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Stay interview questions and notes template

A stay interview is a one-on-one where you ask a good person what keeps them, and what might make them leave, before they hand in their notice. Use these questions, skip what does not fit, take notes in their words and agree one or two actions.

Who are you talking to?Date

0 of 12 questions answered. Skip any question that does not fit; it drops out of the sheet and the PDF.

1. What do you look forward to when you start work each week?

Listen for: the parts of the job that energise them. Protect these.

2. What are you learning here, and what would you like to learn?

Listen for: whether they feel they are growing. Stalled growth is a top reason people leave.

3. When was the last time you thought about leaving? What prompted it?

Listen for: the trigger, not just the answer. Thank them for being honest.

4. What would make you leave for another job?

Listen for: pay, growth, manager, flexibility, workload. Ask what “better” would look like.

5. If you could change one thing about your job, what would it be?

Listen for: something you can actually change in the next month.

6. What frustrates you or slows you down here?

Listen for: processes, tools or people you could fix or unblock.

7. How do you like to be recognised?

Listen for: public or private, written or spoken, from you or from leaders.

8. Do you feel your talents are being used? What are we missing?

Listen for: skills you did not know they had.

9. What could I do more of, or less of, as your manager?

Listen for: one specific behaviour. Do not defend, just note it.

10. How is your workload and balance at the moment?

Listen for: early signs of burnout.

11. What would make this a great year for you?

Listen for: a goal you can help with.

12. What we agreed (one or two actions)

Listen for: write what you will do, by when. Then do it, and say so.

THE GUIDE

Stay interviews: how to find out what keeps your best people

A stay interview is a relaxed one-on-one where you ask someone what keeps them in the job and what might pull them away. Unlike an exit interview, you still have time to act on the answers.

Hold one with each person once or twice a year, starting with the people you would least like to lose.

How to run a stay interview

Book 30 minutes and say what it is for: “I want to make sure this stays a job you want.”
Ask five or six questions, not all of them. Let silence do the work.
Write their answers in their words. Do not defend or explain.
End with one or two things you will do, and when.
Follow up within two weeks, even if the answer is “not yet”.

Mistakes to avoid

Turning it into a performance review.
Promising things you cannot deliver, such as a promotion or a pay rise.
Holding it only when you think someone is about to leave.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between a stay interview and an exit interview?

A stay interview happens while the person is still happy enough to stay, so you can act. An exit interview happens after they have decided to go.

What if they say pay is the problem?

How often should I hold stay interviews?

One-minute lessons on this

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