The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that 4.4 million people quit their jobs in February 2022 – another near-record high.  The Great Resignation continues to spotlight the people risks that today’s leaders face as valuable employees continue to submit their resignations in this exceptionally tight labor market.

Sure, there is value in conducting exit interviews to gather insights and data to understand the reasons why talented employees are leaving.  But why wait for the resignation to take place?

A powerful, yet vastly underutilized tool to get ahead of the resignation email, is the “stay” interview.  A recently published article by Harvard Business Review (HBR) argues that managers should spend just as much time understanding why employees choose to remain in their jobs as they expend learning why they are departing.

We like the practical and easy-to-implement advice that HBR shared to implement stay interviews.  HBR recommends that you fold stay interviews into existing one-on-one meetings with your employees or minimally consider conducting them monthly.  HBR further suggests that you ask the following four questions that address common retention issues:

  • What’s your frame of mind today?
  • Who do you feel connected to at work?
  • What barriers can I remove for you?
  • What new thing to you want to learn that will excite you and help you grow?

Read the HBR article here.