  In this study we propose a method based on e-mail social network analysis to
compare the communication behavior of managers who voluntarily quit their job
and managers who decide to stay. Collecting 18 months of e-mail, we analyzed
the communication behavior of 866 managers, out of which 111 left a large
global service company. We compared differences in communication patterns by
computing social network metrics, such as betweenness and closeness centrality,
and content analysis indicators, such as emotionality and complexity of the
language used. To study the emergence of managers' disengagement, we made a
distinction based on the period of e-mail data examined. We observed
communications during months 5 and 4 before managers left, and found
significant variations in both their network structure and use of language.
Results indicate that on average managers who quit had lower closeness
centrality and less engaged conversations. In addition, managers who chose to
quit tended to shift their communication behavior starting from 5 months before
leaving, by increasing their degree and closeness centrality, the complexity of
their language, as well as their oscillations in betweenness centrality and the
number of "nudges" they need to send to peers before getting an answer.
