Fire with Class

In my first year as a recruiter, I have found joy and excitement in the majority of what I do. There are a few aspects of my career that I do not enjoy. The worst part of what I do is when I receive a call from someone who just was let go from their place of employment. 

Firing is necessary to do. Organizations grow, shrink, change vision, adjust culture, and merge with others. When that happens, terminating individuals that do not fit in organizations is a natural part of a company evolving. What is more heartbreaking than anything, is how some of these individuals are let go. Today I will share some best practices when you must let people go.

1.    When you make the decision act on it immediately and sever ties – One of my recruits had a bad feeling he was on shaky ground with his current employer. About a week later, his boss broke the news about his termination and told him he needed to stay for two months so they can find his replacement. It was the most awkward two months of this poor guy's career, his boss, and for the entire company. 

I have seen this scenario happen before. No one wins when someone feels like they are going to be fired for months before the hammer is dropped. Keeping the person around for a long period after they are let go is extremely challenging. If you can work short-staffed, do it. It will save the company, your current employees, past employees a lot of pain. When you decide to let someone go, do it swiftly and allow the person to leave in short order. 

2.    There is no right day of the week to fire someone – The worst call I took from a candidate was 5 pm on a Friday. They were just let go. What frustrated the candidate is that she could not find out anything about benefits, unemployment, and start her job hunt for another 72 hours (that Monday was a bank holiday). Feeling that helpless and stuck devastated her. 

There is no right day to fire someone, HR experts seem to agree to disagree on this fact. I think earlier in the week will benefit all parties as they move on. 

3.    Make sure everyone that needs to know knows - One potential candidate I worked with told me the reason they wanted to leave their organization was not that his job was in danger. “Pete it feels like lately people are being fired, and my boss does not tell anyone. All of us are picking up the slack and have no idea what to say to clients or other departments.” 

I have been in this situation. It is beyond frustrating. Do you as a boss have to share a novel about why someone is no longer working for your organization? No. What needs to happen is that anyone that works closely or in the proximity of the person should at least be told that the person you let go “no longer works there.” That simple communication makes a big difference. 

4.    Dignity matters – A story that warmed my heart was someone who was let go due to a layoff. “My boss went above and beyond. She gave me a severance package a glowing recommendation, and even called me to congratulate me when I landed a job with a competitor.”

I don’t ever expect a hiring authority to do something as I described above. Working with the employee, they let go so they can keep their heads up makes a big difference. Also remember, we live a long life, how you treat someone on the way out may come back and help you in the future. 

5.    Take the time to figure out what you can do better – After one of the most brutal firings I witnessed, a Senior Vice President visited with me. I confessed I felt like they were things I could have done better to help my colleague. With a sad smile he looked at me and said, “Pete, every single time I fired someone, I looked at where I failed. After all, I hired the person, so something between hiring and firing happened on my watch that I had to be accountable for.”

It is always good to take inventory after you make a termination decision. Did you hire the wrong person? Was your former employee doing something you could have corrected early? Perhaps the culture or vision of the company changed creating mismatches? These are the type of questions you must ask until you figure out how you and your company can be better with hiring and course correction in the future. 

No one likes to make a firing. While it is a natural part of being in business, there is a right way to do it. Have the courage to fire with class.

Pete Punwani is a Private Fleet & Final Mile Practice Leader at Global Executive Solutions. He has 20 years of experience in the transportation industry. His daily mission is to connect companies that utilize private fleets and final mile services with top talent to create high performing, dynamic teams. Outside of his career, Pete is a proud husband, father of 3, and die-hard Cleveland Browns fan.