Form questions
Exit interview questions grouped by why people leave
Ask 12 to 15, choosing the sections that match the first reason given. Never skip what made the person start looking, what would have kept them, and whether they would come back. Those three show whether the loss was preventable, and they are the answers a quarterly summary is built from.
An exit interview has to find out what actually started the search, what could have changed the outcome, and whether that cause is repeating across the organisation. These twenty five questions are grouped by the usual reasons people leave, so each section can be kept or cut depending on what the departing employee names first.
The questions
The decision
What made you start looking?Single choiceRequired
The first cause, not the final straw. Keep the options identical every quarter so trends hold.
And what else contributed?Multiple choice
What would have kept you?Long text
Asked early, before the ratings wear the person out.
When did you first think about leaving?Single choice
In the last month, one to six months ago, six to twelve months ago, over a year ago.
Did you raise any of this with someone before you resigned?Single choice
Yes, my manager; yes, the people team; yes, someone else; no.
Pay and progression
How fairly were you paid for the work you actually did?Single choice
1 to 5, very unfairly to very fairly.
How does the new package compare?Single choice
Could you see a next step for yourself here?Single choice
How useful were the development opportunities you were offered?Single choice
1 to 5, with none were offered as a separate answer.
Was your next career step discussed with you in your last year?Single choice
Manager and team
How much do you agree with each statement about your manager?Rating grid
Gave useful feedback, recognised good work, supported my development, handled problems fairly, was available. One answer per row.
How well did your team work together?Single choice
Could you raise a concern without it costing you?Single choice
Is there anything about your manager the people team should know privately?Long text
The work and workload
How well did the role match what you were told when you were hired?Single choice
1 to 5, not at all to exactly.
How sustainable was your workload?Single choice
Did you have what you needed to do your job well?Single choice
How much flexibility did you have in your working arrangements?Single choice
What should change about the role before your replacement starts?Long text
Leaving well
How likely are you to recommend working here to a friend?Single choice
0 to 10 as eleven options.
Would you come back?Single choice
How well was your handover handled?Single choice
May the people team contact you in six months?Single choice
Which team were you in?Dropdown
Team level only, and only where each team is large enough to keep answers unidentifiable.
May the people team share your answers with your manager?Single choice
All of it with my name, summarised without my name, or no. Treat a blank as no.
Which questions to make required
Only the reason for leaving is required. A departing employee owes the organisation nothing, and a required question they do not want to answer ends the survey rather than improving it. The reason is the one answer every summary depends on, so it is the only one enforced, and every rating, open question and permission to share stays optional.
- What made you start looking?
The form built from these questions
A static copy of the finished form, from its own example page.
Three ways to change this bank
For customers or members who cancel, replace pay and the manager with price, value, service and the product itself, keep what would have kept you word for word, and add whether they would return at a lower price or with a missing feature. For a student withdrawing from a course, swap the sections for course fit, teaching, money and personal circumstances, and ask whether they plan to return to study later, which tells a college whether the student is lost or only paused. For a volunteer stepping down, replace pay with time commitment and recognition, keep the manager grid as a coordinator grid, and ask whether they would come back for a single event, since many volunteers leave a role but not the cause.
Questions people ask
How many exit interview questions should one survey ask?
Twelve to fifteen, taking about ten minutes. The full twenty five are a bank to choose from. Start with the decision section for everyone, then keep the sections that match the organisation's known problems, such as pay or management. A departing employee who is asked everything stops giving considered answers by the halfway point.
Why group exit interview questions by reason for leaving?
Because causes cluster. Someone who left over their manager has a lot to say about feedback and fairness and little about pay, and the reverse is true for someone who left for money. Grouped sections let the survey go deep on the reason that matters and let the quarterly summary compare like with like.
Are exit interview answers covered by privacy law in Australia?
It depends how they are used. The Fair Work Ombudsman explains that personal information an employer holds about current or former employment is not covered by the Australian Privacy Principles, but only when used directly in relation to that employment. Treat exit answers as confidential regardless, and say on the first screen who reads them.
Who should read the answers?
The people team, not the departing person's manager, unless the employee agrees. Answers about a manager are only honest when the manager will not read them with a name attached. Summaries by team, published quarterly, give managers the themes without exposing individuals, which is what the final sharing question makes possible.
Should an exit interview be a survey or a conversation?
Often both. A survey sent in the last week collects comparable answers from everyone, including people who would never say the same things face to face. A short conversation afterwards, with someone outside the reporting line, can follow up on anything the survey raised. Offer the conversation; never make it a condition.
What should happen to exit interview results?
Read them together, not one at a time. Each quarter, count first reasons by team, pull the answers to what would have kept you, and share the themes with leaders along with one change to make. The response export gives one column per question, so the count is a filter rather than a manual tally.
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On writing the questions themselves, read How to run an exit interview survey. For everything the builder can do, see the form maker. Step by step: Create a conversational form with AI, then View, export and manage your responses.
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