Isabella Rossi Advisory memo Decision Call · USD 200
People are leaving at month seven, and it is one manager
60 minute call, 12 May. Reviewed and signed off by Isabella Rossi on 14 May.
You asked why people leave at around seven months and whether the onboarding is at fault. Onboarding is fine. Eleven of the fourteen month-five-to-nine leavers in two years came from one of your six teams, and that team is 19 percent of the company.
Team C has produced 79 percent of your mid-tenure leavers while employing 19 percent of your staff. That is far outside what chance explains. It does not tell you the manager is the cause, and treating it as proof would be both unfair and a mistake. It tells you where to look, and clause 4 is about how to look without prejudging it.
The question
What was asked, and what was reviewed
As you put it: "We lose people at about seven months. Is our onboarding wrong?"
| Reviewed | Source |
|---|---|
| Joiner and leaver records, 24 months | Supplied, with team and tenure |
| Onboarding materials and schedule | Supplied |
| Engagement survey, last two rounds | Supplied, results by team |
| Absence data by team | Supplied |
| Internal transfer requests | Supplied. Informative, see clause 2 |
| Exit interviews | None exist |
| Any individual's performance record | Not requested and not seen |
The pattern
Where the leavers come from
| Other signal | Team C | Company |
|---|---|---|
| Engagement score, most recent | Lowest of six | Above sector median overall |
| Short-notice absence | 2.4x the company rate | Normal |
| Outbound internal transfer requests | 6 in 24 months | 3 across the other five teams combined |
| Inbound transfer requests | 0 | Normal |
| Manager tenure | Same manager throughout | n/a |
Four independent signals point the same way. Any one of them would be noise; together they are the reason this memo names the team.
Not the finding
What this does not tell you
- It does not tell you the manager is the cause. Team C may have the hardest work, the worst shifts, the least equipment or an inherited problem
- It does not tell you anyone has done anything wrong. Poor outcomes and misconduct are different things
- It does not tell you what the leavers thought, because nobody asked them
- It does not account for role type within the team, which I could not see
- It is 24 months of a small company. Eleven people is a strong signal and a small number
How to look
Finding out, without prejudging it
-
Start exit interviews, company-wide
Every leaver, by someone outside their line. Not aimed at Team C, and that matters for what you learn.
-
Ask the last six leavers for a conversation
Voluntary, external if you can, no agenda. Some will say yes and they are the best evidence available.
-
Look at the work, not only the manager
Shift pattern, workload, equipment, physical conditions, pay banding within the team. Rule the environment in or out first.
-
Talk to the manager, openly
Not an investigation. Show them the data and ask what they think is happening. Capable managers often already know.
-
Then decide what, if anything, to do
With evidence, with HR, and with advice if it becomes a performance matter.