HR after grievance letter

[needhopeandluck]

I have sent a grievance letter to HR to raise concerns about harassment and discrimination I have experienced in the workplace. The HR Director asked for a face to face meeting to discuss as I have asked for an investigation into the matter. What should I expect from this meeting? I wish to leave the company, but I do not want to resign, I want to settle on an exit package. What kind of questions would they raise?

They won't be settling at this early stage. There will need to be an investigation into your allegations. I would expect the HRD to be wanting to obtain further details from you directly in this meeting.

They'll want to get more details from you so they can investigate properly, they'll also want to let you know the process and want an idea of what you are expecting.

If you want to have a without prejudice conversation you should tell them that

They will explain possible outcomes and request any evidence you have to support your claims.

Be prepared to share details and examples
of what you are experiencing, be prepared to refer to any specific policies that your company has that have been undermined by behaviour, same for any kind of code of conduct. You should have a grievance policy that outlines the steps. If for some reason you do not, hr should use this first meeting to outline process and next steps including any appeal process. If you have any specific short term requirement ie not
to have 1-1 meetings with this person or to change reporting lines, be prepared to ask for it and give reasons.

I've sent you a PM

Ideally take a timeline and supporting evidence to the meeting.

They’ll want your evidence and more details as part of the investigation. I doubt very much they are considering a payout at this stage.

They will want to know more information about what has happened. It would help things along if you have kept a record of everything, dates, times, names, copies of emails, witnesses, etc. If you haven't already been keeping this then try to start gathering a log in retrospect.
They should also explain to you what the process will be, and they may ask you what outcome you want.
I would recommend at this stage that you don't mention wanting an exit package, because it may then appear as though you are creating a situation in order to exit. Instead I would recommend you state that you want the grievance investigated thoroughly. At this stage you can also ask to be removed from having direct contact with the person in question - either you could have another working arrangement or they could (for example I requested to sit with a different team, my choice).
After the grievance process has ended is the time to request an exit package. I did this myself, it actually was never my intention to leave but the grievance against the person who harassed me went in my favour but they did not lose their job (got sent on training 🙄) and I said I didn't see how I could legitimately continue my work after that.

They likely won’t be even considering a Settlement at this stage (and some companies won’t do it at all - particularly public sector). They will want info from you to allow them to launch an investigation and carry out their Grievance Procedure. They may want to discuss the possibility of trying to sort the matter informally first rather than using the formal procedure (we would always do this).