Anyone that has ever fired someone knows that it isn’t exactly what most of us would call a good time. Actually, it pretty much sucks, which is exactly why business owners hire people like George Clooney’s character in Up in The Air to come in and do it for them. In the movie, it shows every business owners worst fear-former employees crying hysterically, throwing things, threatening lawsuits, and most of them were just pissed. Sometimes the person you are firing has become toxic to the company and is spreading ill-will, other times it is simply an issue of work not getting accomplished in a timely and/or correct manner. Whatever the issue is, managing the firing is crucial to your sanity, the well being of your company,the emotional well being of the rest of your employees, and the employee in question. I have a pretty non-traditional approach to firing that I like to call the non-jerk approach. Basically, I think that there is a way to fire people and still treat them well.
Give them fair warning
If one of your clients has become displeased with your service, you want to know before they go to your competitor. Similarly, it is unfair to fire an employee without first presenting them with the specific problems you are having with their work and giving them a specific time line to rectify the problem. This puts the ball in the employee’s court: they can choose to fix the issue or they can choose to leave. A few years ago I was having a problem with an employee turning in hours where she was either not working or working at a very inefficient pace. I called her into my office, explained the problem and gave her 30 days to rectify the issue. She ended up deciding to leave on her own, which prevented her from being fired and prevented me from having to fire her. It was a win-win. Some think that this gives your employees an unfair advantage, personally, I think it gives you both the advantage of looking at the situation and considering your potential options.
Plan out what you are going to say.
Let’s face it: some of us are a little hot-headed and blow up when angered. Others are meek and when faced with confrontation, tend to back down from what really needs to be said. Either way, none of us can effectively convey what we want to when we are running on emotion. If you are emotional, there is a much higher chance that the employee will be emotional. Since you are making a huge impact on the life of the employee and possibly his/her family, it is only fair to put some thought into what you are going to say. I try and start off with, “we spoke 30 days ago regarding your job performance and unfortunately I have not seen enough progress to keep you with our organization. I think that you are (insert something complimentary-smart, talented, personable, etc)-but I just do not think that you are a good fit as our company continues to grow.” I have found that explaining the problem, but softening the blow with a compliment helps immensely. Also, this unemotional, professional method will help you remember to convey all necessary information, make sure that they sign necessary documents (such as releases, etc). Besides being an ethical way to treat your now-former employee, it is also good to have proof that you gave your employee a warning in the event of litigation.
Give time for goodbye
Don’t escort someone out of the office unless they have truly done something worthy of being escorted out. I know that this is highly nontraditional, but I believe that unless it is a criminal or ethical matter, giving them time to say goodbye will help offer resolution for the former employee as well as your current employees. Plus, it is kind and discourages feelings of ill will. I know many employers that choose to do the escort out of fear of files being stolen or property damage. If you give them a 30 day warning, the employee will know that there is a strong chance that they will be fired and will be much less likely to do something to harm your files, computers,equipment, etc.Of course, I would not leave them completely alone in their office, but there is a big difference between leaving them completely alone and giving them what is essentially a police escort out of your building.
Explain the situation to the rest of your staff.
After the former employee has left the office, have a meeting where you explain that there was a problem, the employee was given 30 days to rectify the situation, and they chose not to rectify the situation (which resulted in the firing). I usually do not give the specifics on the problem, out of respect for the former-employee and in the interest of not seemingly-bashing them to the rest of my employees. This reassures your staff that they will be given fair warning if you are displeased with their work and will also reassure them that you did not do something based on your emotions, but, rather, made the decision in a logical, methodical way.
I am sure there will be situations arise where this method will not be effective, and you may think that this method would never work in your organization. Whatever your opinion, I would love to know your thoughts as well as your method of firing! You can reach me at jdanner@peoplelease.com.
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