The Importance of 'Stay' Interviews
Not conducting them is missing out on what can be beneficial
Exit interviews are a way for leaders and organizations to communicate with departing employees and additionally gain feedback. They can be, if done well, a useful tool and process. However, if employees are valued, ‘stay’ interviews should be regularly done.
Leaders and organizations can benefit from learning what employees are thinking, happy about, wanting and what concerns and troubles them.
They educate, says one specialist, yet must be planned and communicated thoughtfully and skillfully.
“Stay interviews can be a powerful method to ensure a grasp of key retention drivers that need to be addressed proactively before a person gives notice or leaves altogether,” says Jennifer Preston, who has twenty years of human resources experience and is an HR-and-recruiting consultant at Flex HR.
She talks about the frequency and benefits of such conversations.
“Quarterly or semi-annual discussions conducted by a HR professional and tracked using ‘red, yellow, green’ indicators for employees, especially ‘key persons of interest’ helps to garner feedback openly and confidentially to ensure management and leadership awareness of key people and trends.”
The effort and skillful communication can lead to significant and desirable savings.
“These discussions, if used strategically and thoughtfully, may help to save companies a lot of time, energy, and money by avoiding surprises and ‘negative attrition' resulting in lengthy and costly recruitment, onboarding and training scenarios,” Preston says.
It might not be obvious to all leaders and organizations how to specifically interact in ‘stay’ interviews. Preston offers professional recommendations.
“Open ended questions are best to target information. Areas of focus in these interviews should be about career progression and growth; how the employee career and personal values align with the company goals and values; and finally, if there was one thing they would like to see changed, what and why would that be, what solutions they might have, how would they do it, with whom would they work, and what is the outcome they would hope to achieve,” she says.
Additional questions were found in a LinkedIn Post that could be asked of employees within ‘stay’ interviews:
What challenges or frustrations could I help you with?
“I would not lead with this question,” Preston says. “I may end with this question and reframe it to be asked and answered differently: ‘What is one challenge or frustration you are experiencing in XYZ company, a solution you may have to address it and how you have begun or would begin working through it?’
“Asking for a solution gives the interviewer the idea that someone who is thinking of solutions, is likely not looking to leave or is giving the company an opportunity to address the situation or situations, and further, someone who has been proactively trying to address it, is also working hard at wanting to stay.”
She says such a person who can answer intelligently should get support because an individual “who has suggestions and is looking for ways to improve the situation, I would rate ‘yellow.’ This person would be on my ‘watch’ list, as someone we need to stay engaged with to ensure we are acting upon solutions this person is presenting.
She touches on the other two labels.
“If a person says they do not have challenges or frustrations, they are likely either very satisfied and therefore are “green.” Or are generally staying quiet, as the person is checked-out,’ and thus, ‘red,’” Preston details. “Frequent conversations and touch points with individuals helps to keep pulse on how a person really is doing,” can help know how to understand employees better.
It’s important to recognize which individuals have little to say when it comes to helpful responses to problems. It’s a warning sign.
“If a person says they have challenges and frustration, but no solutions, these individuals are ‘red’ in my book,” Preston pointedly says. “They are ready to throw in the towel. They are fed up. They have tried everything and just feel like it would be better elsewhere. More discussion would be necessary to ascertain the status of this person relative to the company.”
If you could change our company goals, what would you start doing?
“Is answering this openly going to change the goals of the company, Preston rhetorically asks? “Likely not. I would also presume that an organization is not going to change its’ goals and redefine themselves to keep critical employees. Alternatively, those employees who are asked, may feel a sense of respect, acknowledgment and find their voice, offering crucial bits of data to shape, refine, influence and creatively drive goals forward.”
While this question may have holes, at least that Preston can see, she thinks rethinking and rewording it could make it valuable.
“Perhaps, there is a different way to frame the question to have a more productive discussion,” she points out:
How do you feel your personal career goals align with our corporate goals?
Where are we aligned to help you achieve your goals? What is an obstacle?
What can we as a company do better with respect to our goals?
What is one idea you have to help propel us forward (about which) we are not currently focusing?
What's one thing I could do to be a better leader? And what's the next thing?
“Individuals may feel nervous to speak openly and honestly, fearing retaliation or how it may possibly backfire,” Preston believes. “This, in my opinion, is a better question asked and answered in a 360 Evaluation Review as part of a formal performance Management Process, where a subordinate can provide feedback on bosses or other leaders.”
She likes a different approach.
“Perhaps the leadership question can be posed through the following examples which may be more comfortably answered with open and honest candor and lead to better results overall with respect to overall leadership within the organization,” Preston says.
“Some people are not natural leaders, others are. Infusing a Leadership Development Curriculum can help to address some leadership challenges and these conversations can help expose that and realize some lost potential:
How do you define a leader?
What leadership style motivates you? Why?
Does our current structure offer you visibility into that leadership style? If yes or no, why?
What would you like our leadership to start, stop and continue — and why?
Do you feel you have leaders within our organization whom you respect to help coach you and for you to emulate?
“Retaining top talent leads to a more profitable bottom line,” Preston offers as a reminder. “There is great time and cost associated with backfilling key people. Not all roles can be filled naturally internally through succession planning because of lack of talent, skills, experience, leadership, etc.
“Conducting stay interviews to ensure top talent is retained can save the company a great deal of money and save from the difficult, costly and timely recruitment, requisite onboarding and training to backfill key roles.”
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