One of the most stressful and dreadful obligations a Boss has to do is to fire an employee. As much as possible, any business owners wouldn’t wish to do that. The painful process of firing someone is a nightmare to the employer and can be downright traumatizing to the employee. But no matter how much we wish to never do it, firing someone is an inevitable process.
“Firing is not something you do to someone: firing is something you do for someone.” –Larry Winget
There will always be a chance that you may need to fire someone as you go on with your business. Because if not, your company’s operations and your business productivity may suffer in the long run. That doesn’t make the firing process can be inhumane or brutal.
How do you make the entire firing process a comfortable, light, and bearable process to the both of you? Here are our top 4 ways to fire someone in a nice and positive way.
Issue Warnings First
Bear in mind that you cannot just fire an employee on the spot. Besides being against the law, doing that is just cruel. Remember that your employee is not just working to help your business succeed, but your employee also has obligations to pay their bills. Therefore, you cannot just treat them like a toy that you toss away once you’re done with them.
Your employee also has a life to sustain. As such, before you go firing one, take this into consideration. It would be best if you sent out warnings as a heads up at first. If you feel like they’re violating some rules or regulations in your company, or if they’re not delivering the output and performance you expect, give them a warning first. It may be in a form of guidance, speaking with the HR, or figuring out what’s going in their lives that could be affecting their productivity. Next, issue a memorandum, a suspension, and finally, termination. Give your employee the liberty of due process.
Do it on Weekdays, Morning
It’s recommended to schedule work termination during weekdays so that the employee won’t have a chance to ponder what happened during weekends. They might end up coming with a rebuttal to oppose your decision. Apart from that, ensure to do it in the morning. Why?
It’s because delaying the inevitable will only prolong your agony. You’ll also be bothered by this fiasco the whole time, keeping your focus on getting the task at hand. This may leave distracted in your tasks and decreasing your business productivity. It’s better to stop beating around the bush and tackle the issue first-hand. After you’re done, you’ll find yourself being lifted up from the burden and the two of you can move on with your lives. You won’t have anything to worry about as you finish your tasks.
Do it Face to Face
Even if you don’t want to face your employee because you’re either too nervous to be the one doing it, or you’re too pissed with your employee for all the dreadful things they’ve done, there’s no escaping it. You need to do it face to face.
Give your employee the liberty to discuss the termination with you and answer their questions if they have. Remeber that they have the right to know how you were able to come up with that difficult decision. However, also ensure you heat the nail on the head, leaving no room for arguments or any chance to sway your decision.
Tell Your Employer What to do Next
No matter how gently you drop the bomb, your employee’s mind will likely shut down when they hear the news. In fact, we bet that they wouldn’t remember all the things you said. As a matter of fact, the only statement that will keep on reflecting on their mind is the fact that they lost their job.
However, it is still your responsibility to tell them what’s going to happen next. This includes the blueprints, reports, passwords, or any confidential files they may need to return during the turnover. Also, inform them of the benefits they’ll be getting as well as the severe compensation package.
