7 Employees You Should Fire Now

It's a crazy competitive world out there--you can't afford to have employees who aren't cutting it.

Some months ago, Apple and Microsoft each parted ways with a high-profile senior executives: iOS software chief Scott Forstall and Windows president Steven Sinofsky.

The moves were just weeks apart and the stories were strangely similar: two remarkably effective and talented executives who were simply unmanageable. They were so chronically abrasive and divisive that they were more trouble than they were worth.

Of course there's more than one side to every story. And while we may not be privy to all the specifics, one thing's for sure. Those decisions were some of the toughest ones the CEOs ever had to make. After all, talent like that doesn't grow on trees. Nevertheless, it had to be done. They had to go.

It takes all kinds to run a company but a few bad apples can definitely spoil organizational effectiveness in a hurry. And these days, companies just can't afford to keep those kinds of people around. The longer you wait, the more damage they do.

Over the years I've worked with just about every type of employee you can think of and, in my experience, there are more or less seven kinds of people you simply have to get rid of, no ifs ands or buts, and sooner rather than later.

1. They're a Troublemaker. With all of our issues and dysfunctions, I sometimes wonder how anything gets done at all. Still, we manage the best we can. And when employees create more problems than they're worth, when the damage they do to the organization weighs more heavily than their achievements, then it's time to cut them loose.

2. They Overpromise and Underdeliver. Some people have such overly inflated self-images that they either think they can do anything or crave the attention they get by making big boastful promises. But when their egos consistently write checks their capabilities can't cash, that's a real problem that's not likely to be resolvable without a good shrink.

3. They Act Out With Customers. I don't care if you have a small business or work at a Fortune 500 company, customers are hard to gain and easy to lose. The one thing you don't need is an employee who works with customers and somehow doesn't get that business is about winning and keeping customers, not him and his bad attitude.

4. They Can't or Won't Do the Job. You hire and pay people to do a job. Your job is to be clear about what that entails and give them the tools and training they need to get the job done. Their job is then to do it. If they either can't or won't after a few chances, then you've probably given them one chance too many.

5. They Flake. Some people look the part but, when push comes to shove, you can't count on them to get the job done or even to show up on a regular basis. Whatever the specifics, you can never tell when they're going to flake and you just can't trust them. Life is too short to have employees like that.

6. They're Entitled. Some people are more thin-skinned, litigious, and entitled than they have any right to be. Half their mind is on the job and the other half is just waiting for someone to slip up so they can whine and complain and maybe even threaten litigation. Don't give in to that kind of behavior. Cut them loose. They might throw a fit and you might get sued, but they can only do it once, and then you're rid of them for good.

7. They Ignore Conduct. Whatever the rules of conduct are for your company and its culture, you've got to uphold them fairly and consistently across the board. Whether an employee was insubordinate to her boss or a top executive lies about something material on his resume, if it happened and it breaks the rules, you should walk them out the door.

People are always complaining about how stressful their job is but, in my experience, there's nothing more stressful than having to deal with employees who aren't cutting it and drag down the whole organization. Quit thinking about it and just get rid of them. You'll sleep better at night--and so will the rest of your team.

http://www.inc.com/steve-tobak/7-employees-you-should-fire-now.html

3 Employees You Need To Fire. Now

There’s no more challenging job than being the person who has to fire people. Everyone else gets to talk about what a tight-knit, stick-together group the company is (just like a “family” of friends), but you’re the one who has to deliver the bad news over and over again. It’s not easy or always popular to be the boss, but then good leadership isn’t a popularity contest. If you were unpopular in high school, you’re already one step ahead of the game.

But the fact is, your company is only as good as its weakest employee. Here are the folks you need to fire - sooner rather than later.

No effort, no heart. Sometimes it’s a breeze. We try to immediately fire any employee who doesn’t try or doesn’t care. These are the cardinal sins in a start-up, so there isn’t much angst in letting these folks go. Then the job gets harder.

All effort, no results. The next tier of troublesome employees are those who try hard but just cannot do the job. They are totally sincere, but incapable (or no longer capable) of doing the job that needs to get done. There are good people who are perfectly able to do a job poorly for a very long time before anyone has the time, interest, or guts to ask the hard questions about results rather than effort. These people need to go too, but you need to be fair and firm with them. Do them a real favor and tell them the truth.

