What and how was your experience of breaking the news to your employer about leaving?

[djsander]

I along with others were offered an early retirement package. When I told the SVP that had hired me that I was accepting the package he told me when they were deciding who to include they weren’t sure they would offer it to me, but in the end decided go ahead and offer it to me and let me decide. The manager I previously worked for was disappointed I was leaving as I provided a lot of support to his group. My current manager had spoken with our group VP and were concerned I would leave. Per management instructions they couldn’t try to sway the decision, but all were worried that I was leaving with a lot of knowledge for unusual engineering issues at our company and how to deal with them. They were all supportive though and I had been training my team members some for years and had recommended two of them for my replacement. Although I was important to the organization they will survive without me and the team members that worked under me will just have to figure it out now.

 

[pdxgal]

I would be curious to know what kinds of jobs you all had, that your giving notice to leave would cause a reaction, much less a personal meeting, with VP's and SVP's and etc.

+1. Maybe the ER demographic skews towards senior management?

 

[braumeister]

I believe the forum demographic encompasses nearly every socioeconomic group, which is one of the things that makes it so appealing to be a member here.

 

[Mr._Graybeard]

I was in the beleaguered newspaper industry, so layoffs and buyouts had become a regular occurrence by the time I chose to leave in May 2013. The company posted a buyout offer to all employees at that time, but the company scuttlebutt was that the focus on staff reduction was in places other than the editorial department.

Despite that, i and a couple other senior newsroom staffers decided to take the financial incentive and make our exit. Ultimately, the managing editor asked me -- and I agreed -- to stick around for six weeks. My onetime boss left that day for good (he had a bunch of banked vacation time).

I believe we were the last to leave with a "rich" severance package. After that, shrinking revenue and new contract negotiations cut it to 75% and later 50% of what we got.

 

[marko]

I would be curious to know what kinds of jobs you all had, that your giving notice to leave would cause a reaction, much less a personal meeting, with VP's and SVP's and etc.

+1. Maybe the ER demographic skews towards senior management?

I WAS the SVP!

 

[Aerides]

I would be curious to know what kinds of jobs you all had, that your giving notice to leave would cause a reaction, much less a personal meeting, with VP's and SVP's and etc.

Titles also depend on industry/field/popular thing. For instance, in tech, 10 years ago everyone wanted to be a Senior Architect, now it's Expert Engineer. Titles all shifted. In some places, it's almost Vanity titling.

And in many big companies, SVP isn't all that, and there a grades and bands internal to them, with EVP's on top of them, all before you to Officer level.

In banking, "everyone" is a VP. Branch Manager = Regional VP. A friend of mine who was a IT-Director old school title at Mega Corp moved to IT at a mega-bank, and his linked in changed to SVP. I was like ...nice promotion? and he showed me how in his new org that was basically the same hierarchy and tier as our old.

 

[iloveyoga]

Mine was a surprise and it was so fun to see the look on my leader's face. It was all very professional, but I could tell he was very surprised and did not know what to say for a few minutes. Priceless.

 

[RockyMtn]

I was always under an employment contract at mega corp. My final contract was three years in length and I told them it would probably be the last. They didn't believe me.

When we got to the last year I told them I would probably leave at the end of the term. They didn't believe me.

With six months remaining on the agreement they were required to let me know whether they wanted to enter into another agreement. They came to me with another three year deal. I told them I was done. They finally believed me.

 

[NateW]

Care to share? I like to hear what it was like from good to bad.

A close relative of mine passed away and left me a large inheritance. My supervisor at the time knew this (not the dollar amount, but that it was substantial because I was asking him about getting a private pilot's license and purchasing an airplane (he had a private pilot's license)).

Although DW and I had fairly substantial 401 k balances and IRAs from living beneath our means and maxing our 401ks and purchasing Roth IRAs each year for about 15 years, the inheritance was the icing on the cake that made me realize I no longer had to work.

