Hiring a professional staff
Using exit interviews for better management
No matter how much time and effort you invest in employee retention, you can still expect some turnover. In fact, some turnover is good, especially when you have trained, coached and mentored an employee so he/she is ready for more responsibility at another golf facility.
Exit interviews represent a prime opportunity to gain candid information on employment conditions within your golf facility. Such debriefings can provide objective feedback on the conditions or patterns of management behavior that may have contributed to an employee’s decision to leave.
Conduct this interview at the time an employee is terminating employment. To gain the most information, be sure a neutral party conducts the interview in person. This usually means someone not involved in the day-to-day supervision of the employee.
The exit interview should focus on what is most important to the business needs of your golf facility. Questions should focus on:
- Initial selection practices
- The degree to which the job met the employee’s expectations
- Benefits
- Training
- Advancement opportunities
- Supervision
- Company culture
- Pay
Remember that the most common reason for employees leaving is lack of recognition. Employees leaving for a “better career opportunity” may need some careful and persuasive coaxing before revealing just what prompted them to start looking in the first place. It is essential that you seek out the real reason(s) why your employees are leaving.
Like the job interview, the best information gained in an exit interview is when the individual concerned is put at ease. A hastily conducted interview can result in valuable information being overlooked. Treating a departing employee like a nuisance to be processed with the minimum amount of fuss and attention will probably lead to little information of value being unearthed. Never forego the opportunity to present the company in the best possible light. An employee on the way out the door who is treated with intelligence and respect is far more likely to retain favorable impressions of the facility—and may even seek to return at some future date.
A sample Exit Interview Form (PDF) and Exit Procedures Checklist (PDF) can be found online.
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