Lesson 1: Resign & transition

There are four typical stages: notify, plan & document, transition, and build. Let’s dive in!

Notify: schedule a meeting with your manager to discuss your resignation decision, show appreciation, and discuss timelines and transition. Keep the conversation positive to build the relationship. Provide at least two weeks of notice or longer, to allow time to transition work and prevent gaps. Follow up with a written notice outlining your resignation, last day, and appreciation.

Plan & Document: discuss with your manager how and when the work will transition and to whom. Then, create a transition resource that answers:

·       What are the role priorities and measures of success?

·       What are the initiatives or projects they are leading or participating in?

·       What are the deliverables they are responsible for and by when?

·       For each action, what’s the status, who is involved, what are the next steps, and what are the available resources or reference materials, websites, channels?

·       Who are the stakeholders and suggested frequency of meeting?

·       What are the meetings that they need to attend, their purpose, their role, and the frequency, and meeting owner?

·       What are the topics they need to learn and how to ramp up?

·       What are the policies or procedures specific to the role or team that they need to know?

·       What are the aliases, distribution groups, websites, channels, or other communication formats the new person needs to know about or join?

·       What’s the rhythm of the role? Every week, month, quarter, half, annually – key milestones, events, or deliverables due?

·       And, anything else you can think of that would help with the transition.

 Provide the information in an Excel file, Word document, OneNote, or other consolidated format with appropriate sections for ease of use.

Transition: determine if you’ll be able to hand over your work in-person or if it will be written documentation with no formal hand-off.

·       Formal hand-off: if you know who is taking over your position, set up time to meet with them and review the transition content you’ve developed over a couple of sessions.

·       No formal hand-off: if you do not know who is taking over your role, ask your manager who the work is transitioning to temporarily and review the content with them. Or, if no one, ensure the transition content is clear and easy for someone to pick up and do the job. Share the transition content with your manager ahead of time, giving them an opportunity to ask questions.

Build: build the relationships with your colleagues and manager by connecting, completing tasks, tying up loose ends, communicating proposed next steps, and including them on relevant communications. Always maintain professionalism and keep commitment to completing your deliverables. Connect with colleagues via LinkedIn and provide your contact information to colleagues you’d like to connect with going forward. Express appreciation for your partnership.