Poor fit. Then there are the employees who are basically hard-working and dedicated, but who (for better or worse) can’t fit into the corporate culture.  Every business that I’ve been involved with has ultimately been about hard work mixed with a healthy dose of paranoia. We had lots of ways to reflect this ethic and plenty of signs all over the place. “Hard work conquers everything.” “Effort can trump ability.” “Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean that someone's not out to get you.”  And so on. And almost everyone we hired got the message and drank the Kool-Aid. Even the people who just wanted a “job” pretty much worked their butts off.

But every so often, we’d hire someone who was just too healthy and well-adjusted to succeed among our tribe of crazies. We used to say that a relaxed man is not necessarily a better man. In one business, our internal motto was “let our sickness work for you.” It turned out that it was important to let the other people see you sweat even the smallest details. That way, they knew you cared. If you weren’t just a little bit crazy about the work and the business, you were slightly suspect or worse.

I remember one former employee who wrote me a long letter asking for a more complete explanation of why he didn’t succeed with us. Here is part of what I wrote:

Our company is [on] a very fast track, run by a bunch of workaholic perfectionists. We all believe that that’s what it takes to win against pretty fierce odds. And this is simply not the right place for everyone - especially people who want to have a family, outside interests and a normal life. I think it’s very likely that you’re simply too nice and too well-adjusted to work with the crazies around here and that’s shame on us - not you. But it’s the way things are. We wish you all the best.

Ultimately, all of these situations come down to a basic choice. You can make one person miserable when they lose their job, or you can end up with a crappy company where everyone’s miserable because you don’t have the guts to do the right things for the business. Once you start to carry people along who aren’t performing, you take a tremendous double hit. Yes, you pay the price for the poor performer’s activities, but that’s nothing compared to the real harm. As soon as you fail to consistently fire non-performers, you start to lose your best people. That’s what kills the company.

www.inc.com/howard-tullman/three-employees-you-need-to-fire-now.html

3 Employees You Need To Fire. Now

You know the saying: Hire slow, fire fast. Here are the people you need to get rid of, right now.

There’s no more challenging job than being the person who has to fire people. Everyone else gets to talk about what a tight-knit, stick-together group the company is (just like a “family” of friends), but you’re the one who has to deliver the bad news over and over again. It’s not easy or always popular to be the boss, but then good leadership isn’t a popularity contest. If you were unpopular in high school, you’re already one step ahead of the game.

But the fact is, your company is only as good as its weakest employee. Here are the folks you need to fire - sooner rather than later.

No effort, no heart Sometimes it’s a breeze. We try to immediately fire any employee who doesn’t try or doesn’t care. These are the cardinal sins in a start-up, so there isn’t much angst in letting these folks go. Then the job gets harder.

All effort, no results The next tier of troublesome employees are those who try hard but just cannot do the job. They are totally sincere, but incapable (or no longer capable) of doing the job that needs to get done. There are good people who are perfectly able to do a job poorly for a very long time before anyone has the time, interest, or guts to ask the hard questions about results rather than effort. These people need to go too, but you need to be fair and firm with them. Do them a real favor and tell them the truth.

Poor fit Then there are the employees who are basically hard-working and dedicated, but who (for better or worse) can’t fit into the corporate culture.  Every business that I’ve been involved with has ultimately been about hard work mixed with a healthy dose of paranoia. We had lots of ways to reflect this ethic and plenty of signs all over the place. “Hard work conquers everything.” “Effort can trump ability.” “Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean that someone's not out to get you.”  And so on. And almost everyone we hired got the message and drank the Kool-Aid. Even the people who just wanted a “job” pretty much worked their butts off.

But every so often, we’d hire someone who was just too healthy and well-adjusted to succeed among our tribe of crazies. We used to say that a relaxed man is not necessarily a better man. In one business, our internal motto was “let our sickness work for you.” It turned out that it was important to let the other people see you sweat even the smallest details. That way, they knew you cared. If you weren’t just a little bit crazy about the work and the business, you were slightly suspect or worse.

I remember one former employee who wrote me a long letter asking for a more complete explanation of why he didn’t succeed with us. Here is part of what I wrote:

Our company is [on] a very fast track, run by a bunch of workaholic perfectionists. We all believe that that’s what it takes to win against pretty fierce odds. And this is simply not the right place for everyone - especially people who want to have a family, outside interests and a normal life. I think it’s very likely that you’re simply too nice and too well-adjusted to work with the crazies around here and that’s shame on us - not you. But it’s the way things are. We wish you all the best.

