Questionable Advice: “What Should I Say In My Exit Interview?”

I don't give exit interviews. My last exit, HR couldn't spare a person to talk to me in person, even, so I ignored the form they sent. I have given (prompted) feedback multiple times in cases to terminate directors, and have been thanked by their supervisors for detailing those breakdowns in ways they could "take forward" (in those cases, it took way too long for those directors to be on the chopping block - nobody ready for me to talk about that part of it)

I thought about it a lot, and came up with an idea - I'd do it for $50,000. Because my experience was unless the requester remunerated for the feedback (i.e. "a [management] consultant said"), the feedback would not in any way be taken seriously and no change would occur. Since no change would occur for the "free" feedback anyway, the only thing the feedback session could do is make things worse. My exit definitely cost them at least that much in productivity, so if they were interested in minimizing regrettable attrition, that's an investment (the pound of cure instead of ounce of prevention that was free to them all along).

Paying out for that feedback is also potentially a way to compensate for the fact that fixing the environment was never my job in the first place - the existing feedback I did give didn't go anywhere and I was powerless to implement any of it, being told to focus on "my work" (coding). Nobody asks a manager+ to FizzBuzz on their way out

A year later I caught up with someone I worked with and was completely unsurprised that it had gotten worse, and recognized how much of a waste of time it was for me to even collect my thoughts about that place much less point out why it sucked and encourage ways to minimize that

This advice assumes the person is exiting a severely toxic work environment. Writing a 3-page letter about perceived problems in a workplace is excessive for all but the most weirdly toxic workplaces.

For less toxic circumstances, concise feedback might carry more weight than a 3-page complaint written complaint document. Writing 3 pages of complaints about something that could be effectively communicated in a short conversation can actually weaken the argument rather than support it.

> This is your last chance to do the people you care about a solid, and you don’t want to waste it.

Nope.

Even if your parting letter were a model of prose—-

Consider your audience, do you expect Toxic Management’s senior ranks will suddenly get a clue and want to make things right??

More likely you’ll be painted as disgruntled, ungrateful, and ungracious. Essentially, not one of us.

Well intended exit feedback not worth the time and energy.

Still want to help people you care about?

Then stay in touch and be there for them when they are ready to begin their own job search.

Say whatever you want. At one company I left I brought up the manager’s poor communication skills. The company was a joke and declared bankruptcy 6 months later.

"What should I say ...?"

Not much, and enjoy the rest of the day.

Say nothing. Drop off your stuff and walk. Easy.