THIS IS THE RIGHT WAY FOR YOUR BOSS TO REACT WHEN YOU HAND IN YOUR PROFESSIONAL NOTICE

We’re currently going through a great resignation where millions of people are leaving their jobs. Anthony Klotz professor of Management at the May Business School at Texas A&M University, thinks that employers are overlooking the employee ‘offboarding process’.

Employees handing in their notice is never a good thing and means that businesses have to spend a lot of time and money recruiting for their replacement. This means that they’re already busy spending their time trying to figure out how to put the wheels in motion and forget that there’s a lot of information mining that they still need to do following an employee leaving.

While a lot of employees won’t be open with employers about why they’re leaving, companies stand to gain a lot from talking with employees co-workers and friends who are staying at the company and will know the real motivation which, if given, could be useful in making a positive change.

The great resignation

He thinks that heads of HR departments should put more effort into tracking the ways in which employees leave. Employees leaving in a positive way are leaving in a way that minimises damage and eases any transition. This reflects well on the part of the organisation.

What can businesses do?

Anthony says: “It can be quite difficult because as a manager or a company, when an employee says they’re quitting, it sort of feels like getting dumped by a significant other. All these negative emotions come into your mind and you just want to move past them as fast as possible.

Just like a romantic relationship, when somebody breaks up with us, they often say it’s not you, it’s me. Well, employees, when they’re quitting, say the same thing. Organisations need to be a little bit more scientific in finding out the real reason.

There’s a good chance they’ll share that with their boss, and if they don’t, they will likely give you some of the ways in which they think the organisation could be improved. It’s a great chance to kind of rehire your stayers by talking to them in the wake of someone else leaving.

However, another department may also have people quitting, but they’re walking off the job, they’re ghosting, and they’re burning bridges on the way out. You may be tempted to say that they are bad employees and the people who left positively are good.

My research suggests otherwise. When you have people who burn bridges on the way out, a reason that they’re doing that is that they’re getting back at a bad manager or they’re getting even for unfair treatment from the company.

An organisation is going to keep losing people in this negative way until they solve the root cause. What do you think caused them to walk off the job? It’s not that they’re a bad person. It’s something in the company.”

Boomerang employment

‘Boomerang employment’ is becoming more of a trend with many workers returning to previous places of work. Anthony says that: “It’s kind of cool that more and more companies are doing this, but they are planning the best way for employees to exit the organisation.

Imagine, if you will, an employee quitting and it’s one of your best performers and you can’t get them to stay with a counteroffer. And you say to them, listen, I’m going to give you a one-year leave of absence, or six months or two years, so if you go to whatever you’re doing next and you don’t like it, you can come right back and your benefits and your job and everything are right here for you.

More organisations could learn from this because, again, this ties back into ‘boomerang employment’ – when you’re hiring employees, what’s really hard to predict is how well they will perform.

When hiring employees that used to work for you, you don’t have that question. You have a documented record of what kind of performer they are.

This is such a rich area from which to recruit people. Why not cultivate a group of former employees that become part of your recruiting future?”

Staff who do decide to leave, should be treated as well as possible. It might benefit the organisation in the future to stay in touch with talented individuals who leave. Social media platforms like LinkedIn are perfect for this as it allows companies to stay connected with past employees.

For information on handing in your notice, check out https://www.gov.uk/handing-in-your-notice

FAQs about handing your notice in

Are notice periods enforceable UK?

Notice periods are part of your contact and companies might struggle to complete work if you do leave before your notice period ends. However, a company can’t force you to work your notice if you choose not to. It’s usually best to speak to the HR team or your manager to discuss your notice period if you’re not going to be able to commit to working it to see if an arrangement can be agreed.

If you choose not to work your notice period, the company has the right to not pay you for it.

Can a boss refuse notice?

No, a boss cannot refuse notice. Once you have handed your notice in, it cannot be withdrawn unless both you and the employer agree. If you wish to withdraw your notice and the employer rejects your request, you notice will stand and you will still be expected to leave on the agreed date.

How to give your employer notice

Read our blog post on this here: https://ispyjobs.com/how-to-hand-in-your-notice/