Team member leaving? Here’s how to successfully offboard an employee

Offboarding an employee doesn’t have to be stressful—if you have a clear plan ahead of time. Here's what to do for your exiting employee.

Take these actions:

• Ask for an official letter of resignation
• Coordinate with HR
• Let the rest of your team know about the employee’s departure
• Say goodbye

Why is this important?

Taking care of offboarding tasks before the employee leaves makes for an easier transition for your team and provides a positive, organized experience for the exiting employee.

Ask for an official letter of resignation

When an employee lets you know they’re leaving the company, it’s usually through conversation. But in addition to the verbal confirmation, you’ll also need a written resignation.

When your employee resigns, ask for an official letter of resignation that includes:

• Their last day of employment
• Their name and signature

Once you have their letter, forward it to HR.

Coordinate with HR

Offboarding is a coordinated effort between you and the HR team. As part of the process, the HR team will:

• conduct the exit interview
• collect their company-owned belongings
• review their final pay and transition of benefits

We ask that you:

• Inform your team of the employee’s departure
• Schedule a goodbye activity (lunch, happy hour, etc)

Let your team know about the employee’s departure

When an employee leaves, it doesn’t just change things for that employee; it changes things for the entire team. So, as a manager, it’s important to let your team know about the employee’s departure.

Talk to the departing employee before you tell your team; it’s important to respect their privacy—so you’ll want to confirm what details about their departure they feel comfortable sharing with the team. For example, the employee may feel comfortable with you telling the team when they’re leaving—but they may not be comfortable with you sharing the reason why or what company they’re going to.

Schedule time with your team to let them know the employee is leaving. Reassure them that while a team member leaving is never easy, you’ll adjust to make sure that everyone has what they need to be successful and productive moving forward. Once you’ve shared the news, carve out a few minutes to answer any questions your team may have.

Say goodbye

You want to leave things with your employee on a positive note—so on their last day, make sure to carve out time to:

• Thank them for their contributions to the company (and to your team specifically)
• Wish them good luck in their new position and future endeavors
• Encourage them to keep in touch