Encouraging Stay Interviews Could Be Your Secret to Retention

Most organizations wait until an employee is walking out of the door to ask why they’re leaving. By then, it’s too late. What if we asked them why they stay? Stay interviews flip the script: they’re proactive conversations designed to uncover why employees stay and what might cause them to leave. In today’s competitive talent market, they’re one of the most powerful tools that managers alongside HR leaders can use to strengthen retention.

We all know the cost of retention involves factoring in both direct costs and indirect costs and how it could be financially heavy for some organizations. Additionally, employers may experience loss of productivity and coverage issues, while recruiting and onboarding new associates. Therefore, it is important to understand how retention affects the bottom line, which involves a bit of research and knowledge of the trends that are specific to your organization.  HR Morning suggests that, “employee departures can trigger uncertainty among the remaining staff, prompting questions about the organization’s stability and potentially leading to further exits and additional recruitment costs”. Click on this link to read more about The Real Cost of Employee Turnover Now.

What Are Stay Interviews?

A stay interview is a structured yet informal one-on-one conversation between a manager and an employee. Unlike exit interviews, which are reactive, stay interviews are proactive. They help leaders understand what employees value most about their work, what challenges they face, and how the organization can better support them.

Why Stay Interviews Matter

• Retention Strategy: Identify potential issues before they lead to turnover.

• Employee Engagement: Show employees their voices matter and their feedback drives change.

• Culture Building: Strengthen trust and transparency between managers and teams.

• Business Impact: Reduce recruitment costs, improve morale, and boost productivity.

How to Conduct Effective Stay Interviews

1. Timing is key: Schedule them regularly—annually or after major organizational changes. If you do midpoint check-ins, this would be a good time to ask about how they feel about their job.

2. Format: Keep them conversational, confidential, and focus on listening.

3. Ask Questions Like This:

• What do you enjoy most about working here?

• What would make your job more satisfying?

• What might tempt you to leave?

• How can I support your career goals? Check out our blog on Career Paths

4. Follow-Up: Act on feedback. Employees must see that their input leads to real improvements.

Overcoming Common Challenges

• Manager Hesitation: Train leaders to handle tough conversations with empathy.

• Employee Reluctance: Build psychological safety so employees feel comfortable being honest.

• Consistency: HR should provide guidance to ensure stay interviews are conducted fairly across departments.

Practical and Actionable Tips for Leaders

• Start small: pilot stay interviews with one team.

• Document themes, not just individual comments.

• Share insights with leadership to drive organizational change.

•Celebrate improvements that come directly from employee feedback.

Stay interviews aren’t just about retention, they’re about listening. They give employees a voice, strengthen trust, and help organizations evolve in ways that matter most to their people.

Leader Challenge: What is your pulse on your organization’s workforce? Why do you think your employees stay vs. why they may intend to leave?  Stay tuned for our next blog post on “Why Leaders Stay and What It Teaches Us About Employee Retention”

Download Our Stay Interview Checklist

If you are ready to turn insights into action? Our Stay Interview Toolkit can help give managers a starting point to conduct meaningful conversations that boost retention and build trust. From preparation tips to designing your follow-up strategies, Diadem Solutions is here to help you create a culture of listening, one conversation at a time.

Schedule a free 30 minute consultation today.

Source

Warner, Carol (2025, April 23). The Real Cost of Employee Turnover Now HR Morning

https://www.hrmorning.com/articles/real-cost-employee-turnover/