If you are the owner of a business or a manager with real authority then the time will come one day for you to have to get rid of a member of staff. The reasons for this can be varied, perhaps it is a misconduct issue, staffing cuts or something else, whatever the reason however, it is important that you fire someone with an air of grace. Having to let an employee go is never an easy experience. But, if you’re a good business owner and have implemented human resources management software, your are all but assured that the process will go smoothly, the employee will not be caught off-guard, and that business will be better off in the long-run. If you want to know how to get rid of someone respectfully and gracefully then read on to find out how.
Explanation
It is vital that during the meeting you explain absolutely everything to the member of staff who is being fired. This is not the time for BS or excuses, this is where you need to be transparent and honest with the member of staff about your reasons for getting rid of them. If it is something that they have done wrong then you need to explain this fully to them so that they can move forward and look to change the way that they conduct themselves. Giving someone negative feedback is tough but in this situation it is absolutely necessary.
Negativity Sandwich
There is no getting away from this being a meeting with a great deal of negativity but that is not to say that you should destroy the person in front of you. Explain the situation carefully and ensure that you do try to find some positives with which to sandwich the bad news.
Strip Emotion
When you are telling someone that they no longer have a job you need to do this with robotic precision, strip all emotion out of it. If you start to show emotions then you will end up offering empathy to the individual which can give mixed signals. The best approach is to be direct and factual, nothing more.
Short and Sweet
Unless the employee has several questions for you, it is important that you keep the meeting as brief as possible. The longer a meeting like this goes on, the more damage you will do and the longer the pain of the situation will be. Invite the employee into the room, explain that they are losing their jobs and why, offer some support and close the meeting, it does not need to be any more complicated than that.
End of the Week
It is best to fire a member of staff on a Friday so that they have a couple of days over the weekend to absorb what has happened and to start making plans for the future.
Sacking a member of staff is a difficult thing to go through for all involved but if you follow these steps then you will be able to do this in the most graceful way possible.