Employers fail to reach out to former employees with exit interviews

A new survey reveals that 55% of UK employees were not invited to a formal exit interview when resigning from their last job role.

The survey, carried out by talent solutions specialist, Cpl’s Talent Evolution Group, contacted 1,500 ex-employees who resigned within the last five years. Data revealed that an additional third of employees were not asked for any feedback, revealing a missed opportunity for valuable employee engagement.

The research uncovers the true attitudes of ex-employees and ways organisations can make conscious steps to attract, retain and develop talent. Key findings cite that 50% of former employees would have considered a counteroffer during the exit process. Over a quarter of ex-employees felt their feedback would make no difference to their workplace.

Instead, organisations risk employee feedback being shared online, with the rise of public review platforms such as Glassdoor and Comparably, with 69% of survey respondents using this option to review a previous employer. Half of these reviews expressed negative sentiment – by skipping the exit interview, employers are missing the opportunity to resolve staff issues internally.

The majority of participants stated that if asked, they would have felt comfortable sharing their opinions with their employer. Specifically, being open to providing feedback on; company culture (72%) mental health implications of the role (72%), their line manager (70%) and colleagues and peers (69%).  

Áine Fanning, Managing Director at Cpl’s Talent Evolution Group, said: “There’s a clear disconnect between why employers think their employees are leaving and the actual reason behind employee exits. If companies make a concerted effort to better understand why employees are leaving and take meaningful action to retain them, employers could gain an edge in the race to attract, develop, and retain the talent they need to create a thriving post-pandemic organisation.’’