An agency sells its people's time, ideas and relationships. When someone leaves, the account may be affected, the team's morale shifts and others often start thinking about their own options. Understanding why people go is the first step to keeping the next good person.
The purpose of an exit conversation is to learn from the person's experience, respect their decision and see what could improve for those who stay.
CIPD's guidance on employee turnover highlights the value of understanding why staff leave and addressing areas such as fair treatment, flexibility and employee wellbeing. Source: CIPD
Look beyond the first answer
"Bigger brand." "Better pay." "Want to try something new." "Need a break." These may all be true. They can also hide a heavier reason, such as work credited elsewhere, a client who treated the team badly, or months of late nights with no recovery time.
Start with a simple question: "What made you start looking?" Then ask what made them decide. In agencies, people often start looking after a particular pitch, a difficult client period or an appraisal that did not match their expectations.
Do not assume every exit reflects a problem. Freelancing, further study, moving cities, a different discipline or a change of direction are real reasons too.
Explore the areas that shape agency work
Use these as prompts rather than assuming any one of them caused the resignation.
- Credit and recognition: Did the person feel their ideas and work were credited fairly, internally and externally? Were they visible to clients and leadership?
- Creative and professional growth: Were they learning and doing better work, or repeating the same briefs? Did they have time to think as well as deliver?
- Workload and hours: Was the load spread fairly across accounts? Were pitch weeks and deadline crunches occasional or constant? Was time recovered afterwards?
- Client conduct: Did clients make unreasonable demands, contact staff at all hours or treat people disrespectfully? Did the agency step in?
- Pay and progression: Was the route to the next title clear in creative, servicing and strategy lines? Were pay and promotion discussions honest?
- Management and leadership: Did the person get useful feedback? Were decisions about accounts and staffing explained?
- Culture and flexibility: Did the working pattern, remote or in-person, match what was agreed? Was there room for rest after intense periods?
- Personal circumstances: Did relocation, health, study or family needs play a part?
A resignation often has more than one of these behind it. Let the person explain how they connect.
Who should hold the conversation
Invite the person to a voluntary conversation during the notice period. Explain that the purpose is to understand their experience and improve the agency.
Agencies are small and tight-knit, so choose the interviewer with care. A founder or account head may be the cause of the concern, or the person the leaver is closest to and least willing to criticise. An HR representative, a senior person from another team or an outside facilitator may suit better. If the concern involves the leader, say so and offer another person. Always allow written feedback.
In a team of fifteen or thirty, the source of a comment is often obvious. Do not promise complete anonymity. Explain who will see the answers and how they will be used. Listen without defending, and do not debate the person's choice. Notice periods also carry client and work handover, so schedule the conversation separately from it. For how to run the process around the conversation, see exit interviews that produce action.
Questions that lead to useful feedback in an agency
- 1
What first made you start looking?
This finds the starting point, which is often earlier than the offer.
- 2
What were the main factors in your decision?
Let them rank or connect the factors in their own words.
- 3
What did you value most about the work and the team?
It shows what to protect for those who stay.
- 4
How did the role compare with what you expected when you joined?
Gaps point to hiring conversations or account changes that were never discussed.
- 5
Did you feel your work was credited fairly?
Listen for specific examples inside the agency and with clients.
- 6
How was your workload across accounts, including pitches and deadlines?
Listen for repeated crunches and uneven spread across the team.
- 7
How did clients treat you and the team? Did we handle it well?
Ask for examples without asking the person to name individuals publicly.
- 8
Did you have the learning and growth you wanted? Was your next step clear?
Ask what they would have wanted, not only what was missing.
- 9
Were there concerns you raised earlier? How were they handled?
This shows whether concerns reach someone who can act.
- 10
What should we change for the next person in your role?
A forward-looking close that keeps the conversation constructive.
Allow the person to skip any question, and use follow-ups only where they help.
Turn individual feedback into a pattern review
Record the main reason, any contributing factors and a short factual summary. Keep what was said separate from your interpretation. Note the discipline, account, level and length of service.
Review exits over time by account, team, discipline and level. Look for exits that follow a pitch, a lost or won account or an appraisal cycle, and for people leaving the same account lead in a short time. A small number of exits should prompt more questions, not an immediate verdict on a client or a manager. The attrition number that hides the problem explains why one headline rate is not enough.
Compare exit feedback with workload and utilisation data, current staff conversations and client feedback. Keep identifiable responses to those who need them.
Give each improvement an owner
Feedback that is filed away helps nobody. For each issue chosen for action, agree on:
- The specific change needed.
- The person responsible.
- A completion date.
- How progress will be reviewed.
For example, unfair credit could lead to a clear practice on naming contributors, owned by the creative head. Overloaded accounts could lead to a staffing review, owned by the managing partner or operations head. Difficult client behaviour could be taken up by the account director, with agency support. Where appropriate, tell current staff what has changed without revealing any person's private feedback.
Start listening before people resign
Do not wait for the resignation. Hold regular conversations about workload, credit and growth, particularly after a pitch or a difficult client period. Ask: "What would make you consider leaving, and what could we improve now?"
Good moments are after a pitch, after a heavy delivery period, at appraisal time and when an account changes hands. Act on what you hear and say what was done, or people stop telling you.
Every departure deserves a respectful response. The same approach, for all roles, is set out in why employees leave and how to understand their reasons.
