Letting Go

by: Anne Day

Have you ever fired anyone? It’s not easy. I have and for nights beforehand, I debated with myself about whether this was the right decision and would flip-flop between giving her another chance to cutting my losses. But when I recalled all the problems she was creating, I knew I had to proceed and I dreaded it.

However, it would appear that I am not alone. Like many confrontations, most of us would prefer to avoid these difficult situations. A surprising number of seasoned entrepreneurs have said that in retrospect they were too soft on people and one of their biggest mistakes was not pulling the plug on bad performers or bad attitudes soon enough.

Putting off the inevitable can be a costly delay for small businesses. You run the risk of decaying staff morale as a bad attitude can spread fast and when one person is not pulling their weight, resentment can build, or losing customers due to shoddy service.

Delaying bad news is counter-productive. Seek advice from your accountant and lawyer before tackling any dismissal or redundancy. With all the legal ramifications, you have to be careful that everything is documented and you are being fair with any severance payment.

Experts advise that you set out the facts clearly so that those affected can understand why the decision was made. If you’ve given regular performance appraisals, the news of problems should not be a surprise.

Prepare yourself by considering objections so that you can deal with them calmly. Be as tactful, sympathetic and generous as you can be. You want the person leaving to feel they have been treated as fairly as possible and allow them some dignity with their departure.

To counter the rumour-mill, let other staff know about the person’s departure. You don’t have to go into the details, that is between you and your former employee, but it is better that they hear the news from you, rather than second-hand.

Does the person leave immediately? That is up to you. You will have to weigh up the pros and cons of having the person continue to work out their notice. Some companies find it better if there is a swift and immediate break as there is less chance for an embittered ex-employee to do any damage.

Looking back I was way too gentle with my former employee. So gentle and tactful that at first she didn’t get it, she didn’t understand that she was being dismissed. Clearly next time I would handle it differently, but always the optimist, I’m hoping there won’t be a next time.

Posted in: Human Resources