Have you ever asked to resign? Are you thinking about quitting? Personally, I dealt with this situation at least ten times along my career. It was crucial, however, that all those moments had to be properly planned and executed.
In my case, sometimes my requests for resignation occurred because I had a better offer from another organization. Sometimes, however, I had to resign for private reasons, as to take care of the family or following my husband to another city.
Sometimes, quitting with a firm seems to be a simple step to move forward in your career. However, it may cause problems for the organization which you are leaving and for its team workers. But, be careful: an unappropriated resignation can be even worse for your own career.
Partner of the North American Company: Heidrick & Struggles, Kelly O. Kay, conducted a survey in this subject. He interwove six hundred executives who have resigned and a hundred Human Resources – HR Managers – who systematically deal with such situations.
The research had two objectives: 1) figure out the biggest regret those executives have, about the way they left an organization to assume a position in another. 2) identify the major mistakes and consequences of misconducted resignations.
The research showed that more than 80% of the interviewed believe that a misconducted quitting can negatively affect someone’s career.
In this article we present the most important results obtained by Kelly’s research:
1) Certain errors when quitting can affect both the company management and your own reputation. Those errors can be:
- a) speaking ill of the company you are leaving or of your former leaders; b) do not consider the best period to leave the company, with a lack of time for proper reorganization; c) do not prepare successors able to comply with your tasks.
2) there are some possible negative consequences of a poor resignation:
- a) one of them is to be labeled as someone unreliable. It can scratch your reputation; b) another consequence can be the weakening of your relationship with former co-workers or with external agents – as investors, for example.
3) How to minimize negative effects of a resignation? Here are some tips you can follow:
- talk in advance with your immediately boss and promise him that you will keep secrecy about organizational practices. So, you can ensure superior support during the transition;
- another tip is to collaborate with the successor, preparing him to assume your functions. This includes, for example, deliver all documentation (digital and physical) required for the proper performance of the work;
- it is also essential to fulfill promises you made for the team, even though you need to work late at night or on weekends;
- similarly, you should offer an adequate time to complete your tasks before leaving the company. That means assist colleagues, subordinates, and employers to better address the transition.
Preparing to quit
Asked about what they would do differently if they were to resign today, respondents gave three major answers. They are:
- a) I would be prepared for the worst scenarios – how to be laid out at the same time by my boss;
- b) I would seek a mentor or coach right before resigning;
- c) I would communicate, in person, my decision of leave the company to my colleagues.
Coming back to my case: every time I decided to resign, the first person that I told was my immediate boss. At these occasions, I explained the reasons that led me to that decision. I delivered all documentation and prepared a possible successor. In some cases, I have suggested names that could be my successor and talked, preliminarily, with those candidates.
It is important to say that I know cases about people who, by leaving their jobs, copied files to take to the next employer. Or even worse: erased important files from company computers. Those kinds of attitudes are bad ways to build a respectful career.
If you’re thinking about quitting or have a friend in this situation, consider these tips and ensure a good transition.
Remember: reputation is something that takes a long time to be built throughout our life. However, a simple wrong action can instantly destroy it.
Author: Nara Maria Müller
Original article posted in Portuguese at: https://www.hitradar.com.br/carreira/vai-pedir-demissao/