How Leveraging “Stay” Interviews Can Improve Your Return to Office

As the country moves from the pandemic and into endemic, the return to office is imminent– as are the “stay” interviews that ought to come with such a transition. If you or those on your team are among the many who are gradually returning to in-person work after a long hiatus, you might be noticing a resistance to this transition. 

With a whopping 91% of U.S. employees planning to continue some level of remote work post-pandemic, as well as 58% of them considering leaving their current jobs if access to remote arrangements vanished, conducting “stay interviews” will be an essential part of maintaining employee satisfaction and fulfillment while returning to the office.

So, if “stay interviews” are such a good investment of time, what exactly do they look like? 

These are conversations that consist of a leader checking in with an employee, in order to hear more about the kinds of experiences at work that make them want to stick around. 

Akin to the purpose of an exit interview, a “stay” interview leverages information gathered from employee’ experiences in order to improve work environments, practices, and cultures in real time. 

Considering the rate with which The Great Resignation continues (see our take on The Great Reinvention, too) , it’s becoming increasingly clear that managers must practice this kind of responsiveness and honest communication that enables teams to navigate drastic changes in work environments. 

But, how often should a “stay” interview be conducted, and when?

In order to keep these check-ins insightful, we believe that a stay interview is something that needs to be conducted on a consistent basis– even if this only ends up being once every quarter. Not only does a regular conversation of this nature create a known opportunity for employees to voice their likes and dislikes while back in the office, but it allows managers to track any progress they see in regard to employee satisfaction.

With the frequency of stay interviews established in your office, it’s important to finetune a list of compelling questions to evoke the most valuable responses from employees.

Between asking employees to share how they’re feeling mentally to their perceived sense of connection at work, from existing barriers in their day-to-day work to opportunities for personal and professional development, stay interviews empower teams to voice challenges and opportunities as they arise. 

Engaging and retaining talent while navigating significant changes in the workplace is a huge undertaking that requires constant communication among teams. Luckily, stay interviews are designed for that specific purpose. 

In many ways, the employees who are returning to the office over two years after the start of the pandemic have very different expectations of what work can and should look like. Therefore, it’s in an organization’s best interest for managers to be willing to receive feedback and make changes as necessary. 

After implementing “stay” interviews, what comes next?

At Leadology, we have seen the powerful impact that the right communication (including conducting stay interviews) have brought to the organizations we work with. Effective communication is the core of what we teach in Activate, including helping managers receive feedback and implement necessary change within their teams. 

Ready to engage your team more than ever before? Chat with us to learn a bit more about what Activate can do to help your team thrive during their return to the office.