E-160 · A 90-day try-out

A club plan for Exit Interviews

Use this as a starting point. Cross out what does not fit, add what is missing and make it your club's own.

Where this idea came from

Playbook entry
E-160 · Exit Interviews
Theme
Theme 2: Engagement & Belonging · Subtheme 10: Feedback, Voice & Improvement
Source material
Current playbook index title and category plus an internally authored detailed-guide draft

Initiative-specific development wave

How this draft was developed

These sources support general principles for listening to former members, voluntary information collection, safe referral and contextual de-identification; they are not an endorsement of the named Exit Interviews or authority to question, retain, identify, contact or represent a departing member.

Primary references consulted

  • Engage emerging leaders (Rotary International)
    Used for: Rotary encourages clubs to ask former, longstanding and current members what they want and to use their experience to inform the club's future.
  • Chapter 3: APP 3 Collection of solicited personal information (Office of the Australian Information Commissioner)
    Used for: Requested interview and form responses can involve solicited personal information, and reasonable necessity, fair collection, notice and third-party arrangements matter.
  • Better Practice Complaint Handling Guide (Commonwealth Ombudsman)
    Used for: Complaint-related material needs accessible, respectful, impartial, confidential and responsive handling and should be referred through a clear responsible pathway; the guide is used as general system evidence, not as club-specific legal advice.
  • De-identification and the Privacy Act (Office of the Australian Information Commissioner)
    Used for: Removing names alone may not de-identify an account; re-identification risk must be assessed in the actual release and access environment.

Candidate District material consulted

These records remain draft evidence and still need a human source decision.

  • Club Playbook - Theme 2
    Direct connected-Drive inspection on 9 August 2026 confirmed candidate record 98 Exit Interviews for Departing Members: gently interviewing departing members about what worked, what did not and what might bring them back. It is not a literal current-title match; the return-oriented phrase is not adopted, and the candidate does not supply voluntary-choice, no-pursuit, neutral-interviewer, privacy, complaint, trend, contact or close-out controls.

Theme 2 source-assurance wave

What has been checked

  • 4 current primary pages used by this guide were reopened on 9 August 2026.
  • 4 attributed source claim(s) were mapped to their bounded use in this initiative.
  • Candidate District material remains separate and does not establish this result.
See each source's scope and limit
  • Engage Emerging Leaders
    Supports: Member-centred discovery, mentoring, feedback, emerging-leader support and club-health review principles during renewal.
    Does not establish: That a person is ready for office, should be selected, has consented to a role or that a proposed renewal pathway will work locally.
  • Chapter 3: APP 3 Collection of solicited personal information
    Supports: Data-minimisation, collection-purpose, proportionality and consent safeguards where the Privacy Act and APP 3 apply.
    Does not establish: Whether a particular Rotary club is an APP entity or whether a proposed renewal survey, diagnostic or member record is lawful in its actual circumstances.
  • Better Practice Complaint Handling Guide
    Supports: The 2 attributed Theme 2 claims attached to this source, limited to the implementation elements and supporting documents named in each initiative-level claim mapping.
    Does not establish: The club's local need, legal position, capability, cost, safety, accessibility, suitability, likely effectiveness, authority to act or approval of the initiative.
  • De-identification and the Privacy Act
    Supports: The 4 attributed Theme 2 claims attached to this source, limited to the implementation elements and supporting documents named in each initiative-level claim mapping.
    Does not establish: Whether the Privacy Act or another duty applies to this club, whether consent is informed and valid, whether collection or publication is authorised, or whether the proposed safeguards are sufficient in the actual circumstances.

What still needs a person to confirm

  • Confirm the member, prospective-member, past-member and community needs, preferences and consent that the local design assumes.
  • Confirm which privacy, safeguarding, incorporated-association, charity, work health and safety, food, liquor, copyright, licensing, screening and other duties apply to the club and the activity.
  • Test accessibility, cultural safety, belonging, language and alternative participation routes with affected people and recognise First Nations cultural authority rather than inferring suitability from the guide.
  • Confirm every local fact, starting point, cost, role, current service contact, measure, stopping condition and platform capability before the club decides to proceed.
  • Confirm the authority and current scope of each primary source, resolve login-gated or moved-page references and keep any candidate District material attributed and unapproved until its source decision is made.

The source-verification release gate remains closed.

Checks still on hold

Still an internal draft: source interpretation, local suitability, accessibility, governance and editorial approval remain open checks.

1. Is this worth trying here?

What we hope will change: Use Exit Interviews to give members a safe, visible route for ideas and concerns to lead to an answer or improvement.

