Example Farewell Speech

Good afternoon everyone,

I am delighted to welcome you all to Tanya's farewell party. It is an honor and a great pleasure for me to
be able to deliver this speech today. We are all here to bid a reluctant farewell to our boss—an
exceptional leader and a mentor who today is retiring from her position as CEO and president of the
board.

It gives me great satisfaction to congratulate Tanya on her 22 years of stellar work with the company
and wish her a relaxing and rewarding retirement. I'm sure we all recognize, respect, and appreciate the
valuable contributions she has made to our organization. The skills, knowledge, and other positive
qualities that Tanya has instilled in us through example have helped shape each of our careers. Today,
we all realize how painful it is to say goodbye to someone who is not only a boss and a leader but also a
colleague and a dear friend. Today is not about us, however. Today, we are here to express our sincerest
gratitude to Tanya for her incredible contributions not only to this organization but to each and every
staff member individually.

She has spent the last two decades guiding and inspiring this team. Some of us have known her for
years, while others have only had the pleasure of working alongside her for a short time. Although I have
been working under Tanya for the better part of a decade, it feels like it was just yesterday that she was
showing me the ropes on my first sales call. Tanya, you have given us so much to be thankful for. I see
myself and my colleagues as extremely lucky to have worked under your caring leadership. Words alone
are insufficient to express how much we are going to miss you.

Some of us may remember when the company was facing some financial difficulties five or six years
back. Tanya's knowledge, professional skills, and ability to make quick decisions allowed us to get out of
a very hostile situation. She bought hope back to the organization by restoring financial viability during a
time when businesses were failing left and right.

Tanya, your exceptional qualities have inspired us in so many ways. For that, we cannot thank you
enough. You will be remembered not just for the things you've accomplished as the leader of this
business but also for your tact, care, and transparency. If it were up to us, we would veto your
retirement so we didn't have to face the prospect of carrying on without you at the helm of the ship. It
is, however, your day to reap what you've sowed. You have worked so hard and accomplished so much,
and now it's time for you to kick back and enjoy it. I hope each of us can continue to follow your
example after your departure until the day our retirements finally come around.
I am so delighted to be a part of today’s event, and I am so proud to have worked under your leadership.
Not only are you an amazing boss, but you have also shown yourself to be a loving and caring person. I
remember when I got hurt and had to miss over a month of work—while in the hospital, I had lost all
hope of getting on with this job. You counseled me, gave me moral support, and helped me plan my
gradual return to work. During that difficult time, your inspiration, kind support, and words of
encouragement helped me get back on track. I will never forget the positive influence that you've had
on me both personally and professionally.

Through your compassionate support and fearless leadership, you've put smiles on all of our faces time
and time again. Your many contributions to our success are immeasurable. I know I speak for all of us
when I say having you as a boss has made working here easy, enjoyable, and rewarding. Thank you for
creating so many opportunities for our team and for being so passionate about our well-being.

On behalf of the company and my colleagues, I wish you good luck and success in all of your future
endeavors. Happy retirement, Tanya.

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Farewell Retirement Speech Examples

A farewell retirement speech is hard work!

How do you sum up all your years and experiences at work in just a few words?
The following suggestions for structuring your speech should help you, and there are short examples at
the end of this page.

A good method for a retirement speech is to start with a line like "What will stand out in my heart and
mind as I look back at the past X years of working for X?"

Then describe with affection some of the characters that you have worked with, or some good moments
or memories.

You could also describe some of the changes that have occurred in the industry or business, with the
line "When I started in business..." - even describing how things were called different names etc, and
ending with the funny line "And remember - change is inevitable - except from vending machines".

You could then bring it forward in time to how things are today.

Catch phrases like "it seemed like a good idea at the time" for a number of funny things that you did,
which were mistakes others can learn from.

Another angle is to describe a project that you are passionate about, and its successes while thanking
everyone that was part of it.  That way you are mentioning your legacy but also encouraging others to
look after it now that you are going, as well as ensuring those who deserve credit are getting more buy-
in to the project - see the example below for this.

