Task of the Day? Employment Termination

Trump made it look easy on “The Apprentice”. I assure you it is one of the most difficult & mentally demanding tasks you will, at some point of your professional career (regardless of the industry or field) have to undertake in a management position (unless you work at one of those traditional Japanese companies that apparently never let anyone go). So far at Mission Centenarian, I’ve had to do the deed just once. I’ll never forget* that day.

The recession has led millions of people around to lose their jobs either due to cost cutting measures or lack of demand. In an attempt to make the daunting task a little less complex, I’ve gathered advice & tips from senior management & HR executives at some of Pakistan’s leading companies to help those who are handed the task of delivering the blow.

Remember to get to the point quickly and concisely. Make sure your facial expressions & body language reflect what you are saying. This is critical; you don’t want an employee thinking you were threatening to fire him or that your speech was a warning. This happened with me once at Mission Centenarian. Remember to speak naturally without needing external help – this is because the employee is bound to speak up & that can change the tables & your game plan entirely. So stick to the message, be clear and adapt to the flow of the conversation without losing it. This means tapping into empathy when required, the listener needs to know you empathize so take their anger in an understanding manner.

During my time at the HR department of GlaxoSmithKline, I noticed “the fired” had no reservations about expressing how distraught they were. Just listen, it’ll be over soon. A great way to diffuse the anger is by telling them their strengths & pointing out instances that ascertain the employee was a valuable asset to the company. I also witnessed the other end; how an executive dealt with firing a large group of people – he would recuperate between individual sessions by talking to a considerate friend or family member over the phone.

I’d like to end this piece by hoping that this kind of advice will be needed less.

*and I wish I could :-)