Exit Process for Employees: Key Steps Outlined

Streamline employee offboarding with detailed steps for a smooth transition, protecting company operations and relationships. Ensure professionalism, knowledge transfer, and positive long-term connections through structured exit procedures.

By Douglas Wade, Attorney

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Table of Contents

1. What is the exit process for employees?

2. What does an employee exit mean?

3. When an employee leaves, why is it important to follow an exit checklist?

4. Steps involved in an employee’s exit procedure

5. HR professional’s toolbox: Questions to ask during an exit interview

6. Advice on how to manage an employee’s exit from your organization

What is the exit process for employees?

A company’s recruiting and hiring processes are important, but the way an employee departs can be just as crucial. Keep in mind that if a person is really gifted, they likely have a lot of experience and insight to offer the company.

Keeping in touch makes it more likely that they will return or perhaps become an advocate for your company in their local community. If you want your offboarding process to go off without a hitch, use an employee exit checklist.

What does an employee exit mean?

In order to remove a person from their position, a company may implement an exit strategy. The official procedure for removing an employee from your company is known as offboarding. It is a regular and methodical approach to handling an employee’s departure from a company in a way that doesn’t disrupt daily operations.

The hiring, orientation, and development of new staff members is an integral part of any company’s operations. But there isn’t always a well-thought-out process in place when it’s time for a worker to leave. The majority of firms (71%) claim to not have a formal handover process in place, according to a study by Aberdeen Research.

The last phase of an employee’s tenure with a company can be better orchestrated with the help of an exit strategy. The approach is methodical and uniform. When executed properly, an offboarding process and exit checklist make the transition easy for the business and the person leaving.

When an employee leaves, why is it important to follow an exit checklist?

There is a wide range of reasons why people quit their jobs. They could be interested in other opportunities. Maybe a recruiter came up to them. Sometimes people do things for their own reasons, like wanting to spend more time with their loved ones. And, of course, a worker may be fired after the right actions and measures have been taken to discipline them.

Exit interviews provide a golden chance to promote your company as an attractive place to work for the following reasons:

Offboarding provides HR with a chance to conduct an exit interview, which might yield useful insights. Businesses can learn a lot about their employees’ perceptions of the organization, its procedures, management, and management structures from these interviews. In order to create and execute a better overall experience for employees, HR professionals might use exit interviews to discover problems with the company’s organizational culture.

The way an employee is treated when they leave a company is a reflection of the general value that the corporation places on its employees, which reinforces the company culture. You send a message to other workers about how you feel about treating departing employees if you treat a departing employee with dignity. People are more inclined to appreciate their time with a company if they have faith in its managers.

Allows for a seamless transition: By streamlining the process of an employee’s departure, we can keep operations running smoothly, ensure a smooth handoff, and turn an individual’s expertise into institutional knowledge.

Shows how much you value your employees: People leave companies. However, they can also come back. You may increase the likelihood that a brilliant employee will return to your company by treating them well during their departure, as opposed to making them feel ignored and insulted throughout the entire offboarding process. On the contrary, people ought to feel appreciated and know that the company backs their decisions, whether they’re personal or professional.

Strengthens company image: Workers act as representatives of your brand when out in the community. Even after they’ve left an organization, many former workers remain loyal advocates for the company’s name and dependable references for new workers and clients. On the other hand, they may pose a threat in the marketplace. Therefore, it is essential to depart amicably.

In the event of an employee termination, having a well-defined procedure in place to follow will help keep things professional and free of emotion. Everyone in the company will be able to see that the procedure was fair and consistent, and that the company is safe from any security or legal risks.

HR expert tip

It is essential to be consistent. With an employee exit checklist in place, HR workers and managers aren’t making decisions based on how they feel. Rather, the same procedures are taken every time, telling staff members that they will all be handled equally when they depart the company.

Keep in mind that several departments are responsible for different, more complicated tasks. It would be wise to have separate checklists for each department, such as IT, HR, and payroll. Take IT as an example; they should be aware of when and what kinds of access need to be revoked.

