I’m not sure how I missed this, but I could easily go into business with several of my pformer colleagues and make a killing. I’m your hatchet-woman-for-hire, and I’m good at it.
The Outsourced Termination
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{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
that is so utterly spineless and cowardly.
being the vengeful lass that i am, i’d find a way to exact elaborate revenge on a boss who abdicated his firing responsibility to a third party.
don’t worry laurs — i don’t kill messengers.
but i have a wicked imagination and a firm belief that “revenge is a dish best served cold.”
(hello operator, may i please have the number for page six?!)
I think it’s sad really. I have had VPs on down lean on me do term people for them and always I have taken the position that “This is your employee, not my employee, the message should come from you.” I have no problem facilitating the conversation and making sure management stays on script, but HR folks engaged in this kind of stuff (outsourced terms) should take a good look in the mirror and rethink their own ethical standards. This kind of stuff is why HR has such a bad name and why EEs hate us. No one ever said being a manager was going to be filled with all happy moments and decisions. That big paycheck comes with some difficult conversations and decisions. Earn it yourself.
Bryan,
Well said and I agree. The problem with most organizations and their relationship with their HR dept is similar to most people when they talk about lawyers. People tend to slam lawyers up to the point when they themselves need the services of a good attorney.
When the legal system is breathing down their neck, only then does that individual admit to the value a great attorney brings to a tough situation.
HR should always be integrated into the corporate philosophy, recognized as a equal partner–valuable asset, and solicited for ideas about human capital and it’s role in company health and growth.
Yet reality shows that HR is often the “redheaded step child” in many organizations.
Unbelievable!
dean
1) Don’t cross Cols. Don’t even think about it. Just don’t.
2) Bryan, I have facilitated 1000s of terminations & the biggest mistake managers make is going off-script. There have been times when they’ve gone into a long tangent about the marketplace, tough decisions, etc. I jump in & say, “Buddy, do you understand what your boss is saying to you? Today is your last day.” It’s so sad that termination training must be part of Management 101 — but it must.
3) Dean, Good comments. I think litigation is the refuge of the stupid & the ill-informed. Unfortunately, it’s the first place most people go when messages are delivered poorly — whether the message is delivered by a manager or HR.
Laurie,
Thanks for the kind words. I thought the media was “the refuge of the stupid & ill-informed” but you got me on that one-most lawyers are brutal.
Americans, I am one, still consider themselves the toughest most resilient group in the world. Yet we as a country are turning into a finger pointing society bent on blaming anyone but the man/woman in the mirror.
If more corporate decision makers could “remember the old days” when they were coming up and making their mark, put themselves in the other guy’s shoes, or at least exercise a shred of diplomacy everyone would benefit.
I mainly do this for a living, but in the UK, employment legislation is a minefield so if canning folk is not something you do every day, then it’s better to get an expert in, or it’s going to cost. Plus it can take up to 90 days consultation to shed staff, so that’s a lot of management time that could be better used on the positives!
And Laurie, you’re so right about managers going off-piste. I’ve seen people come out of meetings, not realising that their jobs gone.
Yes, I know ideally it should be the boss’s job, but many of them are hurting bad too so they find it easier to step in after the event and do the good cop routine. Most do it well too.
Also, having the grim reaper coming in from outside can make for quicker recovery. Managers can work with the survivors while I do my stuff, and once I go, there’s no visible reminder stalking the corridors, so people can get on with getting on.
Redundancy is a fact of life these days; you can do it badly – or you can do it well. I do the latter.
(Fabby dabby site by the way!!)