Blog
6min read
Everything you need to know about the changes to the SCHADS...
Amendments to the SCHADS, Aged Care and Nurses Award have been finalised. Learn about it here.
It’s always a bittersweet moment to see your favourite colleague go. But no matter what the reason is, there’s nothing worse than mistreating someone who decides to leave your workplace.
It not only leaves a bad impression on your remaining employees, but also shows people just how poorly you think of them. And let’s not forget, people talk.
A good departure announcement is part of a positive offboarding process – and just as important as your onboarding.
Use our employee resignation announcement template to get you started on the right track when the time comes. Give them the recognition they deserve.
Who should use this employee leaving announcement email template?
This template is designed to help managers and HR managers recognise a departing employee who resigned under normal circumstances. But take caution: it is not appropriate for you to use if they have been fired or made redundant.
What is an employee departure announcement?
An employee departure announcement should be a brief but impactful statement thanking them for their service, time, and all the hard work they did.
Depending on your internal communications style, you can choose to send an email announcing it, or a Slack message in the appropriate channel.
Download this free Employee Resignation Announcement Email Template now.
Why is it important to announce an employee’s departure?
Remember the Great Resignation? One of the most important lessons from it was that how you navigate a team member’s departure is judged not just by the person leaving, but the remaining employees. So it’s a great chance to show your team that you care about them.
It’s a crucial part of your offboarding process that can create a positive impact not only for the person leaving, but for your EVP, too.
To ensure a smooth transition, consider using our Employee Exit Interview Template. This resource will help you manage the departure effectively and gather valuable feedback.
When should you send the employee departure announcement email?
Your departing team member is likely to be a point of contact for many customers, ongoing projects, and tasks. Once you’ve confirmed their last day with them, make sure you notify your team.
To save you time, we’ve provided templates for you, including one to announce their departure and one for the departing employee to put in their auto-reply.
How else can you prepare for an employee’s departure?
Do you have an offboarding process in place? If not, you might want to check out our employee offboarding checklist.
Make sure you wrap up some employment administration such as:
- Final payroll
- Disconnecting any relevant accounts
- Returning of equipment
- Reviewing documentation and work filing
- Allocation of existing responsibilities
- Organising a final handover meeting
If your company conducts exit interviews, make sure you block time well before the departing employees’ last day so that you can have a face to face meeting to ask any questions. Remember to make sure that the interviewer is not their direct manager or close colleague, so they feel able to speak their mind openly.
We have more information on this, and other helpful tips in our guide to employee offboarding.
For a comprehensive guide, refer to our Essential Employee Departure Checklist. This checklist ensures you cover all critical steps during the offboarding process.
Should you organise a farewell party for departing employees?
There’s no one rule on whether or not you hold a farewell event. This really depends on the nature of the resignation, and timing of the departure.
There are a few things to consider when it comes to who to invite. You may choose to organise an intimate one with their immediate team, or depending on how big the company is, a wider company event.
If it’s a small business, and the employee leaving has good rapport with the entire company, chances are you may want to send an RSVP to everyone and share the exact details of the leaving do, where it’s taking place, and the date.
3 common questions you might receive after an employee departure announcement
A few things are likely to happen if an employee resigns. On top of wishing someone the best on their future endeavours, be prepared for some common questions you’re likely to face when you announce an employee is leaving.
Will there be any plans to hire a replacement?
Their immediate team are likely to want to know any details you may have, such as the timeline of any hiring plans you intend to kick off, and whether or not there might be any changes to the role.
Who is the best point of contact for any ongoing projects?
If the departing employee oversaw a few projects which are still live, or may have some outstanding tasks left on their to-do, you may want to clarify who the best new point of contact is, and whether or not it is being addressed in a handover.
Has there been an agreed leave date?
If you have a leaving date worked out, you may want to share this with their immediate and wider team, to give team members ample time to organise any important tasks that need to be addressed in the handover.
For more details on handling terminations, you can download our Termination of Employment Template. This template provides a structured approach to notifying employees about their termination.
Download the employee departure email template now
Saying goodbye isn’t easy, but make sure you give the leaving employee nothing but your best wishes, and a positive note to end on. Use our employee departure email template to get you started.
Looking for more? Make sure you’re making the most of your overall offboarding process by downloading our ultimate guide to employee offboarding.
If you’re ramping up operations after a stand-down period, our Notice to End Stand Down Template can be extremely useful. It provides clear guidelines on how to communicate the end of a stand-down period to your staff.
