Sorry you’re leaving

It is inevitable that at some point in your career you will have somebody leave the organisation you work for. Whether that is a senior manager or an assistant, it always has an effect on the team around them and no matter what the situation, it is always difficult.

So how can you manage a departure?

Firstly, from an internal perspective, it is important to convey the positives. Despite someone leaving being difficult, it is not necessarily a negative. Frequently, the positives can outweigh the disruption. When somebody leaves it invariably opens the doors for new talent to either be introduced to the organisation, or indeed to come up through the ranks. Sometimes this is the positive ‘shake up’ that can bring new ideas, innovation and inspiration.

Secondly, it’s about managing external expectations.

It is vital to assure your clients from the word go that at no point have they invested in one person; the right organisation will have invested in developing a team, with complementary skills and attitudes. In this scenario, each person within the company will be well developed in their individual roles so that when somebody does leave, the transitions within the team are as seamless as possible and clients continue to receive the same level of service they have been used too.

Successful organisations recognise that change is a constant – and have built agile and adaptable teams of people who all work on the same values and levels of integrity as each other. For organisations such as these, therefore, change will not only be a constant – but a constant positive.