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Employee engagement

Exit interview survey

Collect resignation reasons, satisfaction scores across work content, relationships, and company direction, plus improvement suggestions and what to keep — all in a 9-question anonymous survey. Surfaces candid feedback that face-to-face exit interviews rarely capture, and feeds directly into retention analysis, hiring decisions, and engagement program prioritization.

Questions9 questions Use caseAnonymous survey sent after resignation confirmation and before the final day; pre-exit-interview HR intake; quarterly attrition trend reporting
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How to use this template

The hardest part of exit surveys is getting honest answers. In face-to-face exit interviews, departing employees who want to leave on good terms tend to give surface-level reasons — "career growth," "family circumstances" — while the real drivers (manager issues, pay, opaque evaluation processes) stay hidden. This template is designed to be delivered anonymously, three to seven days before the last day, creating enough psychological distance from the face-to-face setting to surface structural problems that would otherwise go unrecorded.

Delivery timing and ensuring anonymity

The optimal window is three to seven days before the final day, after the resignation has been confirmed.

  • Immediately after resignation: emotions are still high and responses tend to be reactive
  • On the final day: too rushed for thoughtful responses
  • Three to seven days out: settled enough for constructive, honest feedback

State clearly in the delivery email that responses will not be linked to any individual. Because email address is optional in this form, restating "responses are aggregated anonymously" in the Q9 question text further reduces hesitation and increases response rate.

Reading resignation reasons and spotting trends

Q1 (resignation reasons, multi-select) shows more meaningful patterns when aggregated over three to six months rather than read month by month.

  • "Pay / compensation" at the top for three straight months → urgent need to benchmark against market rates
  • "Career growth opportunity" on an upward trend → revisit internal mobility and promotion processes
  • "Relationships at work" concentrated in one department → likely a team or manager-level issue
  • "Mismatch with the role" → check whether job descriptions during hiring matched reality

Reading Q2 (free text) alongside Q1 reveals background context the checklist cannot capture.

Score interpretation and impact on retention strategy

Compare average scores for Q3–Q6 (work satisfaction, manager relationship, peer relationship, company direction alignment) against scores from your quarterly engagement survey for active employees.

  • Any axis where departing employees score 1.0 or more below the active-employee average is evidence that axis is driving turnover
  • Q6 (company direction) consistently low → executive communication needs immediate attention
  • All axes near average but Q1 shows "Offer from another company" → poaching risk; consider pay and role adjustments as a preventative measure

Exit survey scores can serve as a useful benchmark for interpreting your engagement survey results.

Using rehire intent for alumni recruitment

Q9 (likelihood of returning) is the foundation for an alumni hiring program.

  • Those answering "Yes, depending on the situation" should be added to a rehire candidate list for follow-up in one to two years
  • For those willing to stay in touch, a casual check-in six to twelve months after departure is appropriate

Alumni hires typically have 30–50% higher first-year retention than external hires. This survey turns a farewell form into a future recruiting asset. Make sure contact information sharing is clearly optional.

Using AI analysis in Repoan

Once you have ten or more departing-employee responses, run AI report analysis on Q2 (resignation reason free text) and Q7 (improvement suggestions).

  • Theme classification of Q2 surfaces structural patterns like "management style," "opaque performance reviews," or "excessive overtime" that individual responses obscure
  • Q8 (what should continue) analysis reveals cultural values that active employees hold but rarely articulate in engagement surveys
  • Sentiment analysis automatically splits critical from constructive responses

Exporting a quarterly PDF report to present at leadership and HR meetings creates a sustainable attrition review cycle.

Question preview

Question 1 Required

What were the main reasons for your decision? (Select all that apply)

Multiple choice
Pay / compensationCareer growth opportunityRelationships at workMismatch with the roleDisagreement with company directionHours / work environmentFamily circumstancesHealth reasonsOffer from another companyOther
Question 2 Required

In your own words, what was the most important reason for leaving?

Long text
Question 3 Required

How satisfied were you with your work overall?

5-point scale
DissatisfiedSatisfied
Question 4 Required

How was your relationship with your manager?

5-point scale
PoorStrong
Question 5 Required

How were your relationships with peers?

5-point scale
PoorStrong
Question 6 Required

How much did you connect with the company direction?

5-point scale
Not at allStrongly
Question 7 Optional

What should the company improve? (Your response is treated as anonymous)

Long text
Question 8 Optional

What is the company doing well that should continue?

Long text
Question 9 Required

Would you consider returning in the future?

Single choice
Yes, depending on the situationNoNot sure

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