Featured

The Termination Interview and Exit Process



Published
Dismissing an employee is one of the most difficult tasks you can face at work. Guidelines for the termination interview are as follows: Plan the interview. Have employee agreements, the human resource file, and a release announcement prepared in advance. Have phone numbers ready for medical or security emergencies.

Get to the point. When the employee enters, give the person a moment to get comfortable and then tell them the purpose of the meeting and of your decision. Describe the situation. Briefly, in three or four sentences, explain why the person is being let go. Listen. Continue the interview for several minutes until the person appears to be talking freely and reasonably calmly.

Review the severance package. Describe severance payments, benefits, access to office support people, and the way references will be handled. Make no promises of benefits beyond those already in the support package.
Identify the next step. The terminated employee may be disoriented and unsure what to do next. Explain where the employee should go next, upon leaving the interview.

With outplacement counseling the employer arranges for an outside firm to provide terminated employees with career planning and job search skills. Many employers conduct exit interviews, just prior to the employee leaving. These aim to give employers insights into their companies’ strengths and weaknesses so as to improve employee retention. The exit interview is one part of a rational exit process. The employer should have a checklist.
Category
Job
Be the first to comment