2. Our 90-day try-out

What our club will do for Exit Interviews
StepWhat we will doWho could lead itOur dateHow we will know it is done
1Complete the membership and administrative requirements independently, identify any conflict and send one respectful invitation explaining that participation, topic choice and future contact are voluntary.Secretary or membership administration leadAfter departure is confirmedA controlled invitation and contact decision
2Agree the channel, interviewer, topics, time, privacy level, note method, attribution choice and what should happen if a complaint, risk or request for support emerges.Interviewer and departing memberBefore the conversationAn interview consent and boundary record
3Hold a short listening conversation using open questions, no challenge or rescue attempt, permission before follow-up questions and a reminder that the person can skip a topic or stop.Neutral interviewerAt the agreed timeMember-led feedback notes
4Confirm the note or theme summary with the departing member, record any correction, attribution and future-contact choice and transfer protected matters only through the responsible route.Interviewer and privacy contactWithin five daysA confirmed account and referral record
5Combine de-identified themes only when the reporting context is safe, compare them with other evidence and assign improvement questions without turning one departure into a general conclusion.Member experience analyst and independent checkerQuarterly or after a safe thresholdA departure trend and limitations brief
6Decide and report improvement actions, close notes and contact permissions according to the plan and contact the former member again only if they expressly chose that option and the purpose still applies.Board sponsor and records ownerWithin 30 days of trend reviewAn improvement response and data close-out record

3. Checks before we start

Things our club needs to check
QuestionWhat it means for usWho will checkDone?
Check the idea with the people affected and confirm its purpose, owner and practical limits before putting it into use.
Protect member choice and privacy, make participation accessible, and do not infer belonging or satisfaction from attendance alone.
The departing member feels pressured to explain or reconsider their decision. — Complete departure administration separately, invite once, make non-participation consequence-free and forbid retention or recruitment goals in the interview brief.
The interviewer defends the club, argues facts or weighs the account against an office-holder's view. — Use a neutral trained interviewer, open questions, no adjudication and an independent route when a conflict or complaint emerges.
A summary identifies the member or is circulated beyond the permission given. — Confirm use and attribution, remove direct and indirect identifiers, assess the reporting context and restrict access, retention and publication.
The club treats one account as proof or collects interviews without changing anything. — Compare patterns with other evidence, state uncertainty and require an owner, decision and response for every material trend.
The board must approve the invitation, interviewer standard, conflicts, consent, information handling, complaint and support referral, trend use, future contact and close-out process.
Participation and non-participation must have no effect on the departure, member record, standing, references, future Rotary involvement or access to any responsible complaint pathway.
No individual account may be shared beyond its permission or used to assess another person, and no aggregate report may expose the former member through indirect detail.
The publicly writable candidate source remains unapproved; its return-oriented wording does not authorise retention contact or override an individual's no-contact choice.

4. What changed?

What we will keep an eye on
What mattersWhere we are nowWhat we hope to seeHow we will checkWho
After 90 days, review Exit Interviews. Look for representative participation, published themes, named actions and a report back on what changed, what did not and why.
Every invitation is voluntary, sent once, separated from membership administration and records an interview, written, telephone or no-contact choice.
Every completed interview has a confirmed use, attribution, future-contact and retention decision and any protected matter has a safe referral record.
Trend reports disclose evidence limits and contain no detail likely to identify a former member in the actual club context.
Repeated pursuit, defensive interviewing, unauthorised use, unresolved referrals and contact after a no-contact choice remain at zero.

After 30 days

Is it reaching the right people? Is anything unsafe, unfair or harder than expected?

After 60 days

Make one useful change based on what people have told you.

After 90 days

Compare with where you started. Decide whether to change it, continue it or stop.

Made for this initiative

Tailored supporting documents

These working documents use the decisions, safeguards and evidence needs of this initiative. Complete them with the people affected and keep the agreed version with the club's project record.

01

Exit Interview Invitation and Participation Choices

Offer a respectful, consequence-free choice about whether and how to contribute.

Open supporting document
02

Exit Interview Consent and Boundary Record

Agree purpose, interviewer, notes, attribution and safe referral before discussion.

Open supporting document
03

Departing Member Conversation Guide

Support a short, member-led conversation without persuasion or judgement.

Open supporting document
04

Confirmed Feedback and Referral Record

Let the member check how their account is recorded and route protected matters safely.

Open supporting document
05

Departure Trend and Limitations Workbook

Identify action-worthy patterns without overclaiming or exposing individuals.

Open supporting document
06

Former Member Contact and Close-Out Log

Respect contact choices and confirm information is closed as promised.

Open supporting document

Before your club says yes

Does the idea fit?

Talk with the people it is meant to serve and check that the need is real.

Who can say yes?

Name the person or group that can approve the work, spending and any safety arrangements.

Are people protected?

Check privacy, consent and safety. Collect only the information you genuinely need.

Can everyone take part?

Check the language, format, place, technology and cost for barriers.

Are the facts and permissions right?

Check names, claims, images, quotations, partner references and Rotary branding.

How will we learn?

Note where things stand now, check in at 30, 60 and 90 days, and decide what to do next.

Worksheets for your club

Open them online, print them or change them to suit the way your club works.

01

Question set

Use this worksheet to hear what people experienced and decide what to change next.

Open worksheet
02

Response log

Use this worksheet to note where things stand and choose a few useful signs that will help the club decide what to do next.

Open worksheet