Big sobs. Controverted faces and endless “hugs”. In the United States, with a box in his arms. In France, the hug is more sober and we exchange our private email before taking the elevator or the stairs one last time. Ultimate sad smile to the hostess, we won’t be back tomorrow. When the rupture is imposed, there is an indescribable sorrow of what one leaves and which one will not find. Sometimes this departure is desired. Freed, freed It’s decided, I’m leaving… Relieved like the Snow Queen, because like in a divorce, whoever takes the initiative turns to a new beginning. In one case, the grass will be greener elsewhere. In the other, we do not know if there will be grass. Besides this problem of projection into the future of the forced or happy starter, there remain the others. Those who are still on the boat and will have to manage the absence and reorganize. The manager is at the helm, with HR and Comex in one headset, his team less one, two, three members in the other. Teammates whose shock should not be underestimated. Nathaniel Philippe, CEO of HeyTeam, conducted the survey: 43% of respondents confide that the departure of colleagues and their mixed management have altered their ties with their employer (Poll Roll study for HeyTeam, October 2022).
Perceptual distortion
It is this context of a new relationship to work where young people in particular, in addition to their salary, want meaning in their work, which prompted Nathaniel Philippe to take an interest in the realities and the perception of the management of departures by the ‘business. It varies according to their cause: only 37% of those who responded believe that the company manages forced departures well, compared to 55% for voluntary departures (ibid). In both cases these figures are bad. “Seven out of ten employees have seen at least one employee leave the company in the twelve months preceding the survey. There is a distortion of perception because one out of two employees believes that this departure was well managed, while 80% of managers think they are sufficiently trained to accompany the teams”. This is the problem of those who stay and experience the absence of a member of the team badly. One lost, ten found ? This is no longer the case since the health crisis. HR and headhunters see how often it is mission impossible to quickly replace an employee, whether for his abilities, his human qualities or that indefinable and magical “plus”, which makes a team work. “The human”, insists Nathaniel Philippe. Time plays against the organization. The injunction from high places to do better with someone else is far from easy. And the damage can be immediate: 31% of respondents confide that this departure has affected their personal life as well as their mental health (34% for 18-34 year olds) and 56% have seen their workload increase.
The 5 rules to follow
4.5 million is the number of “offboardings” (phase preceding the departure of an employee, editor’s note) in France each year (BIT/white paper Thank you and Welcome). On the manager’s side, to make a successful break-up, the first rule is to say things, face to face. Facts, without passion. Accompanying the colleague until the end of the contract. Even if the relationship is difficult, you should never ostracize the one leaving. Explain to him as much as possible the reasons for the breakup and listen to him if he is the one who takes the initiative to leave. Rule number two is to inform your colleagues afterwards to avoid rumors “radio-carpet style”. Third advice: keep good ties with him. Starting drink, letter of recommendation, availability to the network… The objective is that he does not damage the employer brand externally and that he continues his career. Fourth and fifth imperatives: find a new organization and a replacement as quickly as possible so as not to overload the team in place. Why not look for a familiar face? A “boomerang employee” likely to return, as for 15% of annual recruitments (The Corporate Culture and Boomerang Study/Thank you and Welcome, 2018). Open to returning to their former company like 40% of employees in the United States (Kronos and Workplace Trends/, Workelo 2015). Last piece of advice: all you have to do is tell him that when he left as a king, he is back as a legend!