Steps involved in an employee’s exit procedure

Every company goes through a period of transition when employees leave. Workers enter the workforce as others depart. Human resources and management should have a transparent procedure in place to handle resignations as if they were routine business. A well-managed employee departure begins with the handling of the resignation.

If you don’t have a well-defined procedure for when an employee leaves your company, you can’t tailor their departure to make sure you’ve learned everything you can from their time there.

Step 1: Take care of the resignation

A proper, documented, and well-defined procedure should be in place for any kind of resignation or termination.

Follow these steps:

Recognize the resignation and have the individual fill out a standard form for termination.

Make sure to inform the employee of their resignation as soon as you can and talk to them about the best time and way to do so. No matter how much you try to keep the rumor mill in check, people will eventually find out about the resignation and start talking about it.

In order to ensure a smooth exit, it is important to notify key stakeholders in IT, payroll, operations, legal, and senior management.

Coordinate the timing and method of client updates with the worker and their supervisor.

If it’s a high-ranking employee, you should talk about who else needs to know, such as important customers and shareholders.

HR expert tip

Keeping the client experience unchanged while minimizing impact on the company’s operations is the primary focus throughout this phase.

Step 2: Record the employee’s departure

There are many ways an employee can leave their position. Occasionally, it’s done via telephone or verbally. Email or text message is another common method.

However, in order to ensure that HR takes note of the employee’s choice to voluntarily quit, it is vital to obtain a formal letter of resignation.

Follow these steps:

Get the worker to sign a resignation letter.
It is important for the letter to include:
- This is a voluntary resignation.
- Their final day on the job
- Whether they want to work to the very end or use their accrued vacation days to extend their stay.
- It will also be necessary to document if the termination was involuntary.
Assess the need for a non-disclosure agreement

Step 3: Notify both the employee and others about their departure.

The employee’s departure should be communicated without delay once all the required paperwork is completed. This keeps the employee’s departure from becoming public knowledge and the speculations surrounding it to a minimum.

You should also think about how you will inform shareholders and clients of the person’s leaving whether they are a manager, senior leader, or customer-facing staff.

Follow these steps:

To all internal stakeholders, send an email that is both brief and informative. Be sure to mention:
- Reason for leaving (celebrate with the departing employee if they’ve landed a fantastic new job!)
- Exactly when their final day of employment is
- Whether someone is taking over their role, and if so, when and by what means?

You should probably send a separate email to the employee’s direct supervisor. Be sure to mention:
The plan for handling workflows until the position is filled
The implications of the departure on the team
What kind of help can the squad expect?
Details of the handoff procedure

Lastly, establish a strategy for communicating with customers:
- Can we expect an email from the worker?
- Would it be acceptable to arrange for some clients to meet in person?
- What will be talked about? Here is what we suggest:
- Do you know who will be managing the account moving forward?
- Methods for ensuring the smooth running of the company
- How can we best assist our clients as they go through this change?

HR expert tip

Make sure no one knows about the resignation! In order to save their staff and customers any unnecessary stress, some businesses opt to keep resignations under wraps. But there are a lot of reasons why we don’t think this is a good idea:

It takes time for departing workers to teach their successors their trade secrets. If their coworkers are unaware that they are departing, this will not be possible.

No one likes being lied to, whether it’s by a coworker or a superior. Employees will grow bitter as a result. When people keep things under wraps, rumors and speculation flourish because everyone thinks they need to know more.

Step 4: Make a strategy for the sharing of information

One of the most crucial parts of leaving is passing on knowledge. Everyone on staff has a little bit of information that they keep to themselves. Now is the time to guide their thinking and assist them remember all the specifics of their job.

Follow these steps:

Figure out the process of knowledge transfer:

Have the worker make a rundown of everything they need to do right now.
Incorporate tasks that need doing on a daily, weekly, monthly, or even yearly basis.
Is anything missing? Have everyone on the team look over the list.
If the departing worker has any undocumented information or insights about certain clients, products, or procedures based on experience alone, have them keep a continuous journal documenting them.

