9 Signs an Employee Is About to Quit (and What You Can Do About It)

Employee turnover rarely comes out of nowhere – the signs are almost always there if you know where to look. In today’s hybrid and high-pressure work environments, identifying early signals of disengagement has become a core leadership skill. According to Harvard Business Review, “quiet quitting signs” often start long before someone updates their résumé, and it’s costing organizations more than they realize.

At HeartCount, we’ve worked with thousands of managers and HR leaders to decode these early warning signs and empower them to act before it’s too late. Whether you’re managing a remote team, scaling culture across locations, or navigating post-pandemic burnout, this guide will help you understand the behaviors that typically precede when an employee resigns, and show you exactly what to do about them.

In this article, you’ll learn:

• The 9 most common signs an employee is preparing to leave
• Root causes that drive disengagement and quiet quitting signs
• Proactive strategies to retain top performers before they walk
• How HeartCount can help you detect and address flight risk early

Understanding the Risk of Losing Great Talent

Employee turnover is more than a staffing issue. It disrupts team momentum, damages morale, and often slows down long-term progress. When high-performing employees leave, they take more than just their skills. They also take valuable knowledge, relationships, and the trust they have built across the organization.

While some resignations are unavoidable, many can be prevented. The real challenge is spotting the early behavioral changes that signal disengagement. These signals can be subtle, especially in remote or hybrid environments where changes in participation or tone are easy to overlook.

Retention should not begin with an exit interview. It should begin with awareness. Leaders who learn to recognize early signs and respond with clarity can reduce turnover and build a healthier, more stable workplace.

Why Spotting the Warning Signs Early Matters

Most employees do not wake up one day and decide to quit. The decision builds over time. Whether it starts with frustration, fatigue, or a lack of recognition, the signs often show up weeks or even months before a formal resignation. In many cases, these early signals overlap with common signs of an overworked employee, such as emotional withdrawal or inconsistent performance.

Failing to notice those signs can cost your organization more than just time spent rehiring. It can lead to lost productivity, lower team morale, and damage to your company culture. The impact can be especially severe when the person leaving is a key contributor or team leader.

Early detection allows managers to intervene while there is still a chance to make a difference. Honest conversations, flexible adjustments, and the right tools can turn a flight risk into a renewed commitment.

9 Clear Signs an Employee Is About to Quit

Most employees show signs of disengagement before they actually resign. By recognizing these early signals, you give yourself the chance to respond before it’s too late. These behaviors often stem from deeper issues like lack of growth, burnout, or misalignment; factors explored in more detail in why employees quit. Below are the most common behavioral patterns to watch for.

1. Noticeable Drop in Performance or Productivity

A steady decline in output, missed deadlines, or reduced work quality may indicate that an employee has mentally checked out. If the shift comes from a high performer, it could be one of the early signs your star employee is leaving, and a signal to check in before it’s too late.

2. Increased Use of Vacation or Sick Days

A rise in time-off requests, especially without clear reasons, can point to detachment or job searching. This often happens in the lead-up to a resignation.

3. Reduced Engagement in Team Meetings

An employee who stops speaking up, skips meetings, or shows little interest in collaboration may be emotionally stepping away from the team. These are common signs an employee is checked out.

4. Lack of Interest in Long-Term Projects

Avoiding strategic or future-oriented tasks suggests that the employee may not expect to be around long enough to see them through. This type of disengagement often signals intent to leave.

5. Signs of Burnout or Emotional Withdrawal

Low energy, irritability, or visible stress may point to deeper burnout. These symptoms often come before a resignation. Learn more in our guide on employee burnout causes and cures.

6. Sudden Changes in Work Hours or Availability

When an employee begins working irregular hours, arriving late, or being offline more than usual, it could reflect shifting priorities or growing detachment.

7. Avoidance of Feedback or One-on-Ones

Employees planning to leave may pull away from direct feedback or avoid development conversations. Cancelled check-ins or skipped reviews are signs they may already be looking elsewhere.

8. Rising Discontent With Company Culture

Frustration with leadership, team dynamics, or company values can be a strong signal of misalignment. If culture feels off to the employee, they may start exploring new opportunities.

9. Increased Networking or LinkedIn Activity

A suddenly updated profile, more connection requests, or mentions of “new challenges” can suggest active job hunting. While not always a sign of resignation, it is often an early indicator.

What Causes Employees to Leave?

Recognizing the signs of disengagement is only part of the picture. To retain talent, leaders need to understand why employees consider quitting in the first place. These underlying causes often emerge gradually and may vary from person to person, but patterns tend to repeat across teams and industries.

Lack of Recognition or Growth Opportunities

Employees want to feel seen, supported, and challenged. When high performers receive little feedback or no clear path for advancement, motivation can fade. Regular recognition, even small wins, helps prevent this.

