Resignation & Reference Letters | Workplace English Exercises

1 / 5

An engineer wants to resign from their position and needs to write a resignation letter. Which letter opening is professionally appropriate?

Option D follows the professional resignation letter formula. The opening must immediately state three things clearly: that you are resigning, your title, and your last working date.

Element	Why it matters	Example phrasing
"tender my resignation"	Formal register; creates an unambiguous record of the resignation act	"I am writing to tender my resignation…"
Full job title	Identifies the employment relationship for HR records	"…from the position of Senior Software Engineer"
Effective date	Creates no ambiguity about the last working day	"effective [Date]"
Notice reference	Shows you are honouring the contract; pre-empts disputes	"as per my employment contract"
Gratitude line	Preserves the relationship; standard professional convention	"I am grateful for the opportunities…"

What to avoid in a resignation letter: reasons for leaving (unless positive), complaints about people or working conditions, salary comparisons, or anything that could be used against you later. The letter is a formal document — keep it brief, professional, and forward-focused.

2 / 5

An engineer's employment contract requires 4 weeks' notice, but they want to leave in 2 weeks to start a new role. What is the term for negotiating an earlier departure date?

Option B correctly identifies the process. The four terms are commonly confused but describe very different situations:

Term	Meaning	Initiated by
Early release	Negotiated reduction of contractual notice period by mutual agreement	Employee request, employer agreement
Garden leave	Employee serves notice period on full pay but does not work — often used for sales, executive, or technical roles with access to sensitive information	Employer decision
Constructive dismissal	Employee resigns because the employer has fundamentally breached the employment contract — a legal claim	Employee, due to employer conduct
Force majeure	External extraordinary events (war, pandemic) making contract performance impossible — not applicable to routine resignation	Legal event beyond both parties' control

How to request early release: "My new role starts on [date]. Given the circumstances, I'd like to request an early release from my notice period. I'm committed to a thorough handover in the time available and will document everything to ensure continuity."

3 / 5

A hiring manager reads three reference letters for the same candidate:

Letter A: "I am happy to recommend Jane for this position."
Letter B: "I recommend Jane without reservation."
Letter C: "I enthusiastically recommend Jane as one of the most exceptional engineers I have had the privilege of working with."

What does the variation in language signal to the experienced hiring manager?

Option C correctly describes how professional reference letter language is read. Experienced hiring managers decode reference language precisely because direct negative references are rare — strength of recommendation is communicated through enthusiasm gradients.

Phrase	Signal	Interpretation
"I am happy to recommend"	Minimal positive endorsement	Reference is willing but not invested; may signal mixed experience
"I recommend without reservation"	Clear positive endorsement	No concerns; confident recommendation
"I enthusiastically recommend… exceptional"	Strong advocacy	Reference is genuinely invested in the outcome; stands behind the candidate

For the candidate: Choose references who will write at tier C, not tier A. Before listing someone as a reference, ask them explicitly: "Are you comfortable giving me a strong recommendation?" Their hesitation or phrase choice in response tells you whether to list them. A lukewarm reference often does more harm than declining to provide a reference at all.

4 / 5

An HR manager conducts a voluntary exit interview as an engineer prepares to leave the company. What is the professional guidance on how honest to be in a voluntary exit interview?

Option A describes the professional standard. Exit interviews serve a genuine organisational purpose — they are designed to surface patterns that help companies improve. The guidance is calibrated honesty, not silence or unfiltered disclosure.

Approach	Effect
Constructive, systemic feedback	Useful to the company; positions you as professional; no bridge burned
Venting personal grievances	May feel satisfying briefly; creates a record; can affect reference reputation
Full silence / only positive	Wastes the opportunity; patterns that drove you out go unaddressed

Useful frames for exit interview feedback:

"The onboarding process for new engineers could benefit from…" (systemic, not personal)
"I found the technical decision-making process unclear — I wasn't sure who owned which decisions." (process, not personality)
"I think the team would benefit from more regular career development conversations." (structural recommendation)

What to avoid: "My manager is incompetent", "team X is toxic", "I was paid less than my colleague for the same work" (the last point may be legitimate but should go through HR, not an exit interview).

5 / 5

An engineer resigns, and the employer responds with a counteroffer: a 25% salary increase and a new title. The engineer has already accepted the new role and wants to decline professionally while preserving the relationship. Which response is most appropriate?

Option D is the professional counteroffer decline formula. The goal is to leave on good terms without re-opening the negotiation or explaining the decision at length.

Response	Problem
A — "legally can't reverse"	Untrue in most jurisdictions; sounds evasive; removes personal agency from your decision
B — "too little, too late"	Satisfying to say; burns bridges; may follow you in the industry; unprofessional
C — stalling	Dishonest if you've already decided; creates false hope; extends a difficult conversation

Research note on counteroffers: Studies of software engineering retention show that a majority of engineers who accept a counteroffer leave the company within 12 months regardless. The reasons that drove the resignation (growth ceiling, management relationship, role fit) are structural and typically don't change with a salary bump. This is why "I've made a commitment I intend to honour" is not just professional language — it's usually strategically correct.

Vocabulary: counteroffer — an employer's offer to match or exceed a competing offer; tender my resignation — formal act of resigning; transition plan — documented knowledge transfer for the replacement or team.