In July of 2019 I gave a one month written notice I was retiring. Upon handing it to my manager, he glanced at it and looked straight at me and said, "What took you so long?" So mine was anticlimactic; he was expecting it. I was 58.

Many of my coworkers were happy for me and a few were jealous or envious.

It was the members I supported that hated to see me leave. I received numerous emails from them wishing me well.

I spent the last month working even harder (I was overworked to begin with) making sure everything was in order for my replacement. I was hoping to train that person before I left, but my replacement was not hired until after I left. I should have known. My manager either took care of things at the last second, or not at all.

 

[MRG]

Pretty timely recent events made me realize others saw the same things I did while w*rking.
I spent 29 years at Megacorp and enjoyed the first 24. Around 2008 I perceived things began to change when our founding CEO retired and much of the C level went with him or shortly after. I belong to a FB group of retired Megacorp people a recent event caused a group reaction, I was surprised by the number of former peers who left around the same time as I did. I didn't realize the group think of how much things had changed in the five years till I left. Looking back it really was very sad to see, good people who were run out because of really bad management. Some of them made many millions by their actions.

 

[W2R]

Three years before I retired, my very best friend at work was promoted and became my supervisor! I was so happy for her and happy to have my previous sociopathic supervisor replace by somebody who was actually NICE for a supervisor. What a great change.

Anyway, she already knew that I was planning to retire because we had been friends and had worked together for years, shoulder to shoulder since our job functions were closely related. I had told her my plans, secretly. Several months before retiring, I told her the exact date I had chosen and she was happy for me.

Then:

1) My supervisor explained the sign-off list that I would have to complete, and other bureaucratic aspects of retiring. Then she offered to pay me a lot more money to consult, but I turned her down. She asked me how much it would cost and I told her more money than was in our (federal) agency's budget.

2) A highly respected co-worker tried to persuade me to consult as well (probably sent by my supervisor unbeknownst to me). Told him the same thing.

3) Then middle management. I thought, "Wow! This is interesting." and then told him the same thing, smiling but firm. I think he offered the option of working at HQ in DC if I would prefer working there, but that had no appeal for me.

4) Then upper management. At that point I was really flattered but stayed firm and I am glad that I did.

It's not that I was such a fantastic scientist or so irreplaceable, but at least I was a known quantity so I think that for management, keeping me was the "lazy way out". Basically my predecessor left things in a huge mess, so I made a lot of changes and they liked the results. Also they didn't want to find (and then break in) a new scientist to replace me.

 

[mitchjav]

Care to share? I like to hear what it was like from good to bad.

Pretty good - I told my boss in late August - he asked me if I could stay on till the end of the fiscal quarter - which was Nov 2nd. Didn't mind collecting the few extra paychecks because the stress was gone after I announced.

 

[goingtotravel]

Told my supervisor I was retiring sometime in 2021 at the beginning of December 2020. I said I would pick an exact date by February this year. She asked me to stay until the end of September. In January I told her that I was waiting for an estimate from HR before I finalized my date but it would be between May and July. She asked me to stay until July. in February I got my estimate and decided I would retire the first day I was eligible for all benefits - May 15, 2021. She knows there is nothing that will convince me to stay and she said I will leave a big knowledge gap in the organization. So I guess it went well, there has been an avalanche of retirements that started last year so I wasn't the first leaving recently and I'm not the last.

 

[Backpacker]

President of the company upon hearing of my 30 day notice (at 54 years old), said, "oh that's right your old man's got money". I was so surprised I didn't come up with a pithy comeback. Never mind the fact that my father's still alive and other than 2k a year at Christmas has not shared his wealth with me. Yeah my opinion of the president isn't very good. He was one of the main reasons I left.

 

[Koolau]

President of the company upon hearing of my 30 day notice (at 54 years old), said, "oh that's right your old man's got money". I was so surprised I didn't come up with a pithy comeback. Never mind the fact that my father's still alive and other than 2k a year at Christmas has not shared his wealth with me. Yeah my opinion of the president isn't very good. He was one of the main reasons I left.

