The resignation meeting is the worst time to find out what your best rep wanted.
By then there is another offer, usually already signed. The counter-offer feels like the only card left, and in my experience it rarely fixes the reason they started looking.
So I try to have the conversation earlier. Some call it a stay interview. I just call it asking.
Three parts.
- Ask what keeps them.
- "What keeps you here, and what would make you think of leaving?" It feels awkward the first time. The answers are almost never what I expected.
- Know their next step.
- "Where do you want to be in two years?" Senior rep, key accounts, a first step towards managing, a different therapy area. A rep who can see a path here has less reason to look elsewhere.
- Act on one thing.
- "I cannot promise everything. This one I will do." Then do it. A harder account, a place on a project, a day with the medical team. One kept promise says more than a long speech about how valued they are.
I have this conversation twice a year with every rep, not only when someone looks restless. Restless is already late.
“The best time to ask why a rep might leave is while they still want to stay.”
Lesson 11 of 12 in Step 7: Hiring and onboarding, with the full guide and a checklist for this week.