Archive: Around Town

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 Lansing's Advice Column

Dear IMO,

I just submitted my two-week notice at work. The boss wants me to complete an exit interview. Do you think I should do it? Will it ever be used against me? Are my concerns legitimate?

Thanks,
Rick

Dear Rick,
This is a tricky one. An exit interview, sometimes called exit survey, is a meeting between a representative from a company's human resources department (HR) and a departing employee. The departing employee usually has voluntarily resigned (as in your case) rather than getting laid off or fired. The HR rep might ask the employee questions while taking notes, asks the employee to complete a questionnaire, or the interview may be a combination of both.

As a rule, HR departments conduct exit interviews to gather data for improving working conditions and retaining employees. However, a hidden motive is to help employers avoid costly legal settlements down the road, caused by the departing employee. In other words, your comments and the notes an HR rep takes during your exit interview might be used against you in court, should you decide to bring legal action your former employer.

You have the right to decline an exit interview. A reputable employer will respect your decision. However, a not-so-reputable employer might resent that you didn't participate and place an unfavorable memo or other unkind remark in your personnel records.

Naturally, the decision whether or not to participate in an exit interview is ultimately up to you. But there are varying opinions about whether or not you should participate. Some career experts think you should as it might assist a sincere employer improve working conditions for remaining employees. Of course, it does you no good.

Other career experts question the usefulness of an exit interview. Perhaps a better time to conduct such a meeting was while you were still an employee and not on your way out the door. These career advisors believe the risks for departing employees are much too great, so they advise against participating. If you must go through the interview, I advise you to give generic responses only and think carefully before responding.

Here are a few things to consider before participating in an exit interview. As a departing employee, will I benefit from an exit interview? Is the exit interview anonymous or must I sign a questionnaire or the HR rep's notes? Is the reason you're leaving any of the company's business or an invasion of your privacy? Why did your employer wait until you're leaving to ask your opinion? Above all, if you feel the interview might cause you harm, avoid it.

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