Companies using stay interviews to contain high attrition rates: Report

In the stay interviews, companies have a conversation with their employees to show that they are important to the organisation

To contain the high attrition rates, companies are now using stay interviews. This type of interview was originally started during the business process outsourcing (BPO) boom, a report by the Times of India (TOI) stated.

In the stay interviews, companies have conversations with their employees to show that they are important to the organisation. They also address the problems the employees face, which may push them to quit the job.

Indian companies, especially IT, have been facing high attrition rates for several months. In the first quarter of the current financial year (Q1FY23), Infosys recorded the highest attrition at 28.4 per cent, followed by HCL at 23.8 per cent and Wipro at 23.3 per cent.

Among the signs that companies are watching to track the need for such interviews are the employees being less energetic or disconnected in the company interaction, the TOI report added. According to various human resource managers (HR managers), there must be transparency in the organisation and be capable of reading such signs.

Priyanka Anand, VP and head of HR for Southeast Asia, Oceania and India, Ericsson told TOI that the company conducts stay interviews to encourage the 'speak up' culture and ensure that the person does not move away from a job they like.

Prakash P Nair, VP and global head (talent acquisition), SunTech Business Solutions, said that these interviews were important to 'identify challenges, provide the right guidance, and understand employee aspirations.'

Regional HR head at Dell Technologies Ritu Rakhra added that it is also important to invest in leadership development. "Whenever there are red flags and a high-potential employee may be thinking of leaving, we expect the leader to step in and have the conversation and if required, pool in the skip-level leader," she said.

Lately, companies in India have been facing narrow margins. As a result, the variable pay is being reduced to cut costs. Stay interviews become more critical in such a situation.