Ultimately, all of these situations come down to a basic choice. You can make one person miserable when they lose their job, or you can end up with a crappy company where everyone’s miserable because you don’t have the guts to do the right things for the business. Once you start to carry people along who aren’t performing, you take a tremendous double hit. Yes, you pay the price for the poor performer’s activities, but that’s nothing compared to the real harm. As soon as you fail to consistently fire non-performers, you start to lose your best people. That’s what kills the company.

http://www.inc.com/howard-tullman/three-employees-you-need-to-fire-now.html

The 10 Worst Things to Say When You Fire Someone

Firing someone is hard -- but getting fired is always harder. Don't make it worse by putting your foot in your mouth.

Letting an employee go can be a stressful and even painful experience. Possibly that’s why making the firing process as easy as possible—for the boss—is something of a cottage industry.

That’s too bad, because while terminating an employee is hard for you, getting fired is way harder for the employee.

So forget about your feelings. Whenever you have to fire an employee you must protect your business from a legal aspect.

After that, your only goal is to treat the employee as compassionately and respectfully as possible.

Your feelings are irrelevant.

Which is why you should never say any of the following:

1. "Look, this is really hard for me." Who cares if it’s hard for you? The employee certainly doesn’t. Any time you talk about how difficult the situation is for you the employee thinks, "Oh yeah? What about me? How hard do you think this is on me?" If you feel bad—and you will—talk through your feelings later with someone else.

And also never say, “Look, I’m not sure how to say this…” You’re sure what to say. You’re just uncomfortable saying it.

Never even hint that the employee should somehow feel your pain; that’s just selfish.


2. "We've decided we need to make a change." You're not an NBA team firing an unsuccessful coach. And you're not holding a press conference either. Skip the platitudes. If you've done your job right the employee already knows why he's being fired.

State the reason for your action as clearly and concisely as possible. Or just say, "Mark, I have to let you go."


3. "We will work out some of the details later." For the employee, getting fired is both the end and the start of another process: Collecting personal items, returning company property, learning about benefits status, etc.

It's your job to know how all that works—ahead of time. Getting fired is bad enough; sitting in limbo while you figure out the next steps is humiliating for an employee who wants nothing more than to leave. Never make an employee wait to meet with others who are part of the process. Once you let them go, the employee is on their time, not yours.


4. "You just aren't cutting it compared to Mary." Never compare the fired employee to someone else as justification. Employees should be fired because they fail to meet standards, targets, or behavioral expectations.

Plus, drawing comparisons between employees makes it possible for what should be an objective decision to veer into the “personality zone.” That’s a conversational black hole you will struggle to escape.


5. "Okay, let’s talk about that. Here’s why..." Most employees sit quietly, but a few will want to argue. Never let yourself be dragged into a back-and-forth discussion. Just say, "Mark, we can talk about this as long as you like, but you should understand that nothing we discuss will change the decision." Arguments almost always make the employee feel worse.

Be professional, be empathetic, and stick to the facts. Don't feel the need to respond if an employee starts to vent.

Just listen—that’s the least you can do. And the most you can do.


6. "You’ve been a solid employee but we simply have to cut staffing." If you truly are downsizing, leave performance out and just say so.

But if you're not actually downsizing, and you're hiding behind that excuse so the conversation is easier for you, then you do the employee a disservice—and you open your business up to potential problems, especially if you later hire someone to fill the open slot.

Never play games to try to protect the employee's feelings—or, worse, to protect your own. Just be straightforward.


7. "We both know you aren't happy here, so down the road you’ll be glad." Whether or not the employee will someday be glad you let them go is not for you to judge. Employees can’t find a silver lining in the fired cloud, at least not at first. Let them find their own glimmers of possibility.


8. "I need to walk you to the door." I worked for a company where the policy was to immediately escort terminated employees out of the building.

An employee you fire is not a criminal. Don’t put them through a walk of shame. Just set simple parameters. Say, "Mark, go ahead and gather up your personal belongings and I'll meet you back here in 10 minutes."

If Mark doesn't come back, go get him. He won't argue.


9. "We have decided to let you go." The word "we" is appropriate in almost every setting, but not this one.

Say, "I." At this moment, you are the company (even if, in fact, you’re just an employee.) Take responsibility.


10. "If there is anything I can do for you, just let me know." Like what? Write a glowing letter of recommendation? Call your connections and put in a good word for him? (Of course, if you are laying off good employees due to lack of work you should do anything you can to help them land on their feet.)

