Streamline Training & Documentation: Exit Interviews: Assessing attitude vs. Capturing knowledge

Friday, February 02, 2007

Exit Interviews: Assessing attitude vs. Capturing knowledge

In an earlier post, I discussed the value of conducting exit interviews with departing employees who have specialized technical knowledge and/or knowledge of the internal and external networks of relationships involved in generating ideas and getting projects completed.

The February issue of CFO magazine takes up the subject of exit interviews, but in the old-fashioned vein that my earlier post argued against. In a sidebar, author Laura DeMars suggests five attitudinal questions borrowed from the National Federation of Independent Business:

How do you feel you were treated by your supervisor? by your co-workers?

How well do you believe your work was recognized and appreciated?

Do you feel you were given adequate training and assistance in learning the job you were expected to do?

What's your opinion of the opportunities for transfer or promotion within this company?

What could be done to make this company a better place to work?

In my view, these questions are the sort that have a place on an attitude survey conducted among all current employees. For exit interviews, I continue to endorse the view that questions should focus on valuable knowledge that the organization wants to retain even as an employee moves on.

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Labels: Knowledge management

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