Leaving your Job on Good Terms

As you progress in your career, you’ll inevitably leave jobs to move on to new opportunities. You will want to make sure that you manage this transition in a way that will allow you to maintain a positive relationship with your employer. Here are some tips that will help you leave your job the right way:

• Provide proper notice. You can make the transition for both you and the employer as smooth as possible by providing at least two weeks of notice. Check your contract to see if you are required to give more than two weeks.
• Tie up loose ends. Make an effort to tie up any loose ends before you leave, in order to minimize the impact on your co-workers. You should consider keeping in touch after you leave.
• Give them all the information they’ll need. There may be particular information that your replacement will need to know in order to do the job effectively. This could include information about particular clients, tricks of the trade, passwords, or even knowing where certain items are located.  Make sure that you pass all of this information on to the person who will be replacing you in your job. If a replacement hasn’t yet been hired, then leave detailed notes.
• Be appreciative. It may seem like a long time ago, but try to recall how happy you were when you were offered your current job. This position allowed you to grow and mature professionally so that you could progress in your career. Be grateful for the opportunity and do what you can to show your appreciation.
• Leave your contact information. You can save your employer and co-workers a lot of headaches by leaving your contact information so that they can follow up with you as needed. You may be able to give them a solution that would take them days to find on their own. By providing your contact information, you demonstrate that you still care about the organization.

The way that you behave in the last few weeks of your job will determine your employer’s impression of you. It’s important that you demonstrate respect and professionalism until the very end. If you don’t, you never know when it might come back to haunt you.

Don’t forget to keep in touch with your former employers or colleagues for future references and networking. LinkedIn is a good tool to use to stay connected.