What Do You Do When a Key Employee Wants to Leave

What do you do when someone in a key position in your company tells you they’re dissatisfied and thinking about leaving? (Maybe even asks for your help?) Do you do everything to hold onto your people, especially in a close-knit environment, or do you support the idea of employees moving on, knowing that your company is one part of their life-equation?

This is a hard one, especially when it comes to investing in good people and knowing how difficult it can be to replace everything they’ve learned and known.

A few of us agents are actually on different sides of the fence, so I want to open up the dialogue on this issue. It’s not black and white, and I think it’s a great conversation for managers and leaders to address and share what we’ve come across in our careers.

For me, I can’t help but want to help people grow and pursue their life’s dream. Being in the middle of that transition, there’s a hellish side to the process of interviewing and deceiving. That never feels good. Which is why I’d rather be upfront if I knew I had the type of manager who would be supportive, not threatened. In fact, it would be a better situation for our company if Blake was really someone who was trusting, and whom I could also trust, in return.

And I am guilty as charged for helping others to pursue their passion. Yes, I am admitting freely that I’ve known when someone is/was unhappy and needing to get out of here (or past companies). My management style is to establish up front what goals and ideals they have and act as a guide to help them get there. Even if that means that this role is their “next step” in life, not the end goal.

So here’s my side. Let’s talk about the other side. If you were to say, the company comes first, what does that mean to you? Agents and readers, please weigh in!

 

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