By Guest Author Todd Dewett, Ph.D.
Given economic challenges in recent years, it is surprising that books, articles, and the blogosphere have not focused more on the art of firing people.
Call it what you’d like, “releasing” the person, “letting them go,” “separating,” etc., are all euphemisms for firing someone. Firing is expensive. Do not forget the costs associated with turnover. For this post, I wish to focus exclusively on the case of performance-justified firing, not economically driven downsizing.
There is a right way and a wrong way to fire someone due to significant performance problems. A person has been removed from their job and/or the organization correctly when all of the following are true:
• Less severe measures were genuinely considered as first options.
• The person was not surprised. The outcome was predictable given the feedback provided over time.
• The formal performance paper trail clearly supports the outcome.
• Multiple documented opportunities were provided to improve by using very specific feedback, goal setting, and clear expectations.
• The interpersonal treatment surrounding the entire process was factual and positive.
• Reasonable efforts were made to assist the person in finding future employment.
• Following the event, the person’s removal was explained to relevant others at work factually and positively to ensure the event was understood and does not become fodder for negative rumors.
Believe it or not, firing someone might be the best thing for them. Assuming the decision was a high quality decision (it adhered, at a minimum, to the standards above), you not only did what was best for your organization, but you may have helped the person in question by giving them a much needed “wake-up” call.
It is important to note that firing someone does not mean you lack compassion. It means that you are working hard to maximize the value created by the unit you lead instead of simply maximizing the development of every individual. You must find ways to develop your staff, but it is wholly unreasonable to expend large sums of limited budgets on the lowest performing employees.
For the actual conversation in which you will inform someone they are being fired, be diligent and ensure that you:
• Plan well. Know exactly how the meeting will take place. Your goal is to have a very concrete agenda of items and to remain in complete control.
• Be private. The actual meeting should take place in absolute privacy to ensure a minimum of unease for all parties concerned.
• Be brief. Say the minimum, state the facts clearly, but do not discuss irrelevant material and do not be redundant.
• Don’t negotiate. This is not a dialogue. There is no chance anything they say will change the outcome. Thus, do not let them think otherwise.
• Don’t do it alone. For future protection (and possible support and assistance) have the proper human resources, managerial, or legal employee present. No more than one is needed and they should not be the person’s direct co-worker.
• Check your emotions. Stick to the facts and the outcome, not how you or they feel about the facts and the outcome. Begin calm and remain calm no matter what emotions others might show.
• Explain the process and benefits. This includes when to leave the premises, what to return before leaving, severance, insurance, etc.
• Allow feedback. After you are finished, it is proper to offer the person an opportunity to provide feedback. Manage the situation and keep it brief, but allow them to share any feedback they wish to share.
• Close positively. Thank the person for their time and for the effort they have expended on behalf of the organization. Tell them you wish them well. In general, show respect.
There are other fine points, such as whether to ask them to sign a release (promising not to sue you), whether to offer them a financial incentive to do so (e.g., extended severance), etc. However, these are the basics and the better you complete them, the less likely you will be sued for discrimination or wrongful termination.
Finally, to reduce the chance you must fire someone again, you must attempt to determine how this all happened. Was the hiring process flawed? A bad job description? Poor training? There could be many answers and unless you find them you will spend more time firing people than necessary. Following every difficult performance discussion or firing, have the team discuss the root cause, or risk experiencing the same thing again.