11 Questions Managers Need to Ask Employees During Stay Interviews

Have you ever been blindsided by one of your top employees unexpectedly leaving to pursue another opportunity? Instead of waiting until an exit interview to hear what caused your rock star worker to take another gig, you may want to start holding stay interviews periodically in order to check in with your staff and assess their states of mind and levels of motivation.

Quite simply, stay interviews are held to touch base with employees to see how they’re feeling about their jobs. Should your best and most reliable workers feel happy about their jobs, you can assume that a good chunk of the rest of your staff feels the same way. On the other hand, if your best workers are less than enthusiastic, it could signal that people are getting ready to jump ship.

Understanding the importance of employee retention, smart companies use stay interviews to continually improve operations so that great workers don’t leave unexpectedly. Still, stay interviews are only as good as the questions you ask during them. Drawing a blank as to which questions you should ask? We’ve got you covered:

01. What’s your favorite part about coming to work each day?

If your employee tells you the best part about their job is leaving the office at 5 p.m. every day, you probably have a problem on your hands.

02. Your least favorite part?

Whenever possible, use the answers to this question to change your company for the better. For example, if your employees hate filling out spreadsheets that chart their progress, try to automate the process — if not get rid of it altogether.

03. Do you feel valued?

According to our Engagement Report, less than 33% of employees feel valued at work. Workers who feel like they’re replaceable aren’t likely to stick around.

04. Are you getting enough feedback?

Employees have no way of knowing what they’re doing well and what they need to improve on if you don’t tell them.

05. Do you have the tools you need to succeed?

If you’re still relying on technology built more than a decade ago, it’s impossible for your workers to reach their full potential.

06. What could management do to support you more?

Your employees are in the trenches every day. They know — probably better than you do — what would make them better at their jobs.

07. How are the company’s employee recognition efforts?

An easy way to make your employees feel valued on the job is by recognizing their hard work. Do your employees feel as though you’re doing enough for employee recognition?

08. Are there adequate opportunities for professional development?

Employees today place high value on career growth. Yet according to our Engagement Report, only 25% of workers feel as though their companies offer enough opportunities for professional development. Find out how yours stacks up.

09. What do you think about company culture?

Culture is strongly correlated to employee happiness. If your employees aren’t too keen on your culture, chances are they’re not too happy.

10. How would you make your job better?

You never know when one of your employees will have a simple game-changing idea that’s easy to execute.

11. Would you recommend working here to a friend?

If your employees wouldn’t encourage their friends to apply for a job at your company, they may already have one foot out the door.

Incorporate stay interviews into the mix and ask the right questions, and you should see employee morale tick up and retention stats start to improve. The end result? A stronger workforce that’s able to provide even better service to your customers.

RELATED POSTS:

• Why an Exit Interview Could Do Wonders for Employee Retention
• Stay Interviews Vs. Exit Interviews — Why You Need Both