Don’t panic when staff leave, NHSE advises managers

New NHS England guidance has advised line managers to ‘remain calm’, ‘not panic’, and ‘show kindness’ when handling staff resignations.

The Expectations of Line Managers in Relation to People Management framework, published on the NHS England website, contains guidelines on several areas for line managers, including equality, diversity and inclusion, recruiting and flexible working.

In the “managing exits” section, managers are told they are expected to:

• “Support your colleague by showing kindness to them, respect their decision, and wish them well for the future”;
• “Lead by example and remain calm, ie do not panic when key colleague leaves”;
• “Use opportunity to reflect and innovate, ie should services be redesigned?”; and
• “Be mindful that the colleague may have mixed emotions about leaving. Include them in planning any leaving event”.

Managers are also told they should “undertake an exit interview, or ask another manager if appropriate, to understand the employee’s experience of working in your organisation” and “consider skills gaps and risks of someone leaving”. 

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Source: HSJ, 9 November 2023