I once worked for a company that had no written — or even spoken — procedures for what to do the day an employee left the company for good.
One day, a group of us decided that a certain employee had to go — within hours. I thought I was on top of things by getting back the key to the front door and giving him a final paycheck that included all accrued paid time off.
Later, as I sat in my office attending to other matters, the soon to be departed employee was in his office shoveling as much as he could into large boxes. After he left, cursing me all the way to the front door, I looked into his office. He'd looted the place. Gone were company books, important files, small furnishings, even the pens and paperclips.
I then realized I'd also forgotten to ask for software disks and a warehouse key he had at home.
Eventually, we got most of the goods back — at least the stuff we knew about — and I learned an important lesson: Handle employee exits systematically.
That's best done by creating a comprehensive separation or exit checklist. Use it whether a star employee is moving on or your worst employee nightmare is finally getting the boot.
Get it all back
At the top of the checklist are things you must retrieve: keys, credit cards, uniforms, cellphones, handbooks, company cars, and so forth. If you have been conscientious, you already have a list of anything of value you have ever issued to an employee. That makes it easy to know what's due back in your hands.
Close off access
Close email accounts, change voicemail access codes, disable phonecalling cards or credit cards, notify security, place networks off limits, remove the person from any company mailing lists. Once the employee has left your employ, security reasons dictate that you deny him or her any port of access.
And think hard about what access points still exist — technological ones in particular. I once set up a website for a company and created user names and passwords for the site's maintenance. I left the company; the passwords remained intact. If I'd been the least bit malicious, I could have wreaked some havoc through the wires.
Explain, notify, wrap up
Your final round of duties includes the small print items such as explaining the employee's rights under COBRA, what is included in or deducted from his or her final paycheck, or how to roll over the bounty in a 401(k) plan.
Take your time and be as pleasant as you can while moving through the checklist with employees. Remain a class act, because they will long remember how the organization said goodbye.
The employee's last day is also the time to cancel benefits such as dental or life insurance. And take the time to draft a memo or e–mail message that says so–and–so is no longer with the company and explains what will happen to the vacant position.
And finally, never leave a departing employee alone to clean out an office or workspace — especially one who's likely to curse you while departing.
Author information: Business owner and HR manager Jeff Olson, a contributing writer to HROne.com, has written nine books on various business topics.
Provided by HROne.com. Copyright © 2001, HROne.com.
