There has been much discussion on HR forums and blogs about the ‘Stay Interview’.  All of these forums/blogs are saying that waiting until the Exit Interview to find out why someone is leaving and what you could have done differently to keep them is like shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted and I would agree.  At this stage, it is too late to influence them to stay and really, at this point, you shouldn’t try to in my opinion.

But where did it come from?  Well, trying to find out where the concept was born is difficult, however, a book was published in 2015 called ‘Hello Stay Interviews Goodbye Talent Loss’, written by Beverley Kaye and Sharon Jordon-Evans.  Back in the 1990’s Beverley Kaye was working for a large company that had 38 people on its SAP team and they really wanted to retain these people.  Beverley Kaye asked the team members two very simple questions:

‘What could the company do to keep you?’ and ‘What would entice you to leave the company?’

You could say that these are questions that should come up at any meaningful one to one, or even at a succession planning discussion but I guess they don’t in the majority of cases.

So, if you’re going to start doing these, here are some more ‘meaty’ questions that you could consider:-

• What do you like about your job?

• Do you feel your skills and strengths are being used to its full potential at work?

• Do you feel you get properly recognised for your work, contributions, or achievements?

• Do you feel like you are treated with trust and respect in your role?”

• What do you like least about working here?

• On a scale from one to ten with ten being “I’m staying for the foreseeable future” and one being, “I’m leaving ASAP,” how would you rate your intention to leave? with a follow up question of ‘What’s the single most meaningful action I could take to address this issue?’

• What can I do to make your experience at work better for you?

My top tip would be, if you dare to ask these questions, make sure that you are willing to actually do something with the answers.

Alternatively, get in touch with us and we can ask them for you!