What is one of the most important acts of professional self-respect? Knowing when a workplace is no longer contributing to your growth, well-being, or future?
It’s having the confidence to recognize when it may be time to move forward.
The signs are not always dramatic… Sometimes, they appear gradually: the underlying tension and anxiety that miraculously only begins just before the workweek has even started, promises that seem to always get postponed, opportunities for advancement that never materialize, or a workplace culture where talented people seem to leave as quickly as they arrive. We say this because over time, enthusiasm can become indifference and trust can erode.
Remaining with an organization should be a choice built on mutual value, not simply because your workplace has shaped obligation as loyalty. A successful career requires an environment where your abilities can continue to develop, your integrity is respected, your contributions are recognized, and there remains somewhere meaningful for you to go.
At Renard International, after more than five decades of speaking with professionals at every stage of their careers, we understand that deciding to leave a position is rarely ever simple. Careers affect more than resumes and titles; they influence our confidence, our families, our personal lives, and our sense of purpose…
There are times when moving on is not a sign of failure, impatience, or disloyalty. It is simply the recognition that you have outgrown what your present environment can offer.
Your health, peace of mind, professional development, and future should never become the permanent price of remaining somewhere that no longer values what you bring to the table. Know your worth, recognize when the opportunity for growth has disappeared, and give yourself permission to pursue an environment where both you and your career can flourish.
Of course, the decision to move on does not affect the employee alone. It also creates an important moment for the employer, who must decide how to respond when a valued team member begins looking elsewhere. Discovering that an employee is exploring other career opportunities can be unsettling for any employer, but the response to that discovery can be just as important as the reasons that led the employee to look in the first place.
The immediate reaction may be disappointment, concern or even a sense of disloyalty; however, in today’s employment market, job searching does not necessarily mean that an employee has already decided to leave!
The relationship between employers and employees has changed significantly in recent years. The disruption created by COVID-19, widespread restructuring, layoffs, changing expectations around work-life balance and greater transparency around compensation have all influenced how people view their careers.
For many employees, loyalty is no longer based simply on length of service. It is increasingly connected to opportunity, leadership, recognition, compensation, flexibility and whether they believe there is a meaningful future for them within an organisation.
At Renard International, we speak with executives and hospitality professionals at every stage of their careers. Many of the individuals who enter a conversation with an executive search consultant are not necessarily unhappy in their current positions. Some simply want to understand their market value, learn what opportunities exist or consider what the next stage of their career might look like.
That distinction is important.
So, can you terminate someone for looking for another job?
The answer depends heavily on the jurisdiction, the employee’s contract, applicable employment legislation and the circumstances surrounding the termination.
Employers should therefore be very cautious about treating job searching alone as grounds for immediate dismissal. Before making any decision, organisations should consider their legal obligations and, where appropriate, seek qualified employment-law advice.
There is also a much larger management question to consider:
Even if an organisation has the ability to terminate someone, is that really the best decision for the business?
Terminating an employee simply because they are considering another opportunity can create consequences far beyond the individual involved…
Remaining employees may begin questioning their own job security. Trust can deteriorate. Employees may become reluctant to discuss career ambitions, compensation concerns or professional development with management.
Ironically, an aggressive response to one employee considering another opportunity can encourage several others to begin doing exactly the same thing!
For employers, the more valuable question may therefore be: Why is this employee looking in the first place?
1. Have the Conversation
If there is a legitimate reason to believe that an employee is considering leaving, an open and professional conversation may provide considerably more value than an immediate reaction.
What has changed?
Are they looking for greater responsibility? Better compensation? Career advancement? Improved work-life balance? A different leadership environment? International experience? Greater stability?
Sometimes the answer may reveal an issue that can be resolved.
Other times, the employee may simply have reached the natural next stage of their career.
Either way, understanding the motivation provides management with information that can help not only with that individual employee but with the organisation’s wider retention strategy.
2. Look at the Root Cause
When talented employees begin considering other opportunities, organisations should examine whether the situation reflects a broader internal issue.