What an utterly insensitive thing to say. In a court room, your attorney would have objected with "Assumes facts not in evidence, your Honor."

What a dirt ball to have to work for! So glad you could get out.

 

[folivier]

I got a call one morning while driving out to a work site. My manager said they were told to poll everyone and see what their plans were regarding retirement. Our company was very heavy with 50+ year olds. I had been talking of retiring early for a few years so it should have been no surprise. I told my manager I'd talk with him later in the day. He said no that he needs an answer now. So I told him that I planned to retire at the end of the year and had intended to sit down with him in a couple weeks which would have been 2+ months notice. Dead silence for a minute or 2. Seriously he asked? I was the only technical person in our group due to attrition so replacing me was going to be difficult. That afternoon he asked me to stay for a few more months. After some negotiation I agreed and set my last day at the end of February. I retired just before my 56th birthday fulfilling one of my dreams to retire at 55.
My last day when my alarm blared for the last time I unplugged it. Drove into the office, turned in my keys and truck, and had someone drive me home. I was officially retired and home by 9am!

 

[Ronstar]

I was a part owner of my company, under an employment contract that required 6 months notice. So I wrote a letter to the other owners giving 6 months notice. It wasn't complete surprise - I had hinted about retiring.

The boss knew about a former co-worker's desire to come back as an owner. The former co-worker bought some of my stock. The company bought the remainder of my stock over a period of 1 year beginning at the end of the 6 months notice, and I agreed to work part time 1-2 days a week for that year.

Easy, but it took 18 months to get out the door from the time I gave notice.

 

[marko]

I
. The company bought the remainder of my stock over a period of 1 year beginning at the end of the 6 months notice, and I agreed to work part time 1-2 days a week for that year.

Easy, but it took 18 months to get out the door from the time I gave notice.

Similar. I was an SVP, Director and Officer of the Company. Two full years after I left, the company that acquired us was still sending me paperwork and release forms to sign!

 

[srblanco7]

Similar. I was an SVP, Director and Officer of the Company. Two full years after I left, the company that acquired us was still sending me paperwork and release forms to sign!

I'm in a similar role, SVP and Executive Director, and just had the conversation last week. Plan is full-time for the remainder of this year, with a transition to regular part-time next year, and an exit in early 2023 at which time I'll be 54, but it'll be the year in which I turn 55.

Conversation went very well - though I think my boss is still targeting an outcome where I'll stay longer. And, somewhat amusingly, I think it even got him thinking about his own retirement.

 

[dixonge]

I quit twice. Kinda.

First time we saved up a lot of money and quit our jobs, hoping the money would last until pensions kicked in. While we had a lot of fun, the money did *not*, in fact, last. You can read the insanely long thread (I posted it in 2008) here:

Insane Emergency RE strategy

So, back to work, new job, new city, and this gave me the chance to correct a mistake. I used the two years to finish vesting in my retirement plan. THEN I retired, for real!

And I made my boss cry.

OK, to be fair, this was due to a misunderstanding, not because she was emotionally attached to me. LOL

I attempted to soften the blow (I'd only been there two years) by giving 60-days or so notice, and by throwing in some humor. I told her that my wife was taking her pension and moving to Mexico, and that my wife had told me I could come along if I wanted to. It was a joke. She took this as me hinting that my wife was leaving me. LOL

So after she teared up and I quickly explained the joke, she was so relieved that I wasn't getting divorced that the news of me retiring seemed quite tame in comparison! She was actually happy for me. She was not happy to have to replace me. There was cake and many jokes on my last day. My co-workers decorated my office. I miss them. I do not miss my job.