Who exactly will receive the information?

Who exactly is going to be in charge of these tasks?
If the departing worker is a coworker, schedule frequent meetings to review responsibilities.
Make time for younger workers to “shadow” the departing staff so they may learn the ropes
Making instruction and guidance one of the outgoing employee’s tasks in their final weeks.
Have workers document their progress so that HR and managers may look back and maybe make it a policy.
Be sure to thoroughly document all tasks in the role in preparation for a new hire by creating an “onboarding” bundle.

When do you plan to do things?

It’s best to get going on it right away.
Instruct the departing worker to dedicate a certain amount of time daily to this activity.
Try to finish the list so that there is time for an internal knowledge transfer a week or two before they leave.

HR expert tip

Having systems in place to record and maintain “how to” information and duties will make the offboarding process go more smoothly. If you don’t already have a system, now might be a good time to think about getting one.

Step 5: Gather the company’s assets

Is there any tool that your company provides to help workers get their jobs done? Items such as computers, monitors, ID cards, uniforms, business credit cards, and even a business car could fall into this category. In modern hybrid workplaces, assets encompass not just physical devices but also the numerous accounts and platforms that workers have within the organization, including servers and applications.

Follow these steps:

Make an inventory of all the resources that the worker possesses.
Compile a list of all the employee’s accessible accounts, servers, and other platforms related to information technology.
Make sure everything is in order and monitored closely.
Let IT know when the employee will need their network and other technological access disabled.

To avoid data theft or an IT breach caused by a disgruntled employee, it is advisable to promptly block all IT access for workers who are terminated unwillingly. For departing personnel, there will be a distinct procedure and set of requirements.

HR expert tip

Be careful not to abruptly remove access to technology! In order to make sure that everything is in order, many staff stay late on their last day. Should they unexpectedly lose connection to their email, servers, and other platforms, this will come to a halt. To ensure they have enough time to complete all responsibilities, it would be safer to schedule deactivation at 10:00 pm on their last day.

Step 6: Finalize Payments and Benefits

If your company has payroll and human resources software, this is a straightforward process. You can expect real-time and automated processing of all payments and benefits. In the absence of an automated payroll and HR system, it may be necessary to go through records to verify that you are aware of any accumulated leave, benefits, pension, and unpaid income.

Follow these steps:

Make a final payment in accordance with the pay policy of your company.
Include any accrued vacation time in their final pay stub.
Report any payroll advances that have gone unpaid.Evaluate each expense report
As soon as they’ve left the company, take them out of the payroll system.

HR expert tip

The employee should be able to see any paperwork detailing the process, including their pay stubs, perks, and any transfers or payouts related to their pension, before they depart.

Step 7: Talk about legally enforceable contracts

There may be legally binding agreements that need reviewing, depending on your company, clients, and line of work.

Follow these steps:

Make sure everything is in order legally by reviewing any contracts and non-disclosure agreements (NDAs).
Seek input from the legal department.
Get the worker involved and address their concerns by listening to their questions and concerns.

HR expert tip

You must not omit this stage. Whether it’s an internal non-disclosure agreement (NDA) or an NDA between the company and a customer, it’s important to keep HR, legal, managers, and departing workers apprised of any contracts they may have signed or be involved with.

Step 8: Perform a last interview

In a confidential exit interview, a human resources specialist meets with an employee who is leaving the company. Interviews are a great method to learn about workers’ perspectives on the company, their teams, and the products and services offered. You should also use this time to double-check that everything on your exit checklist has been covered.

Bear in mind that a lot of workers will opt not to say what’s on their minds while on the job, especially if they have bad feelings about certain procedures or supervisors and think they could be better. Put this time to good use by learning something new that would benefit your company.

