The dreaded resignation letter!

[andrea81]

I have found a new job and will need to write a resignation letter. My question is, having never written one before:

1) Who should it be addressed too, my line manager or the company director. And who should also be copied in?

2) Should I write a separate one to my line manager that is a bit more personal?

3) Should I give a reason for leaving? (4 people have resigned from the same role as me under same manager because of lack of support and organisation) I personally think they have big issues!


Thanks in advance ;0)

[andy-hughes]

The trick with this type of letter is to keep it simple, and be nice - your future employers may ask for a reference, so it's not a good idea to upset them!

You should addresss it to your line manager, and copy in the company director.

Something like this -

Dear Mr / Ms Bloggs

It is with regret that i write to you to tender my formal resignation from my post at Bloggs And Co.

I have very much enjoyed my time working with the company, but I feel that at this time, I need to develop my career and this will be best served by encountering some new challenges in a different environment.

I would like to thank you and all my collagues for the opportunites to develop my career thus far, I have learned a lot of useful skills during my time with Bloggs and Co.

My proposed finishing date will be DD / MM /YY, based on the required formal notice period, and I look forward to my P60 and other appropriate documentation in due cours.

Thank you for your kind attention in this matter.

Yours Sincerely

andrea81.


I wouldn;t get into personal correspondence, it sounds like you need to cut your losses, and this is the best approach, formal, and to the point, no bad-mouthing.

Good luck with your new position.

[thugulike]

Just write and give the last day of working (that avoids any misunderstanding). If you've been happy there then say so, if not just resign and say no more.

[anniebird]

I have always addressed the letter to my immediate Manager/Director and not copied to anyone else. It is always a good idea to keep a copy for your own records.

If you write to the Director you can also write to your Manager - it is polite to let your Manager know before you give the letter to the Director as it is not pleasant to find out from another person.

You do not need to give a reason in the letter just confirm your leaving date.

The company may use 'Leaving Interviews' as a method of finding out why people are going and certainly should if there are so many people going from the same department. You can use this as an opportunity to let them know there are problems.

[buildersmate]

Just one letter, and a single letter, to your Line Manager. It's his/her job to pass it on.
Normally just best to say 'I wish to resign from my post. I wish to leave on xyz, giving the necessary minimum notice period under my contract. YS'. You can get into the underlying reasons (if you wish to) at a later discussion.

[andrea81]

andy-hughes
Thank you for that, good point about keeping in formal. I think that when I leave, they might not need to know that there are problems internally, being the fifth person to leave this year probably said a lot! I would have loved to cut and paste your answer, but unfortunately I have to translate into Welsh! ;0(

Tetjam
I�m not sure I would wish my boss dead, but maybe I�ll mentally give her the finger!

Thugulike, anniebird, buildersmate
Thanks also, I certainly will write directly to my line manager. I will leave out the resons why I�m leaving until I am asked!

Thanks guys!

[mosesg]

Do you get an exit interview from your HR dept. If you do use this to express the reasons why you are leaving, you can request this to be on your last day so there can be no comeback. They would then use this to help any future employees