act on them.
Question 5 - Would you recommend our company to a friend?
Employee referral is one of the best sources to get quality hires. Hence, you need to know if the employee would be willing to refer your company to their friends or relatives. Whatever their answer to this question is, probe further by asking them why.
Asking them the reason for their “yes” answer will let you know what they think your company's selling point is. Knowing the reason for their “no” question will help pinpoint their issues with your culture and correct them if valid.
Question 6 - Would you consider rejoining our company sometime in the future?
Exploring if your departing employees will ever want to come back and work for your company. Ask them what capacity or role they will be looking for when they come back. Lastly, find out what needs to change before they can consider coming back.
These questions will help you know what you can improve in your company to attract lost talents. It could also allow you to know who to call if you are looking for candidates to fill a specific position in the future.
Question 7 - What qualities should we look for when hiring for your position?
Only a few people know what it takes to succeed in a role than the person occupied. Asking your offboarding employee this question will provide answers that you can use to optimize your job description during the search for a replacement. It could be a specific skill or personality trait.
For example, your departing software engineer may believe that the ability to keep up with the latest industry trends has helped them excel in the role. That way, when creating your job description post, you’d know to include industry awareness as one of the qualities you are looking for in candidates.
3. Draft emails for communication
You will need a clear communication process regarding the departure of employees. Who should know about offboarding and what is their part in it? To save your time, you can easily use our 6 essential offboarding email templates to craft fast clear, and concise messages.
Example: Lay off email due to downsizing
Title: Letter of employment termination
Content:
Dear [employee name],
As you may know, the last few months have been challenging in many ways for us at [company name]. We have tried several options, including [list of failed solutions]. However, none have been successful. In the effort to regain financial stability, a tough call that we had to make is reducing our workforce.
After a thorough review of our financial numbers, we have decided to let go of [number] employees. We are sorry to inform you that you are one of those who will be leaving the company effective [date].
You will receive a severance salary and benefit payment of [amount] to this effect. Please note that as on/before [due date], the following company property should be returned:
[list of company-issued property]
Thank you for your outstanding contributions to [company name]. Our best wishes to you in your future endeavors.
Please get in contact with [name] on [contact: e.g. email] if you have any further questions.
Sincerely,
[Your name]
[Company name]
4. Utilize technology assistance in the offboarding process.
Ultimately, you won't have to repeat the whole process like this every time an employee is offboarded. The use of HR software like Grove HR can help you with automated emails, checklists & tasks assignments, and notifications to all related parties. All you have to you is set everything up and let the whole process run automatically on your cue.
