Employee Exit Interview Questions to Improve Retention

Here are the fifteen most important exit interview questions. These questions are all intended to inform HR about what they need to do to decrease employee turnover. Make sure you answer them generally according to how it’s mentioned in the list.

1. Why are you considering a change? Why leave this company after 2/5/10 years?
This is perhaps the most frequently asked exit interview question out there. It’s also a very direct and up-front way about wanting to know the former employee’s reasoning behind the decision.

Answer truthfully and ONLY explain what you have experienced personally. Try not to accuse anyone and give a diplomatic yet straightforward answer as well as constructive feedback.

For example, you can tell the interviewer that you’re leaving for a new job because of office politics and the impact they’re having on your performance, as well as career outlook.

2. How would you rate your relationship with your direct boss or upper management?
When this question is asked, the company is trying to gain valuable information to conduct a performance review of the management with regard to you.

Here, you should be impartial and state the facts as you experienced them.

For example, you can tell the interviewer that the manager is very knowledgeable but you don’t like their general management style and how they're always micromanaging.

3. What was your favorite part of working at our company?
Another important question, this is where HR professionals are trying to find out what employees actually like about the company, in order to increase employee retention.

Since this would probably be your last day, it’s possible that you will only remember the bad and not the good. Don’t target anyone because you never know what the future holds and you might actually have to come back.

For example, just say that you liked the weekly meetings, the general work environment, or simply that you could approach the manager any time without booking an appointment.

4. What is the proudest moment you experienced while at our company?
This is a straightforward exit interview question – one that’s a norm more than actually serving a purpose.

The goal of this question is to give your HR some sort of leverage by highlighting the positive aspects of the organization. This might be used to attract you or future employees.

For example, you can simply say that your proudest moment was when you helped a team member with a complicated task.

5. Was there anything lacking in the training we provided you?
This is more of an honest feedback question that human resources will ask you to gauge how interesting their investment in a training program is for employees.

Be honest here since there is not really any wrong answer. Just remember to back your answer up, whether it’s a yes or a no. Additionally, give reasoning so that it doesn’t seem like you are trying to get the interview over with.

For example, you can say that you really liked the employee feedback that managers asked for at the end of each session, or the development opportunities that the training provided.

6. What can we do to change your mind?
This can either be the first or the last question of your interview and can determine whether it was an effective exit interview.

This open-ended question is asked in a very honest manner and how you answer will serve either as feedback or as an opportunity.

Furthermore, know that this is where you have to get candid during the offboarding process. Answer as candidly as you can.

For example, start by saying that you had a great time working there but you need to move on to a more lucrative or advanced new position. Plus, if it's only about the salary, just say so openly.

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[Lannec]

While I appreciate that you are encouraging candid responses from employees, we all know that giving honest or negative feedback generally only harms the employee, and contributes little to real organization change. There are actually a number of videos about how to give only positive responses to all these questions, with the responses broken down in very detailed terms. It's a very sad reality.

[MB-orjs]

Never ever do an exit interview. Simply decline it when being asked to do one. Nothing what is stated will help the person leaving - focus on what comes next in the future instead.