Explore how our employee recognition features can help you reinforce appreciation consistently.

Poor Manager Relationships

People often leave managers, not companies. If trust is broken or communication is strained, it becomes harder for employees to stay committed. This is especially true when feedback is unclear or inconsistent.

Burnout from Unsustainable Workload

When workloads remain high with little relief, even your most dedicated team members can burn out. Burnout not only hurts productivity but can also impact team morale and overall retention.

We cover this in more depth in how to improve morale at work.

Misalignment with Company Values

If employees no longer feel connected to the mission, culture, or way decisions are made, they may begin to question their future with the organization. Misalignment can happen silently over time and is often overlooked until engagement drops.

Mental Health or Personal Life Stressors

Sometimes the cause is personal. Health issues, family changes, or emotional stress can push even satisfied employees to consider stepping away. While you cannot control these factors, creating space for open conversations can make a difference.

Retention Strategies: How to Respond Before It’s Too Late

Spotting the signs is only valuable if it leads to the right action. The following strategies can help prevent disengaged employees from walking out the door.

Schedule Regular 1-on-1 Conversations

Employees need time and space to voice frustrations before they turn into resignation letters. Structured conversations, such as stay interviews, are especially effective for uncovering concerns and understanding what matters most to team members. Stay interviews also help managers build stronger relationships by focusing on motivation, not just performance.

Recognize and Reward Contributions

Recognition remains one of the simplest and most effective ways to retain people. When appreciation is regular, specific, and tied to impact, it reinforces that an employee’s effort is valued. This can come from peers, leaders, or feedback loops already embedded in your culture.

Offer Flexible Work and Wellness Benefits

Supportive work environments directly influence retention. Flexibility, autonomy, and access to wellness resources give people room to thrive without sacrificing health or personal responsibilities. As discussed in this post on improving employee retention, these benefits aren’t just nice to have, they’re foundational to long-term engagement.

Conduct Stay Interviews (Not Just Exit Interviews)

Exit interviews only tell you why someone left. Stay interviews uncover the friction points that could lead to that decision. They can also validate what’s working, helping you double down on what keeps people around.

Use Pulse Surveys to Track Sentiment in Real Time

Short, recurring surveys are one of the most effective tools for catching disengagement early. Rather than relying on intuition or quarterly check-ins, pulse surveys provide a steady stream of data that helps managers act quickly and appropriately. Automated pulse-check surveys make this process easy to scale without overloading teams.

How HeartCount Helps You Act on Early Warning Signs

Even when managers know what to look for, responding to disengagement in real time is difficult without the right tools. HeartCount is designed to highlight the most relevant signals and give teams a way to take action quickly and confidently.

Spot Burnout Early with Weekly Pulse Surveys

Weekly pulse surveys give employees a consistent and low-friction way to share how they feel. For managers, this creates visibility into team stress, workload balance, and early signs of burnout. Regular data helps catch problems before they escalate.

Detect Disengagement via Real-Time Analytics

Instead of relying on assumptions or annual reviews, real-time dashboards show how engagement changes over time. With data-driven insights, leaders can track sentiment shifts, compare performance across teams, and make informed decisions based on what the data actually reveals.

Empower Managers with Direct, Anonymous Feedback

Anonymous feedback helps surface honest concerns without putting employees on the spot. This creates safer conversations, earlier insights, and a clearer sense of what people need in order to stay engaged.

Monitor Trends in Morale Without Micromanaging

Managers can stay informed without hovering. HeartCount makes it easy to see sentiment trends and morale shifts at a glance, so small issues can be addressed early without disrupting team dynamics.

If you want to explore how this works in practice, you can book a demo.

Frequently Asked Questions

How to tell if an employee is about to quit?

Watch for changes in behavior like lower productivity, pulling back from meetings, taking more time off, or avoiding long-term commitments. These signs often show up weeks before a formal resignation.

How do I talk to an employee I suspect is planning to leave?

Start a low-pressure check-in. Ask how they’re feeling about their role and listen for signs of frustration or disconnection.

How can I retain employees showing signs of disengagement?

Offer support, flexible options, recognition, and honest feedback. Act early while there’s still time to rebuild trust.

What’s the difference between quiet quitting and resigning?

Quiet quitting is emotional disengagement without leaving. Resigning is a formal exit. One often leads to the other if ignored.

Final Thoughts: Prevent Turnover by Staying Ahead of the Signs

When employees decide to leave, the signs are rarely sudden. Most of the time, managers and organizations have the chance to intervene, but only if they’re paying attention.

By spotting behavioral shifts early and responding with meaningful action, companies can reduce avoidable turnover and keep their best people engaged. Whether it’s through one-on-one conversations, smart feedback systems, or tools like HeartCount that surface what matters, the goal is the same: create an environment where people want to stay.