Secret Santa Questionnaire: 30 Questions to Send Before the Draw Free survey template
Employee exit survey. Hear why people leave, in their own words.
Nine questions for everyone who leaves: the reasons, how well the company used their skills, career growth, pay, stress at work and whether anything could change their mind. It takes about three minutes.
Free plan: 100 responses a month and up to 50 surveys, no credit card.
The template’s real survey on a phone.
- 9 ready questionsAbout 3 min on a phone.
- Yours to changeQuestions, answers and logic.
- A ready reportA chart for every closed question.
- Export on every planCSV, Excel and SPSS.
On the way out, people can say what they kept to themselves. An exit survey asks every leaver the same questions, and over a year the reasons add up to something you can act on.
The 9 exit survey questions in this template.
The reason first, then skills, growth, pay and stress, then a last chance to stay. Logic rules skip what does not apply.
The reason
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What are your reasons for leaving this company?
Why ask it. The main reason in the person’s own words, before any options steer the answer.
Skills and growth
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How effectively were your skills put to use at this company?
Why ask it. Shows whether the company used what people could do. Extremely, Very and Moderately effectively open the next question.
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Which of your skills were effectively put to use?
Why ask it. The strengths the role drew on, for the job description of the next hire.
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Did you have opportunities for career growth?
Why ask it. A plain yes or no to compare with the reasons people give in the first answer.
Pay and stress
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How well were you paid for the work you did at this company?
Why ask it. How fair the pay felt, asked when people have no reason to hold back. Not so well and Not at all well open the next question.
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How much did you expect to earn?
Why ask it. Asked only of people who felt underpaid: the pay they expected, a figure to compare with your salary bands.
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How often did you feel uncomfortable/stressed at work?
Why ask it. How often work felt stressful, to read next to the reasons for leaving.
A chance to stay
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Can we influence your decision to leave the company?
Why ask it. Asks whether the person might stay. A no ends the survey here.
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Great to hear! How can we do that?
Why ask it. Shown only after a yes: what would make the person stay. Read these answers first, while they still work for you.
How to create an exit survey from this template.
- 1
Copy the template
Click “Use this template” and sign up free, or log in if you already have an account. You get a copy of the nine questions with the logic that opens the skills and pay follow-ups. The copy appears in your survey list as a draft.
- 2
Make it yours
Check which answers open the skills and pay follow-ups, add a department question if you compare teams, and turn on anonymous mode in the survey settings.
- 3
Send it before the last day
Share the link by e-mail or chat in the person’s last week, and say who reads the answers. Send it before the exit interview and use the answers in that conversation.
- 4
Read the reasons together
Skills, pay and stress each get a chart, and the open answers list every reason in the leaver’s words. Review them once a quarter and share a read-only report link with the managers.
How to read exit survey results.
Why people leave
The first answer is open. Read the reasons and group them into a few themes, such as pay, growth, management, workload or personal reasons. Export them to Excel, CSV or SPSS on any plan.
Skills, growth and pay
The charts show how many leavers felt their skills were wasted, saw no room to grow or felt underpaid. Compare the shares from quarter to quarter.
Who could have stayed
Every yes to the question about changing their mind comes with an answer on how. That list is advice you can act on before the next person leaves.
How to get honest exit feedback.
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Make it anonymous
Turn on anonymous mode and say so in the invitation, so leavers know the report won’t show who answered.
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Read answers in batches
In a small company, one leaver a month is easy to recognize. Review the answers by quarter, not one at a time.
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Keep it away from the manager
Let HR or someone outside the team read the answers, and say so in the invitation.
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Act on repeat reasons
One person leaving for pay is a story. Five in a quarter is a reason to review your salary bands.
More exit interview questions you can add.
Not in the template. Add any of them in the builder in a few clicks.
Manager and team
- How would you rate your relationship with your direct manager?
- Did you get enough feedback on your work?
- How would you describe the atmosphere in your team?
The role
- Did the job match the description you were given when you were hired?
- Did you have the tools and training you needed?
- Was your workload manageable?
Looking back
- Would you consider coming back to work here in the future?
- How likely are you to recommend this company as a place to work, from 0 to 10?
- What is one thing we should change for the people who stay?
Free tools for your results
- eNPS calculatorAdd a 0–10 recommendation question and turn leavers’ answers into an employee NPS.
- Median and percentile calculatorThe median of the pay leavers expected, from the exported answers.
- Response rate calculatorThe share of leavers who answered the survey.
- Exit interview questionsQuestion wordings that leavers answer honestly, and when to ask twice.
- Exit surveysWhen to send an exit survey and what to ask about the manager and the team.
More templates
Questions about this template
What questions should an exit survey ask?
Why the person is leaving, whether the company used their skills, whether they could grow, how fair the pay was, how stressful the work felt and whether anything could change their mind. This template asks all of it in nine questions.
Exit survey or exit interview?
Use both. The survey asks every leaver the same exit interview questions in writing, and the reasons can be counted. The interview follows up on what the survey shows.
Can leavers answer anonymously?
Yes. The template asks for no name or e-mail. Turn on anonymous mode in the survey settings (every plan, including Free) and the results also hide each respondent’s IP address, country, browser and device. In a small company, review the answers by quarter so a single leaver is harder to recognize.
Why do some people see fewer questions?
The template has logic rules. The skills and expected pay follow-ups open only after certain answers, and the last question appears only when someone says the company could still change their mind. You can change every rule in the builder.
When should I send an exit survey?
In the person’s last week, before the exit interview, while the details are fresh.
Ask the next person who leaves.
Copy the exit survey, turn on anonymous mode and keep the link ready.