Employee retention interviews
Stay Interview
Employee retention interviews are a very effective tool for employee survival and avoiding their departure, but there are many organizations that still have not made the most of this type of interview since, according to a Gallup survey, 52% of employees who voluntarily left their jobs have a belief that their manager or decision makers within the company could have taken some steps to prevent Their departure.
Therefore, employee retention interviews provide an opportunity to identify those steps and implement solutions that enhance the employee's stay in the organization for as long as possible.
In this article, we review the purpose of employee retention interviews and why it is preferable to separate them from performance evaluations.in addition, we will show 10 questions that are commonly asked in such a type of interview.
What are employee retention interviews
It is a structured discussion between the manager and the team members individually. Their purpose is to understand the reasons why employees should stay with the company and identify the necessary actions to increase their active participation and retention.
These interviews serve as a proactive way to assess what is going well and identify areas for improvement, promoting transparency in the dialogue between the decision maker and the employee.
It's also more like building a customer retention strategy, but the difference here is that this strategy will be applied to employees. Just as companies offer loyalty programs and discounts to keep customers happy, they should consider conducting employee retention interviews to understand how to create a positive work environment that motivates them to stay.
Objectives of employee retention interviews
- Promote effective employee engagement and retention.
- Get direct and more reliable information.
- Detect and address the individual needs of employees.
As an employee or HR manager, you may be wondering about the right timing for an employee retention interview. Is it appropriate to conduct them when reviewing the performance of an employee or dismissing them
The fact is that it is preferable not to combine them, and here are a number of logical reasons behind this approach :
Focused attention: Conducting performance reviews and employee retention interviews at separate times allows giving each process the necessary attention to it. Because during a performance review, the focus is only on job-related performance and areas of development. In contrast, an employee retention interview focuses on understanding the employee's level of engagement, satisfaction with their role, work environment, and growth opportunities.
Less bias: A performance review should be objective, based on measurable criteria, while an employee retention interview can be more open and transparent to explore the employee's feelings and interests.
Enhance employee comfort: Conducting employee retention interviews and performance reviews at different times helps to create a more comfortable environment for employees during both processes as performance reviews can be stressful for some employees, therefore separating them from retention interviews can relieve some of this stress.
10 Questions for employee retention interviews
In this section, we'll look at examples of actual questions asked in employee retention interviews. There are 5 main questions, according to employee retention interview expert Richard Finnegan, that leaders should ask their employees individually every time. Instead of just working on a list of questions, it is important to examine the answers in order to better understand what lies behind each answer.
To help you do this as effectively as possible, we have divided the questions into 5 main topics to cover, with a main question, the reason for asking it and a follow-up question under each topic.
The first topic: evoking positive mental images | |
The main question | 1. When you leave for work every day, what things are you looking forward to |
The reason for asking the question | It's a good idea to start the employee retention interview positively. Asking employees what they are looking forward to when they wake up in the morning – or while on the move – helps them become more aware of what they like about their job. |
Follow-up question | 2. What are you afraid of happening at work every day |
Topic two: learning and skills development | |
The main question | 3-What are you learning here |
The reason for asking this question | When we encourage “learning, " it sends a convincing message that we value personal and organizational growth. By answering questions related to the development of their skills, employees are aware of their progress and understand that they are constantly evolving. |
Follow-up question | 4-what talents are you not using in your job |
The third topic: research into the real reasons for the survival of employees | |
The main question | 5-Why Are you staying here |
The reason for asking this question | This is a question that employees may not be able to answer quickly. They may give you “superficial” reasons to stay at first, such as “paying bills” or “paying for my vacation”. The ability to really answer this question requires the manager to dig a little deeper. It also requires the employee to be completely honest with himself regarding the reasons for his stay and this may take some time, so take your time asking and give him enough time space to answer. |
Follow-up question | 6 - what temptations push you to get out of the job |
Topic four: basic retention problems | |
The main question | 7-. When was the last time you thought about leaving our team What prompted you to do this |
The reason for asking this question | It's normal for people to think about leaving at some point. Listening directly from employees to what might have prompted them to leave is important for two reasons: – You may be able to prevent similar situations from happening in the future. - Give you the opportunity to convince employees to come directly to you if they have the idea of leaving in the future. |
Follow-up question | 8. What is the first thing I can do to improve the situation |
Topic five: opinions on the manager's style | |
The main question | 9. What can I do to make the work experience better for you |
The reason for asking this question | Building trust is essential for a healthy and successful manager-team relationship and employee retention interviews offer a valuable opportunity for managers to build trust with their team members. |
Follow-up question | 10. As a manager, what is something that I can continue to do more and what is something that I can mitigate from doing |
Conclusion
Employee retention interviews are an exceptional tool to enhance employee retention and increase their levels of effective engagement within organizations. It also provides managers with a valuable opportunity to build trust with employees and identify possible causes of attrition.
Despite their enormous benefits, employee retention interviews are often overlooked in many organizations, so if you are an HR professional, it is important to recognize the value of employee retention interviews and start implementing them.
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