Common reasons people consider leaving can include:
- limited opportunities for advancement;
- compensation that has fallen behind the market;
- inadequate recognition;
- poor communication from leadership;
- excessive workloads;
- limited professional development;
- changing personal priorities; or
- uncertainty about the organisation’s future.
One resignation may be an individual career decision.
Several resignations for similar reasons may indicate something much larger.
Retention cannot simply begin when an employee hands in their resignation. Strong organisations continually assess whether their people feel challenged, valued, fairly compensated and able to see a future with the company.
3. Consider Whether the Employee Is Actually Disengaged
Looking at another opportunity and abandoning one’s responsibilities are two very different things.
An employee may explore the market while continuing to perform exceptionally well. If their work, attitude and responsibilities remain unaffected, employers should be cautious about assuming that their professional curiosity automatically represents a lack of commitment.
The situation becomes different when outside job searching begins affecting performance, attendance, relationships with colleagues or responsibilities to the organisation.
Management should respond to the behaviour and its impact on the business rather than simply the fact that another opportunity may exist.
4. Protect Confidentiality and Business Interests
There are circumstances where employers must take additional precautions, particularly at the senior executive level.
Executives may have access to confidential financial information, development plans, ownership strategies, client relationships, proprietary information, succession planning or other commercially sensitive material.
In hospitality, this becomes particularly important when someone is considering joining a competitor or when confidential searches, management changes, acquisitions, openings or repositioning strategies are underway.
Organisations should already have appropriate confidentiality provisions, employment agreements and internal procedures in place rather than attempting to create them only after learning that someone may leave.
If there is a genuine concern regarding confidential information or contractual obligations, the situation should be handled carefully and with appropriate professional advice.
5. Know When to Let Someone Go
Retention should never mean retaining someone at any cost.
Sometimes an employee has simply outgrown the position. Their ambitions may no longer align with what the organisation can realistically offer.
In those situations, attempting to prevent someone from leaving may only delay the inevitable.
A professional departure can sometimes be more valuable than a reluctant retention.
The hospitality industry is remarkably interconnected. Today’s employee may become tomorrow’s client, candidate, owner, operator, business partner or referral source.
How an organisation treats people when they leave can therefore be just as important as how it treats them when they arrive.
Where appropriate, employers can support a professional transition through proper notice, succession planning, knowledge transfer and respectful communication.
When an employee begins looking elsewhere, the temptation is to focus entirely on the employee.
But organisations should also look inward. Why did this person begin considering another opportunity? Could something have been done differently? Are other employees experiencing the same concerns? Has compensation kept pace with the market? Are strong performers being given meaningful opportunities to advance? Do managers understand the career ambitions of the people reporting to them?
These questions are particularly important in hospitality, where experienced leadership talent remains highly valuable and the loss of one senior executive can have consequences across operations, culture, financial performance and guest experience.
At Renard International, we have spent more than five decades speaking with hospitality professionals around the world about their careers. One reality continues to surface: people rarely leave solely because another job exists.
There is usually a reason they were willing to listen, and understanding that reason can be considerably more valuable than reacting to the fact that they did.
For employers, discovering that an employee is exploring the market should not automatically be viewed as an act of disloyalty. It can also be an opportunity to examine leadership, compensation, culture, career development and retention.
Sometimes that conversation may convince an excellent employee to stay, or sometimes it may confirm that it is time for both sides to move forward.
Either outcome can be handled professionally. Because ultimately, successful organisations do not retain people by preventing them from leaving.
They create reasons for talented people to want to stay.
Review our Newsletter and 2025/26 International Salary Surveys at www.renardnewsletter.com
Stephen J. Renard,
President
RENARD INTERNATIONAL HOSPITALITY SEARCH CONSULTANTS
121 Richmond Street West, Suite 601
Toronto, ON. Canada, M5H 2K1
Tel: (1) 416 364 8325 ext. 228
Email: steve@renardinternational.com
Websites: www.renardinternational.com
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