Termination: They Didn't See It Coming

If you have been in HR long enough you will have horror stories. One of the worst experiences I ever had was to walk into a conference room packed with 30 employees, with the task of laying them all off. These were all good, dedicated employees. Not flawed, bottom-of-the-barrel employees.

For a brief moment, let's talk terminations. That's fire. Not layoff, not RIF. But fire.

To avoid termination, you have already met with the employee and communicated your expectations. You have taken steps to assist the employee in correcting the performance issue. You have clearly communicated that the employee is being held accountable for the performance improvement.

If you do everything you can, then if termination is necessary you have the assurance that you did everything possible to help the employee succeed. If management is doing their job, then employees know what is expected of them. The conversation, whether termination or disciplinary, doesn't come as a surprise. And there should be no surprises. Whether or not the employee admits it, they play an active role in the decision to get themselves fired.

When there has been that communication, and nothing has changed, I don't feel bad about terminating an employee. I didn’t tell them to do whatever they did to get themselves terminated. I didn't tell them to be consistently late for work. I didn’t tell them to take a 2 hour lunch, or have drinks at lunch, or to spend 8 hours sending personal emails. The employee made the decision to do these things and they have to accept responsibility for their actions. Maybe the employee is unable to meet company standards. Perhaps the employee is consciously, or unconsciously, asking you to fire them. Maybe they just don't like the job.

I always impress upon managers the need for good communication with employees. Remember, if it hasn't been communicated to the employee that what they are doing is wrong, then their actions become acceptable. Being disciplined, suspended or even terminated shouldn't be a surprise to the employee.

Whatever the situation, before you terminate, have your documentation in place. If it's not documented, it might as well not exist.

I believe that the termination message should be delivered by the employee's immediate supervisor. Not HR. Yes, HR should be in the room during the termination meeting. But the supervisor should have the responsibility of delivering the message. And that message should be short, sweet and to the point. Don't blame. Don't make apologies. Be clear. Answer questions. If there is a problem during the termination, HR is there to assist. However, managers should have the proper training, and experience, to conduct the termination without HR stepping in.

No matter what the scenario, always handle a termination in such a manner as to allow the employee to depart with dignity.