Try not to give advice - but if you do, make it general and stick to just one point.

If you can't add personality, keep it safe with best wishes for everyone!

Does retirement feel like a looming road of emptiness? Have some therapy and tips for your sad
goodbye.
Retirement speech 1:

Hello Everyone,

As most of you know, today is my last day at the company. I will be riding off into the proverbial sunset
to ultimately throw my energies into who-knows-what.

In the short term I will be focusing on enjoying my family, providing Anne with support whilst she grows
her own business, and involving myself in the renovation project of our home.

Importantly, the decision to leave has been entirely of my own making.

The time is simply right for me to, at least temporarily, “hang up my boots, turn the camp oven upside
down and pack away the prospecting gear”.

To all of the wonderful people whom I have had the opportunity to work with over the past almost 10
years - Thank You.

The times shared, friendships forged and the incredible successes which we have enjoyed have been an
extraordinary part of my life.

I am very proud of what we have achieved and they have been times I will never forget.

I would like to encourage you all to continue to value and support diversity in our workplace and
community. Diversity is something special. It is something very personal to us all, while at the same time
it is something we all share. Diversity can enhance and support all our business decisions. It is something
to be valued and cherished.  I’d like to take this opportunity to thank every member of Human
Resources and Aboriginal Liaison departments.  With the support of our amazing supervisors, liaison
officers, trainers, and the wider community, we have built our program into something extraordinary,
the likes of which is rarely seen in any workplace outside metropolitan areas, if anywhere at all. The
quality of our program is a testament to countless hours of hard work, collaboration, inspiration, and
fun. It’s the result of the support willingly given by all stakeholders in our amazing company. We should
all be incredibly proud of what we’ve achieved.

As a good mate said during a chat recently, “everything has a beginning and an end”.
The timing to end this chapter seems about as right as it could be.

I wish all of you every success for the future.

Stay safe and maintain the passion!

Spice up your farewell speech with some

funny retirement quotes! 

Retirement speech 2:

Thank you everyone for being here, 

I truly appreciate seeing you all because I can say thank you to your faces.

I've been here for X years, at other companies for another X years so if my maths is correct that makes
XX years in the industry.  I can only say that in my time as a worker in the [industry] I have always found
there is more to learn and that the moment anyone thinks they know it all, there is a humbling
experience just around the corner.  Like now, for me, seeing everyone here.

I can also say that for everyone I have mentored, helped or given advice to, I have also learned from.
Maybe you don't know what I've learned from you - sometimes it has just been that your energy has
renewed my own interest or reignited my own passion.  Maybe you have shown me that I don't know
anything about admin (ahem, Ramona) and that I am grateful YOU do [pointed look at Ramona]; maybe
you have shown me different values to adopt for different situations or given me a different perspective
that has been personally helpful.  So don't ever feel that you don't belong wherever you are, you
absolutely deserve to be here, and you just haven't realised what you offer.
Coming here every day has always been interesting, and I can say that working in the industry in general
has been an adventure.  So my moving on is really just creating space for someone else to have a turn.

And good luck to that person... [Raise eyebrows, because it has been a hair-raising adventure!] 
...working for that guy! [Waggle your thumb, hitch-hike style, over to your boss who can take a joke, or
even better, at Ramona in admin who has been riding you for the past X years.  If you work in admin,
point to someone in finance and make the earlier joke about Ramona about someone in finance instead.
Basically your real boss is the company dragon or gatekeeper].

I hope everyone enjoys their work as much as I have and I wish you all good fortune in your careers!

Now before I finish, I would like to present Ramona with a present which I call The Enforcer [give
Ramona an engraved wooden spoon or club] for all her efforts with me over the years.  

Let's all say thank you to Ramona [and on that note, your speech is over with all the attention now on
Ramona].

I think Ramona deserves a big something

for putting up with you -

click for gift ideas - do it!

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