Paying Employees To Leave: Good Idea or Not?

​I recently read about the CEO of a software company, who offers new hires $5,000 to resign after two weeks.
 
Essentially, new hires can decide to leave, and they receive an exit bonus.

• This isn’t a new idea.
  
  

Zappos was one of the most well-known companies to have first introduced the idea, with new hires offered $4,000 to leave within a month of being employed.
 
The premise is that each new hire should be a cultural fit and be aligned with the vision and goals of the company.
 
If not, it is cheaper to have them leave quickly, as opposed to many months down the line, which would cost even more.
 
𝘽𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙞𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝙘𝙚𝙧𝙩𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙡𝙮 𝙘𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙡 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙖 𝙜𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩 𝙘𝙪𝙡𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙡𝙚 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙤𝙣 𝙞𝙨 𝙚𝙣𝙜𝙖𝙜𝙚𝙙, 𝙢𝙤𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙚𝙭𝙘𝙞𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚.
 
From this CEO’s perspective, this practice has helped him retain top talent, in addition to improving culture.
 

• But how can you know that people who have no intention of staying aren’t applying, just so they can receive the exit bonus?
  
  
• And, depending on whether or not you allow all new hires to participate, what if the people who take advantage are good performers who have other options?

 
One solution is to slow down a little, and take more time before deciding on who to hire.
 
Then, if the new hire is not working out, for leaders to speak to them, and, if need be, have them leave.
 
Without paying them to do so.
 
Because there’s no need, if leaders are willing to ask someone to go, if things are not working out.
 
That way, the cost of keeping a disengaged employee any longer than necessary is alleviated, but so too is the cost of paying someone to leave.