Remember The Last Time You Resigned From Your Job?

Did you sleep soundly in your bed the night before or did you spend half the night staring at the ceiling thinking through how you were going to resign?

I think it’s a healthy exercise for all of us, recruiters, HR professionals and hiring managers to remember the emotions we experience during this time of separation, whether you can’t wait to get out of there or you are moving on from your favourite job.

If you’ve had a great career with your employer, like your manager and your colleagues and feel grateful for all the learning, then resigning isn’t going to be easy. If you’re a valued member of the team, they are going to throw everything at you to get you to reconsider. Expect money, promotions, new projects, secondments, you name it, they will promise it. Giving counter-offers air-time may be something you feel you need to do to ensure bridges aren’t burned and relationships stay intact.

Even if you hate your job and can’t wait to leave, your resignation will release all sorts of emotions you’ve kept under wraps.  No matter how tempting, keep your emotions to yourself. That’s not to say well thought through feedback during exit interviews isn’t a bad thing, but keep it factual not personal.

So the next time you recruit, I think it’s always a good idea to stay close to your new hire and offer support and reassurance as they go through the emotionally-charged process of resignation.

I always counsel against accepting a counter-offer.  In my 25 years in recruitment, I’ve rarely seen the reversal of a resignation work out to the candidates benefit. Inevitably promises aren’t kept, you have shown your hand and your employer then has time to organise the business to cover your loss, when you inevitably leave anyway. Your next resignation usually within 6 months.

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