Dr. Paul Borosky, DBA, MBA
Business Plan Writer & Financial Projections
What Is a Stay Interview, and What Should You Ask?
By the Time You Hear Why Someone Is Leaving, It Is Too Late.
You only find out what was wrong when someone hands in notice. By then the decision is made. Business consultant Dr. Paul Borosky, DBA, MBA, has worked through this with 1,000+ owners. This page covers how a short stay interview with the people who are staying tells you what keeps them, what could pull them away, and what to fix now.
Last Updated: 11/08/2026 · Written by Dr. Paul Borosky, DBA, MBA
The Definition
What Is a Stay Interview?
Short Answer
A stay interview is a short, planned conversation with an employee who is staying, to learn why they stay, what might lead them to leave, and what the business could change. It is held while there is still time to act, unlike an exit interview, which happens after someone has already decided to go.
Stay interview = a few open questions + quiet listening + one visible change
Doctor Owl, in Plain English
“Ask the ones who stay what would make them go. Then wait. Then do one thing about it.”
How This Guide Works
Need the answer fast? Read the Short Answer above and the numbered steps. Want the full picture? Follow Beatrix, a bee who makes honey and candles from Dr. Paul’s Fabled Forest Business School Series, as she asks her next lead what matters before it is too late. Her story shows up in a few short gold notes along the way. The math sits in one section, clearly marked.
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Meet Beatrix: Asking Before It Is Too Late
Some lessons stick better as a story. Dr. Paul’s Fabled Forest Business School Series teaches business through a forest full of small business owners. Doctor Owl, a dry-witted consultant who lives in the Lone Oak, helps them fix the same problems real owners face.
Today he hears from Beatrix the Bee, who lost her best worker, Juniper, to a competitor after never once asking how she was doing. Beatrix does not want to learn that lesson twice. Her next lead at the second packing station is Moss, who learned the job from Juniper.
Why It Matters
Why Ask Employees Who Are Not Leaving?
Exit interviews tell you why people left, after you cannot change it. A stay interview asks the same kind of question while you still can.
It also tells your best people that someone noticed them. For many employees, being asked is itself part of the reason to stay.
In the Fabled Forest
Earlier, Beatrix had realized that Moss, who was very good, had not had a day off since the thaw. Mrs. Owl-Willow’s answer was simple: you will have to ask Moss.
What to Ask
What Should You Ask in a Stay Interview?
- What keeps you working here? Protect it, and say so.
- What might make you think about leaving? Names the risk early.
- What is one thing you would change about your job? Finds cheap fixes.
- What do you want to learn next? Points to growth. See training vs development.
- What do you need from me? Opens the door to the rest.
In the Fabled Forest
Beatrix sat with Moss at the long table with two cups of tea and nothing else on it. She asked three questions and waited after each one, the way Mrs. Owl-Willow waits.
Act On It
How Do You Act on What a Stay Interview Tells You?
Pick one thing from each conversation and act on it within a month. Tell the person what you did. If you cannot do something, say why. Asking and doing nothing is worse than not asking.
Over time, the answers also show what your whole team values, which helps you shape your total rewards and your culture of speaking up.
In the Fabled Forest
Moss said what kept her: the bees, the stamps, and the Tuesdays she already had off. What might make her go: being told “watch me” instead of being taught. What would help most: ask Juniper back to teach the new ones.
The Numbers
Five Stay Interview Questions
Here is a simple stay interview you can use, and what each question tells you.
| Question | What it tells you | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| What keeps you working here? | What you must protect | Keep doing it, and say so |
| What might make you think about leaving? | The risk, before it grows | One change within a month |
| What is one thing you would change about your job? | Small, cheap fixes | Fix it or explain why not |
| What do you want to learn next? | A next step | Plan one skill or task |
| What do you need from me? | Anything else | Act on it, then check back |
Step 1: The time. About 20 minutes per person, once or twice a year.
Step 2: The return. One fix per person, usually cheap, aimed at the reason they might leave.
Step 3: Your version. List your three people you could least afford to lose. Hold their stay interviews first.
A practical template for any small business.
Step by Step
How Do You Hold a Stay Interview?
Four steps, about twenty minutes each.
Start with the people you can least afford to lose.
Schedule a calm, private time.
Ask a few open questions.
Then stay quiet and let them answer.
Write down one thing to act on.
Agree what you will do and by when.
Report back.
Tell them what you did, or why you could not.
In the Fabled Forest
Doctor Owl’s lesson for Beatrix was to ask the ones who stay, wait for the answer, and then act on it.
Beatrix’s Full Story
What Did Moss Say?
This page gives you the short version. The book gives you the whole autumn: two cups of tea at the long table, three questions, a long wait after each, and the two words Moss nearly quit over.
Every chapter of Human Resources for Small Businesses works the same way. One owner, one problem, one real idea you can use on Monday, plus a one-page worksheet to do it.
A Business Consultant’s View
What Do Business Consultants Do With Stay Interview Answers?
Dr. Paul Borosky, DBA, MBA · Business Consultant
Dr. Paul has owners hold stay interviews first with the people the business could least afford to lose. He keeps it short, four or five questions, and asks the owner to commit to one change per person within a month. The answers are usually smaller and cheaper than owners fear: a schedule tweak, a title, a skill to learn, a tool that would make the job easier. Across several interviews, the answers also show what the whole team values. Owners who hold stay interviews once or twice a year tend to see fewer surprise resignations, because the reasons surface while there is still time to act.
FAQ
What Do Owners Ask About Stay Conversations?
What is a stay interview?
What is the difference between a stay interview and an exit interview?
How often should I hold stay interviews?
Keep Going
Where Can You Learn More About Retaining Your Team?
This term comes from Book 8, Human Resources for Small Businesses. New to a term on this page? Every one is in the human resources glossary.
Written by Dr. Paul Borosky, DBA, MBA, business consultant and author with 14+ years of experience and 1,000+ clients served. Hiring, paying, or managing a team and want a second set of eyes? See business consulting and prices.
This page is for general educational purposes only. It is not legal, financial, employment, or other professional advice. Figures are illustrations. The Fabled Forest and its characters are fictional. For decisions about your own business, consult a qualified professional.