Many of us have experienced that gut-wrenching moment when a senior leader i.e. that someone who is responsible for employee relationships drops the envelope on your desk announcing their resignation. Even if that leader’s departure is expected, it can still send shock-waves through the organisation.
It can have a huge impact on your team so what do you do? We might communicate to clients, but fall flat when it comes to reassuring our employees. Reasons for this can vary; it may be that as a team we feel vulnerable and don’t like to show it, or perhaps we simply don’t know what to say. As managers we will probably feel worried about what our employees are feeling and thinking when a major personnel change threatens stability.
So, what is the best way to react when a senior leader heads for the exit?— here are five tactics to focus your people and yourself :
Stay calm — During the meeting when your senior person resigns, ask them to keep the news confidential until you develop a communication plan (for employees and clients).
Assess the situation — Book an immediate meeting with your senior managers to identify main areas; a beloved leader whose absence might cause major employee disengagement? Did they possess some sort of irreplaceable organizational knowledge or skills? If so, how will you fill those gaps?
Collaborate — Depending on the size of your team and its structure, work with your senior people to develop a plan to communicate the news to your indirect reports. Internally talk about the relationships; you’ll be pleasantly surprised to see how readily your team steps up to assume new responsibilities.
Communicate — Work out the best medium to announce the news based on the departed leader’s seniority, tenure and roles. Whatever you decide, remember to include all team members in the announcement. Assure employees that the company is on solid footing and the departure has nothing to do with instability. Just as critical, remind clients that it’s business as usual. Explain how their account will be managed in light of the resignation, as well as your strategy for replacing that lost expertise.
Follow through — Execute your transition plan to the letter and keep key team members updated on its progress. Expect this process to play out over a couple of months and don’t underestimate the potential cultural impact. If the departed leader was well-liked and seen as a key to your organization’s success, employees will need consistent reassurances that their jobs are safe and your bottom line will remain stable.
Ultimately when an influential leader resigns no matter how well you handle the situation you will find that some employees will decide to move on.
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