Follow these steps:

The purpose of this meeting is to provide a neutral, safe space, so an HR expert must conduct it and no coworkers or supervisors should be present.
Stress to the worker that their information will remain private during the interview.
Make it clear that the end goal of the interview is to enhance workflows, team cultures, and processes.
Make sure to record the employee’s feedback in order to keep track of it.

HR professional’s toolbox: Questions to ask during an exit interview

Before the interview even starts, make a plan to make sure you get all the information you need. Give the interviewee the freedom to open up as much as they feel comfortable with, or ask any follow-up questions you may have.

Consider the following common questions:

Please tell me what ultimately led to your decision to leave the company.
Would anything have made you stay?
Is there anything about your team, the company, or its procedures that you don’t like? If you could elaborate or provide a few examples, that would be great.
What aspects of your employment or the company’s procedures would you change if given the chance?
What steps could we take to better assist an employee in your position?
Were all the tools you needed readily available to you?
Could you describe the experience of working with your coworkers?
Do you find working with clients to be easy or challenging?
Would you like to bring up anything else before we wrap up this interview?

Step 9: Make sure you touch base with the rest of the staff

Once the employee has departed the company, you can proceed to the last two items on their exit checklist. This does not diminish their importance. Keeping the company’s culture and morale strong and fostering a positive relationship with the departing employee in the hopes that they will become an advocate for your business (and maybe even hire or work for you again) are two of the most important goals of these phases.

You may show your employees that you care about them, their well-being, and the company’s commitment to their assistance by checking in with them from time to time. Not only should managers check in frequently, but so should HR professionals. This will demonstrate that the overall organization is taking note of and keeping tabs on the changes that teams are going through.

Follow these steps:

Take a look at the increased workloads; are people handling them well or do they require more help?
Check in with your team and with individuals one-on-one.
Provide an update on your long-term goals
Keep providing updates if you haven’t found a successor yet.
Also, make sure to check up on the replacement’s progress if they start.

HR expert tip

Never assume that all is well. Rather, talk things out openly and honestly so that problems can be tackled directly. With an HR expert at the helm of these meetings, problems can be tracked and handled promptly.

Step 10: Keep in touch with the outgoing worker

Keeping in touch with departing employees is important for many reasons. Maybe your company will require a contractor in the future. It would be great if you could find one you’re comfortable with and who is familiar with your systems and processes. That way, they could contribute right away. Maybe they’re now a supplier for a different company and will suggest yours. They may return at some point; in fact, you would welcome their return since they were an asset to your company. These are only a few examples of why it’s wise to keep in touch with former employees.

Follow these steps:

Stay in touch with LinkedIn contacts
Check in with the employee via email every so often to see how their career is doing.
Make it clear in your company’s culture that former employees are still considered family and that coworkers should continue to lend each other a helping hand even after they’ve departed.

HR expert tip

Human resources should set an example of continued support for former employees by encouraging all teams to maintain contact with those individuals. You risk damaging any existing relationship you may have with an ex-employee and alienating your current staff if your company treats the former employee as if they don’t exist or were unfaithful in any way.

Advice on how to manage an employee’s exit from your organization

While going through the employee exit checklist, remember the following:

Maintain an air of professionalism. Employers and supervisors aren’t always prepared for some resignations. You are in a prime position to assist them as an HR expert through this procedure.
Being genuine is key. Be authentic and express how you really feel. If you come off as genuine, the employee will respond in kind, which bodes well for a solid knowledge transfer and a last exit interview.
Do not prematurely disable the various accounts and devices. Automating access is a great approach to make sure it happens, but not before it should. Just make sure you don’t forget to do it.
Express gratitude to the worker. Everyone on the team should be able to tell how much you appreciate them, and they should feel the same way.
Get to work finding a replacement right away. Don’t hold out hope that the employee reconsiders or assume their position is no longer necessary just because their team has been able to handle the extra workload.

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Exit Process for Employees: Key Steps Outlined

What is the exit process for employees?

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When an employee leaves, why is it important to follow an exit checklist?

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Advice on how to manage an employee’s exit from your organization

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