Goodbye exit interviews: Stay interviews the latest tool employers are using to ensure happy workers

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ABC Technologies didn’t want to discover that an employee was unhappy just as they made their way out the door, so a couple of years ago the company introduced stay interviews.

Every month, ABC’s human resources team interviews a handful of employees across the company about everything from how they view their pay and benefits, to their relationship with their manager, to their thoughts on training and more.

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The interviews give the HR team a clearer picture of what employees appreciate about the company — and what isn’t working, said Guerlain Gill, human resources business partner at the Toronto-based automotive parts supplier. Feedback has already led to changes: after employees said they felt underpaid relative to competitor companies, ABC increased salaries by four per cent on an annual basis. When plant floor employees mentioned they didn’t get as much face time with managers as they did pre-pandemic, Gill said management level staff started making an effort to visit the floor again. Turnover has also decreased moderately.

“It’s a good way to make employees feel like they’re heard,” she said of the interviews, adding, “We’re giving them a chance to (see) that the company does care.”

Exit interviews are falling out of favour and stay interviews are in as employers seek to improve their workplaces and retain employees. In stay interviews, current employees are asked to share their candid thoughts on their roles and teams, how the company operates, its culture and more.

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“We saw so many people change positions (after the pandemic) and from that employers really had to look in the mirror and say, ‘What do I need to do not only to attract people into our business, especially (during the war for talent) through 2021 and 2022, but also what are some ways to retain talent?’” Mike Shekhtman, senior regional director at Robert Half Canada, said. “This is where we saw an acceleration of stay interviews as a tool to understand engagement levels for employees.”

Shekhtman said he recommends employers conduct the interviews on a regular basis so they’re learning about issues as they crop up, rather than allowing employees to harbour a long list of concerns that pile up over time.

Cassandra de Iongh, director of people operations at Vancouver-based data consultancy ProCogia, said the company has already seen benefits from consistent feedback less than a year into conducting stay interviews. ProCogia introduced quarterly employee impact surveys earlier this year after nearly doubling its employee base over the past couple of years.

At ProCogia, confidential one-on-one interviews are conducted by De Iongh or a member of her team with each of the company’s 77 employees. The interviews are divided into three sections: how the employee feels about themselves and judges their own performance; how they feel about the work environment, team dynamics and client relationships; and their thoughts on the company’s culture, workplace policies and benefits. They are also asked to rate their happiness on a scale of one to 10, with anyone rating themselves below eight asked what could make them happier.

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“The more face time you get with individuals in your company, the more trust builds,” she said, noting that regular check-ins also give employers the ability to track changes in employee sentiment.

Sarah McVanel, president and founder of Greatness Magnified, a recognition and retention consultancy, said she views stay interviews as a form of recognition. “When you recognize and value somebody, they are more loyal, collaborative, engaged and trust their organization,” she said. “Every time you ask questions … it allows the person you’re asking to give you a window into what matters to them.”

Employers can carve out time in the calendar for these conversations, but they could also ask a simple check-in question during a spare moment, McVanel said. She also advocates employers ask new hires in their first week or month what they’ve been surprised to learn since starting, how the company’s processes compare to previous employers and more.

These more casual conversations can be less intimidating for employees, and build trust over time that their perspectives are valued, she said.

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Shekhtman said he recommends employers seek feedback from employees on both their most and least favourite parts of their roles what changes they’d make to their position, team or the company as a whole and what might cause them to leave the company.

“If you’re asking somebody that question, you might find out they don’t want to grow within the organization, or maybe they want to do something else within the company altogether,” he said. “Good leaders ask the questions without being afraid of the answers.”

Gill said ABC has also found stay interviews useful for succession planning. Her team asks older employees, particularly those on the plant floor, when they are thinking about retiring so they can plan hiring and training around their retirement dates.

Asking questions is an important first step, but there has to be follow through, Shekhtman said.

ProCogia has already implemented changes based on employee feedback, de Iongh said. For example, after hearing frequently about a desire for better mental health coverage and more flexibility in the benefits package, the company’s HR manager worked with ProCogia’s benefits provider to add extra coverage for mental health and more spending flexibility into the plan.

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“When they see the direct results of their feedback, they see their benefits improving because of comments they made, that’s really empowering” for employees, she said. “It gives them motivation to be very up front and honest with us so that we can actually make changes that will benefit them.”

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