 

[omni550]

I would be curious to know what kinds of jobs you all had, that your giving notice to leave would cause a reaction, much less a personal meeting, with VP's and SVP's and etc. I mean, I am a very senior technical non-manager, and if I gave notice, I doubt anyone would bat an eye. The first-level manager would probably move straight to reassigning my tasks. And that would have been true at any of the companies I've worked at during my career.

I was a (female) mechanical engineer in Product Development. I'd been with my first employer for just shy of 15 years and had completed my MBA while there, at company expense. I had always received excellent performance reviews.

As time moved on, it was obvious to me that completing my MBA was not going to be compensated nor involve a promotion, so I remained a hard-working, often-traveling (some years I spent over 100 days on the road) PD engineer.

A few years later (when I was 38), I was recruited by three former co-workers who had left to work for a competitor (one was now the CEO at the new company), with promise of a manager's title and a 30% salary increase. It involved a move of 1000 miles, leaving my then-DBF, etc, but I decided to go for it. After I gave my 2 weeks notice, I got a bunch of 1:1 meeting notices from VPs and SVPs with whom I'd never spent any time previously. They were all so curious as to why I was leaving. Interestingly, they didn't offer me anything to stay. (So I guess they may have been wondering why their 'token' female was leaving. Dunno.)

Product Development hosted a cake and coffee reception for me during those last 2 weeks, which was HIGHLY unusual, as announcements of quitting to go to work for competitors usually involved being escorted out the door immediately.

omni

 

[KrisQuit]

For some odd (or significant) reason my yearly career development talk landed this year on April 1. The irony of the date was not lost on me. As I began this conversation with my supervisor, I reframed the conversation by clarifying that it was unlikely I would be around for another year, possibly not to the end of this year. I explained a few of the reasons why this would make sense for me — personal, time, financial — and that there wasn’t truly a compelling reason for me to continue working once I turned 55 and had access to retiree benefits. And, the pandemic had simply changed a lot of how I see time and life. I have a very good working relationship with my supervisor.

We moved to a conversation not of my career but of how I could help make the transition easier for her and for the organization, and that there would be time to work through any challenges — I offered part-time work after retirement if needed, maybe a couple months. She asked that if I decided to leave before the end of the year, that I let her know by June.

So, June it is (I plan to retire in October). The difficult conversation (which really wasn’t difficult at all) is done. It will be challenging to replace me, but there is a world full of people to choose from, and I have offered the support that should be needed.

 

[random thought]

I gave my notice 1 month ago, I'm retiring on Thursday. I had given no indications previously to my manager that I was planning to do an early retirement so it was a surprise to him, I'm also 46 so that might factor in. He had the mixed emotions of sad to see me go, but happy that I'll be retiring. He also expressed some feelings around wishing he could do the same at some point later in life.

This last month has been pretty mellow, he didn't want me to say anything for the first 2 weeks because of org changes going on so it was a weird situation with initially feeling excited about it, but then kind of a let down feeling because I couldn't share the excitement with anyone. However, now that I've been able to share it, the excitement has ratched back up. Only 3 more days of work, yay!

 

[JK7255407]

In my case I was asked to identify 3 people to let go from my team as part of another reduction in force. I told my boss you mean me and two others... and he agreed to support my exit, with the typical megacorp severance and subsidized COBRA to make for a nice transition onto FIRE. I was ready. And I have no regrets.

Coincidentally my boss was let go about a month later.

 

[couch]

I am maybe 5-10 years from retirement(coast firing), but I have no idea how I will give my notice. I am a IT contractor doing devops with about a dozen different clients.

Do I slowly "fire" each client one by one? Do I give them all some sort of notice for a specific retirement date? Or do I just not replace them as they inevitably either go out of business or grow large enough to not need me anymore.

For most of them, I am their only non-developer IT resource. Frankly speaking, I am extremely difficult to replace...

I joke with my family, friends and a few of my clients that I want to "semi-retire" into a full time job.

(unmentioned are the other options of selling the business, or maintaining it on the off chance one of my kids wants to take it over)