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I’ve published a few articles currently in regards to the relationship between onboarding and offboarding. We spend a whole lot of time talking in regards to the value of onboarding. It sets the stage for the brand new worker’s profession with the organization. Onboarding is a chance to exhibit that the organization cares in regards to the worker and is planning to make the investments crucial for the worker to achieve success.
On some level, offboarding can do the identical thing. Granted, offboarding is concentrated on an worker’s departure from the organization. But the best way people leave the corporate can have a profound impact on how they speak in regards to the company in the long run. Designing a strategic offboarding process can let employees know we appreciate their time and contributions. It will possibly send the message to current employees that we treat individuals with respect, even once they’re leaving.
To design a strategic offboarding process, organizations might want to contemplate using a process map. Much like an onboarding process map, this document would outline what should happen in the course of the traditional offboarding process. It could possibly be used for each departing employees in addition to freelancers and/or contractors. Consider outlining the person steps into 4 parts or phases:
- Awareness: That is the place where the organization learns that the worker (or freelancer) is leaving. After we discuss offboarding, we’re talking about each voluntary in addition to involuntary departures. A number of the steps could possibly be different with an involuntary termination, but many can be the identical.
- Preparation: During this phase, the organization and worker are working together to wrap up projects, etc. Given today’s labor market, there’s a excellent likelihood that an worker will leave, and their substitute won’t yet be hired. The worker and their manager will want to judge current workload and transition projects to other individuals on the team.
- Engagement: Organizations have a chance to solicit feedback from the worker. Before the worker leaves, the hiring manager or human resources might wish to talk with the worker about their time with the corporate. This could possibly be considered an exit interview of sorts. The corporate may also want to offer the worker or contractor a chance to ask questions on advantages, final checks, etc.
- Documentation: The organization and worker have to create closure. Administratively, the worker have to be terminated from payroll, their personnel file closed, and legally required advantages paperwork like COBRA sent. The documentation phase wraps up these loose ends. This can be the time to gather keys, computers, etc. and make certain that every one other notices are provided.
So as to add details to your offboarding process map, consider doing a “sticky note” activity with the important thing stakeholders. Bring everyone together, give them a packet of sticky notes and ask them to put in writing one step they should do when an worker leaves the corporate. Then organize each of those activities by the 4 phases we’ve just outlined: awareness, preparation, engagement, and documentation. That becomes the method map.
The sort of sticky note activity also can let the organization know where there is perhaps gaps (as in, “Oh! I assumed another person was taking good care of that.”) Or where a duplication of efforts exists. The ultimate document could be used as an old fashioned checklist and even higher as a guide in your onboarding technology solution.
Offboarding is a very important step in the worker life cycle. Organizations can’t afford to disregard it. In a competitive labor market, we now have to contemplate that exiting employees is perhaps potential rehires, which suggests fascinated about exiting employees as future candidates. And, the best way employees are treated as they leave the organization speaks volumes in regards to the company brand.
Image captured by Sharlyn Lauby while exploring the streets of Pasadena, CA
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