- Catalyst Search Inc.

Congratulations! You've found a great new opportunity but now it's time to say goodbye to the colleagues, mentors and supervisors at your current employer. Here are a few tips to make the transition as smooth as possible.

Resigning is never easy. There's the worry about how your leaving will impact your team and a concern about hard feelings down the road. Here are a few tips about how to conduct yourself through the resignation process and your two week notice period.

• Compose a resignation letter. Address it to your direct Supervisor and keep it basic with the date of your resignation, the last date of your employment and your best wishes for the team in the future.
• Schedule a meeting with your supervisor, present the letter, express your appreciation for the opportunities you have been afforded and offer to document any current projects and cross-train your replacement.
• Avoid the temptation to vent. The grievances you had are no longer your concern and any disputes you had with colleagues and supervisors are best left out of your resignation. You've made your decision to leave and consequently it's best to leave on good terms. Airing dirty laundry or venting about issues from the past are not the impressions you'd like to leave with a former employer. Presumably, you made the effort to address any serious concerns during the tenure of your employment; reiterating those now that you have resigned may simply be seen as sour grapes.
• Use your discretion in speaking with colleagues who ask about your departure. Colleagues will be curious about your reasons for leaving - often simply saying 'I was presented with a great opportunity that offers me the potential for (work/life balance, diversity of experience, potential to supervise etc)' can circumvent a conversation that may lead to a perception of ill will on your part. When possible, make positive comments about your time with, and opportunities afforded by, your current employer.
• If you've offered to document projects, train a replacement or create a manual/notes for your replacement - do it. Your word should be as valid after your resignation as it was before your decision to leave.
• Make every effort to leave your work area clean, documented and ready for your successor. They deserve the best possible chances of success and it speaks well to your character to leave an organized desk.
• Be prepared for a counter offer and know how you will react. (See our article on counteroffers for suggestions and feedback on how to respond.) In general, a counteroffer will seek to match remuneration but may not solve some of the core issues around your decision to leave.

As you proceed through resigning, and working out your notice period, be conscious that you may well work with these people again and you would like for them to remember you as that great employee they lost rather than that employee who had negative feedback, failed to provide notice, negatively impacted morale etc. Think carefully about how you would like to be treated and act accordingly.