When a guard or supervisor leaves a security agency, the business needs to understand what shaped the decision. Guards work at client premises, often alone, on long shifts and far from the office, so the agency may not hear the real reason unless someone asks.
The purpose is to learn from their experience, respect their decision and identify what could improve for the people who remain on the posts.
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
"Going home." "Better job." "Family problem." These answers may be accurate, but they may not explain the whole decision. A better job could mean shorter duty hours, a site closer to home, a weekly off that was actually given or pay that arrives on time. Going home may be about a duty pattern that never allowed a visit.
Start with a simple question: "What made you start considering a change?"
Then ask what made the employee decide to leave. This helps distinguish what started their search from the opportunity that eventually attracted them.
Avoid assuming that every resignation reflects a problem with the agency. Family needs, health, relocation and a change in career direction can also influence someone's decision.
Explore the areas that shaped their experience
Use the following areas as prompts rather than assuming any one of them caused the resignation.
- Pay and timing: Was pay accurate and on time? Did the guard understand each deduction and could they query it?
- Duty hours and weekly offs: Were duty hours manageable? Were weekly offs given when promised, or did a missing reliever mean working through?
- Site conditions: Did the post have basic facilities such as shelter, water, a place to rest and safe lighting at night?
- Shift pattern and night duty: Did rotation between day and night shifts allow rest? Was night duty shared fairly?
- Supervisor and field officer contact: Did anyone visit the post, listen and respond to problems? Was the supervisor fair and consistent?
- Client behaviour: Were guards treated respectfully by the client's staff, and did the agency step in when they were not?
- Uniform and equipment: Were uniforms and equipment provided in good time and in good condition?
- Growth: Could they see a route from guard to senior guard, supervisor or field role? Were they trained for it?
- Personal circumstances: Did family needs, health, relocation or other priorities affect their ability or wish to continue?
Several factors may contribute to one resignation. Allow employees to explain these connections in their own words.
Create a respectful exit conversation
Invite the employee to a voluntary exit interview during their notice period. Offer a time and a way that suits their duty, such as a phone call before or after a shift, and speak in the language they are most comfortable in. Explain that the purpose is to understand their experience and improve how the agency works.
Where possible, choose an interviewer who is sufficiently independent of the issues being discussed. If the concern involves the site supervisor or field officer, offer another person such as someone from head office. Avoid holding the conversation at the post, where the client or colleagues may overhear. A guard who finds it hard to speak openly may prefer to give feedback by phone or in writing.
Explain who will see their responses and how the information will be used. Avoid promising complete anonymity where only a few guards work on one site and details could identify the person.
Listen without interrupting or defending each company decision. If clarification is needed, ask for a specific example respectfully. The employee should not have to debate or justify their decision to leave. For how to run the process around the conversation, see exit interviews that produce action.
Ask questions that lead to useful feedback
- 1
What first made you consider leaving?
This finds the starting point, which is often different from the final reason.
- 2
What were the main factors in your final decision?
Let them rank or connect the factors in their own words.
- 3
How did the role compare with what you expected when you joined?
Gaps here point to hiring conversations or role changes that were never discussed.
- 4
How manageable were your duty hours and weekly offs?
Listen for missing relievers, doubled shifts and offs that were not given.
- 5
Was your pay correct and on time, and did you understand any deductions?
Ask whether they knew who to approach when something was wrong.
- 6
What were the facilities and conditions at the post like?
Ask about shelter, water, rest and night lighting.
- 7
How often did a supervisor or officer visit, and did they listen?
Offer another interviewer if the guard is uneasy answering this to someone close to the supervisor.
- 8
Did you have the uniform, equipment and training you needed?
Listen for gaps the guard had to cover alone.
- 9
Were there concerns you raised earlier? How were they handled?
This shows whether concerns reach anyone who can act.
- 10
What should we improve for the next person in this role?
A forward-looking close that leaves the conversation constructive.
Use follow-up questions where necessary, while allowing the employee to skip questions they do not wish to answer.
Turn individual feedback into a pattern review
Record the primary reason for leaving, any contributing factors and a brief factual summary. Separate what the employee said from your interpretation.
Review departures over time by site, client, shift, supervisor and length of service. Repeated concerns deserve attention, but a small number of exits should prompt further investigation rather than an immediate conclusion about a supervisor or client. The general guide to why employees leave covers the wider approach, and the attrition number that hides the problem explains why a single headline rate is not enough.
Compare exit feedback with current guard conversations, attendance and roster information and other relevant evidence. If several guards leave one post, the cause may be the site itself rather than the agency. Keep identifiable responses restricted to those who need access, and use summaries for broader reporting.
Give each improvement an owner
An exit interview has limited value if the feedback is simply filed away. For each issue selected for action, agree on:
- The specific change needed.
- The person responsible.
- A completion date.
- How progress will be reviewed.
For example, missing weekly offs could lead to a reliever plan for the site, with a person responsible. Late or unclear pay could prompt a check of how attendance reaches payroll. Poor site conditions could prompt a conversation with the client, led by a named manager.
Where appropriate, tell current employees what has changed without revealing a departing employee's private feedback.
Start listening before employees resign
Include regular conversations about what helps guards and supervisors work well and what makes the job difficult. Supervisor and field officer visits, including to night shifts, can be used to ask a few simple questions and write down the answers. Ask: "What would make you consider leaving, and what could we improve now?"
These conversations can create opportunities to address concerns while the employee is still part of the team. Follow-through matters: asking for feedback creates an expectation that someone will consider it seriously.
Every resignation deserves a respectful response. Understanding the reasons, checking the wider evidence and acting on issues within the organisation's control gives that conversation a useful purpose.
