Resigning in style: how to tell your employer

There are plenty of interesting ways to let your employer know you’re leaving. But make sure you don’t burn your bridges

You might be tempted to dance your way out of the door, charm your ex-employer with the message iced on to a cake, or even get your own back by lambasting your boss to the whole office (one of the funnier Twitter hoaxes). But you need to resist these temptations when the time comes for you to resign.

Erring on the side of caution with a polite resignation letter means you won’t burn bridges. You might not want to work for the company again, but remember, paths might cross with your ex-line manager or other colleagues in a different company in the future. Making sure your exit is as professional as possible will help you retain credibility – even if you’re leaving under a cloud.

Letting your manager know

Show courtesy by telling your boss first. Request a meeting to say that you’re leaving, following up soon after with an official resignation letter. Do this before you blast out an office-wide email.

Work out how you can ensure a smooth transition and minimise disruption to your employer. There may be a range of things you can do to hand over professionally, such as completing projects, working out the priorities with your line manager, leaving clear documentation or training up your successor in processes or software.

Before the meeting with your boss, write a list of ongoing projects along with status updates and suggestions for completion.

Use the meeting to clarify any other points, such as your notice period and leaving date, how you will inform others (colleagues or external clients, contacts and suppliers). Ask about references too; your employer may only supply the most basic type (including dates worked, job title etc) but your line manager might also give you a more personal reference. Making sure you get a good written reference before you leave (or trying to agree the wording if you leave in less happy circumstances) can make subsequent job hunting less stressful.

The letter

Keep your letter short. You don’t need to give lots of explanations or justification for why you’re leaving, or even to say where you’re moving to. Don’t be tempted to address the failings of the company or your boss, either. Instead, thanking your employer for the job and mentioning what you appreciated about it is a graceful touch. Here’s an idea of what to include:

• First paragraph – the basics

“I am writing to formally give notice of my resignation from my post/position/role as (job title) at (name of employer).

According to the terms of my contract, the notice period is (length of notice period) and my final working day will therefore be (leaving date).”

• Second paragraph – thank your employer

“I have enjoyed working here and particularly appreciate/would like to thank you for … ”

Mention any particular career-building projects you worked on or opportunities to develop skills and contribute to the employer’s goals and successes. You can also mention your appreciation at being able to work in a great team or to develop your knowledge of the industry, for example.

• Third paragraph – state your willingness to hand over

“I will do my utmost to complete existing projects and to assist where possible in the hand-over process.

Yours sincerely … ”

Letting others know

As well as telling your closest colleagues in person, you may also want to email others. Again, keep this short and sweet, such as: “As you may already know, I’ve decided to leave the company to pursue other opportunities (in … ) /to take the next step in my career.

I’ve greatly enjoyed working with you all and hope that our paths will cross again in the future.”

via Resigning in style: how to tell your employer | Guardian Careers | Guardian Professional.

Resigning in style: how to tell your employer

How to Resign Gracefully

You have got a new job! Well done. Now, don’t spoil it all by making a hash of your exit from where you are now.

I know: you’re excited! It’s hard to stay focused on the old gig, when everything is ‘oh so cool’ about the new one.

But remember, the ‘old gig’ was the ‘new gig’ not so long ago, and how you behave on your way out will affect your brand, your references and your future employability. Trust me on that!

It’s true that often you get shown the door as soon as you resign.

Also true, some employers behave appallingly to exiting staff.

But no matter – you be the better person, leaving with every loose end tied up, and your head held high.

The Savage Truth 15 Rules of Resignation will give you the road map to do just that:

1) Give fair notice:

By: Dave Stokes

Sure, your offer letter of 5 years ago says you need only give 2 weeks notice. But you were a trainee then, and now a Team Leader. You know you will cause your employer huge issues if you leave at such short notice. Don’t do it.

Provide enough time for them to get their business covered. It’s the professional thing to do.

2) Do the deed gracefully:

The actual resignation, I mean. Plan how you will do it. Set a formal meeting. Be polite. Accentuate the positives. Be firm, but humble. Show appreciation. Thank your boss.

3) Don’t blab:

By: Dilek Türk

To everyone else, I mean. Either before you resign, or after. Until your boss agrees a communication plan.

In my experience, 90% of “resignees” fail right here. Just have to tell everyone about ‘my great new job’. It’s selfish. Destructive. You need to be collaborative in helping convey the message at the right time, in the right way, to the right people.

4) Offer to train a replacement:

And mean it. And do it. Well.

5) Smooth handover of clients and candidates:

Co-operate in a handover of your current orders, your clients and your hot talent. If you are leaving those clients for good, it’s the right thing to do by them, and by your employer who gave you the chance to build those relationships in the first place. But even if you plan to work with those clients from somewhere else, they don’t belong to you, so do the ethical thing and brief a successor. Then, when the time is right, restraints honored, compete like hell!

6) Share the inside stuff:

You know what I mean. The little nuggets. Like your computer password. Or which contact within a client really makes the decisions. Or special fee arrangements you have in place.

7) Don’t destabilise:

Resist the temptation to vent, to criticize, to undermine and to pour negativity, like a trail of dog-poo around the office, “because you know better and you are leaving”. It’s not a good look, and it makes you look ridiculous. Really.

8) Don’t slack off:

This is critical.

If you ‘go walkabout’, start being lazy, come in late, avoid your admin and generally make it clear you have ‘checked out’, everyone will see that and everyone who counts will remember it. Forever. And that is going to hurt you one day. Count on it.

9) Take no cheap shots:

At your boss. Your colleagues. The business. Anything.

It’s weak. And petty. And very “prattish”.

10) The exit interview:

Cooperate. Don’t be a smart-arse by refusing to participate. Be thoughtful and constructive. Resist the temptation to preach or criticize.

11) Don’t flirt with counter-offer discussions if you have no intentions of staying:

Pursuing that conversation, just so you can enjoy having your ego stroked, is a form of masturbation. And doing that in public is just not nice.

12) Wrap it up:

Close as many of your working orders and other projects as you can. I had a woman once who left the business with her record-ever quarter. She left with her head held high, and we paid her bonus gladly. 12 months later when her new job turned out to be a dud, we hired her back.

13) Thank everyone:

By: Blanca

When you are on your way out, thank everyone who helped you on your way up. It will mean a lot to them if you do, and they will remember it if you don’t. And not in a good way.

14) Say goodbye properly to everybody:

Personally, not by email from your phone when you are out the door. Shake hands. Offer kisses. Swap contact details. Keep doors open.

15) Stay an ambassador after you have gone:

Don’t deride your former company or colleagues. Amazing how many people do that. It’s such an unpleasant trait. Never reflects well on you. Never. Ever. So why do it?

Having run and owned businesses for 25 years, I guess I have been on the receiving end of a huge number of resignations. And it stuns me how destructive, to themselves, some people can be. Petty and vindictive. Or just lazy and sloppy. And yet, so many times, six months later, when their dream job did not turn out so well, they want to come back. Or they need a reference. Hmmm…

I have hired back literally dozens of ex-employees who behaved impeccably on the way out. In those cases the door is always open. But many more have sullied their exit, behaving appallingly and burning customers and colleagues along the way.

And to them, the door is closed, forever.

Don’t be an idiot. Resign with grace.

via How to Resign Gracefully.

How to Resign Gracefully