Absolutely say, "If you have any questions about benefits, final paychecks, or other details, call me. I'll make sure you get the answers you need." But never offer to do things you can't do. You might feel a little better because you made an offer, but the employee won't.

Remember, when you fire an employee it's all about the employee, not about you—and especially not about what makes you feel better.

http://www.inc.com/jeff-haden/the-10-worst-things-to-say-when-you-fire-an-employee.html

The Best Way to Fire an Employee

These tips won't make it any easier on the employee (or you) but they will make the process go as smoothly as it can.

Recently I wrote about things you should never say when you fire an employee. A few people emailed to say, in essence, "Great, but what should I say and do when I fire an employee?

Fair enough.

Here's how to make a bad situation better—or at least as "better" as it can possibly be—when you have to fire an employee for cause:

Be certain.

Seems obvious, right? Not always: The heat of the moment can cause you to make a snap decision that is neither correct nor fair.

Even if you have a zero-tolerance policy for certain behaviors, take a few minutes to make sure the employee's action truly falls within the parameters of that policy. When you're mad (or really disappointed) it's easy to think, "That's it... she has to go," and unintentionally forget about guidelines and precedents. While you can bring an employee back on after you make a mistake, no one will ever forget what happened.

Especially the employee.

Don’t be Hansel or Gretel.

Except where zero-tolerance policy violations are concerned, firing an employee should always be the last step in a relatively formal and structured process: Identify sub-par performance, provide additional training or resources, set targets and time lines for performance improvement, follow up when progress is lacking—and document each step in writing.

Documentation not only protects your business, it also helps ensure the employee was given every chance to succeed. You—and the employee—deserve more than a trail of bread crumbs.

If you don't have a paper trail, don't be tempted to go back and re-create one. Start now and follow the process. Remember, it's not the employee's fault if you haven't done your job.

Get every duck in every row ahead of time.

How will the employee return company property and collect personal items? What happens to his benefits? When will he receive his last paycheck?

If you don't know the answers, you need to. The time between when you say, "You're fired," and when the employee actually leaves the building is awkward for everyone. Make things easier by knowing every detail in the process so it goes as smoothly as possible.

And if you need to bring in other people, like an HR staffer to talk about benefits, line them up so they will be available immediately. Never make an employee you just fired sit and wait.

Get a witness.

While not absolutely essential, having someone else in the room eliminates the risk of the employee later claiming you said things you did not. At the same time, a witness makes an awkward situation even more awkward. The employee might feel the second person is in the room simply to provide protection or backup if he gets angry.

That's a little insulting... but in the end your job is to protect your company, so bring in a witness. Safe in this case is better than sorry.

Know what you will say.

Unsure? Try this: "Mary, I'm sorry, but we have to let you go."

That's it.

If you've done your job correctly and followed your process there won’t be a reason to explain why. Mary already knows why.

Why keep it so simple? No matter how many people you have fired before, you'll still feel uncomfortable so you'll be tempted to talk. A lot.

Don't. The less you say the more dignity the employee retains. Stick to the point and be professional. And don't feel bad for not mincing words—at this point the employee has almost no interest in hearing you spout platitudes anyway.

Never argue.

Most people who get fired are fairly quiet. Some get mad. Some argue and then get mad.

No matter what the reaction, don't let yourself get sucked into an argument. If you're certain about your decision and have the documentation to back it up, there is no argument. Just say, "Mary, I'll be happy to talk about this as long as you wish, but you should understand that nothing we say will change the decision."

Arguing about or discussing the fairness of your decision almost always makes the employee feel worse and it could open you up to legal issues if you speak without thinking.

By all means let the employee vent, but stay away from arguments or debates.

Don't offer to help when you can't.

If you are firing an employee for cause there are very few ways you can help them get another job. (If you are laying them off due to a lack of work, obviously there are a number of ways you might be able to help.)

So don't toss out well-meaning platitudes like, "If there's anything I can do, just let me know..." There almost never is. And in those rare circumstances where you can help, be specific about what you can do or may be willing to do.

Otherwise, just wrap things up by saying, "Even though this did not work out, I wish you the best." Shake hands and let the person leave.

Then accept that you'll feel terrible, no matter how much the employee deserved to be let go. Feeling terrible about playing a role in changing someone's life for the worse is something you will never get used to.

Nor should you.

http://www.inc.com/jeff-haden/how-to-fire-an-employee.html