Do you have an employee who has served from day one since the company was established? It’s really heartbreaking to announce the departure of an employee especially someone who has contributed a lot in the organization. However, it is such an honor as well to have a very loyal and trusted employee in the company.

You may also want to consider the following in terms of writing your announcement.

1) When writing a retirement announcement, make sure that the words you will use will be appreciated by the retiring employee. If you want, you may consult first the employee the letter you made. By doing this also, the retiring employee will realize that you really value him as an employee because you take time to write a letter and have plans of announcing it to the entire institution.

2) Since communication in the office is made through email because of its faster relay, send it to everyone.

3) Should you want to showcase the detailed information of the employee’s position and function, write it down in a separate list. Include as well awards or recognition that he has received during his years of service.

4) You might want to include in the announcement what are his plans for retirement such as traveling, playing golf or migrating somewhere. Make sure that before you include his plans, you have to ask first the person if it’s alright.

Before announcing to everyone, it’s is better to have a meeting first with the employee concerned in terms of how he wants the announcement to be handled. Does he want to have a formal announcement, a party or just exit the door quietly? Here’s an example of the letter announcing a retirement of an employee.

SAMPLE

November 25, 2010

Alpha-Omega Corporation
1234 Narrow Road
Rainbow, PA 10987

Dear Fellow Employees:

I am announcing the retirement of John Smith, VP for Human Resource Management with mixed emotions.

John has been with the company for 40 long years. He started his career with the company as an administrative assistant. He climbed the ladder by being promoted to human resource officer, then handled different units of the Human Resource Management Group as a manager and then assumed the post of the VP for HR.

We will definitely miss John for he has worked hard for our company. He has dedicated his time and efforts. He has shared his knowledge, talents, and skills to the company and to all employees. His love for the entire organization is unending and beyond compared.

I would like to invite everyone to join me wish John Smith to enjoy his retirement.

Sincerely,

Jane Doe