The Art of Firing – What’s the Best Way?

The Art of Firing – What’s the Best Way?

by | Communication, Management, World of Work

A few weeks ago, the internet was breaking with how Tech Mahindra fired an employee- without sound reason, without even having a one on one. A leaked audio of the HR Firing an employee brought the issue to the forefront. The matter escalated to such an extent that Anand Mahindra, Executive Chairman of the company, had to tender an apology which read, “I want to add my personal apology. Our core value is to preserve the dignity of the individual and we’ll ensure this does not happen in future,”.

It is true that letting someone go, moreover, having to be the one to communicate that decision, is far from easy. However, doing it in a dignified manner is crucial for the person in question, and even more so for your organisation. How you deal with your employees in times of crises reflects on what values your organisation embodies. We write this post for every person who has the capacity of making, and/or implementing the decision of firing an employee within an organisation. So, how do you fire someone while making sure his/her ‘dignity’ is not violated? Read on to know how.

  1. Know your Reasons

    Your job is half done when you understand and get to the root of why you are having to let go of the person concerned. Understand the reasons for the decision made to be able to articulate yourself clearly. Is it performance related? Is it because of behavioral or ethical reasons? Keep the required evidence handy to be able to support your conversation/ decision, if required. Doing this also helps you be firm while you are communicating the decision.

  2. Rehearse it

    Firing someone is much harder than hiring someone. It needs to be done with sensitivity and dignity. It also needs to be done with conviction. Rehearse what you would want to tell the employee concerned before having the actual conversation. This will help you preempt certain responses you would otherwise have been at a loss for. Playing out the conversation aloud, helps you prepare well for the real one.

  3. Time it right

    Timing is a key element for this job. Never hold this meeting at the beginning of the day – it upsets the productivity of both you and the employee concerned. As for the duration of the meeting, it should by no means stretch beyond fifteen minutes. Anything beyond that duration of time allows for things to get messy. While you have to be patient, you also need to be effective in your communication, and quick. Tough combination to achieve, but then, this is really your job!

  4. Follow a process

    Be fair when you fire someone and follow a standard operating procedure, just like you do while hiring someone. Have all the documentation ready, including a letter of experience and a termination letter. Hold the meeting when you have in paper all the settlements you would have to make for the employee concerned. It is also important to allow a reasonable notice period to the employee, so he may look for another job.

  5. Be kind

    The action in question, and kindness definitely don’t go together. However, it is still possible to deliver this job in a kind, considerate and dignified manner. The only way you can do this job well, and yet be kind is by being detached from the whole situation. Just enough to know that it is not YOUR fault the person in front of you is losing his/her job, at the same time it is sad for the employee and therefore you must be polite, kind and treat the individual with dignity. Being detached will also help you stay calm in case things start to get ugly, because you don’t take it personally. That way, you will by default take the higher road.

Ace businesswoman Mary Barra, says it best

My advice on firing is simple: Treat that person the same way you’d want to be treated if you were in that situation. They’re still a good person, just not the right fit. So how do you help them move on in a productive way that allows them to maintain their dignity?

Ever fired anyone? Tell us what you got wrong, or what you got right. Been at the receiving end of it? Tell us how you feel you would’ve done it differently!

From Idea to Execution: Five Pointers to Getting Things Done in Complex Organizations – Business Operations Performance Management

From Idea to Execution: Five Pointers to Getting Things Done in Complex Organizations – Business Operations Performance Management

by | Business, Business Operations, Career, Leadership, Management, Performance, Productivity

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Don’t tell me why this is difficult to do, just go get this done ASAP please. The please is usually an afterthought. This is the kind of challenge that no self-respecting operations person can resist – there is a certain joy in translating an idea into flawless execution cutting through all the challenges and complexities of a large organization. And in my role of running business operations, I have been on the receiving end of this challenge many a times. The corporate/senior management realizes they have a business problem, have a good idea of what the solution could be and there comes a mandate for a directional change that may involve a lot of shake up implementing a new process or changing existing processes to meet the end goal.

In today’s scenario, we no longer have the luxury of time, complete clarity, a free rein and big budgets to get that magic solution – which will solve the big business problem – visualized, planned, experimented, and then implemented. Every solution has to be aligned to growing profits leading to one or both objectives – revenue-maximizing and cost-cutting. Operational agility and operational excellence are all the more important now to turn corporate priorities into focused actions more quickly, effectively, and consistently.

Here are five pointers that I have found useful in getting things done – “more done with less” to achieve the desired results quickly:

Pointer #1: Understand the need behind the want – A clear understanding of the desired outcome is necessary so that you don’t end up with a flurry of misguided activity. For example the stated want maybe “reduce bench costs”. To arrive at a solution, you have to go to the source of the problem to see what the real need is – it maybe that the reported data on bench is inaccurate leading to wrong conclusions, or that there is inaccuracy in forecasting leading to an increased virtual bench size or the demand-supply balancing is inefficient. Not knowing the source here and just taking action on reducing bench by reducing headcount would be dangerously counter – productive. Understanding the outcome needed also allows the defining and implementing of a solution instead of just executing on a task blindly which may not give the expected results. And before you move to the next step, put it in writing – the problem statement, the current state and the desired state when the planned solution is in place. This is very important to not only clarify our own thought process but also help you ascertain the skills and timeline needed to execute.

Pointer #2: Get the right working team on-board – You could do it alone but almost any deliverable in a work setting will get done quicker and better if you involve others with the skills, background and experience in the area. You don’t need a committee (the death by committee danger there 🙂 ) but creating a virtual team gets the work done easier. Pick the brains of subject matter experts, tap into the larger functional teams across the organization, and get volunteers from your teams. Almost everyone would be happy to get involved in learning something new or breaking the routine of their everyday assignments. Being able to work in a matrix structure is quite a useful ability here.

Pointer #3: Get key stake-holders enthusiastic about the solution – Identify the people who stand to benefit the most from the solution and socialize the plan with them. Enlist their support early by showing them the “why” behind the plan and how they stand to gain from it. Create a sense of urgency to build momentum. This will help get their buy-in and reduce any resistance that you may come across when you go ahead with execution. People don’t like being handed with a “done deal” specially if there is any impact on their business as usual activities. Regular, sincere communication is a great lubricant to work through silos and organization hierarchies and boundaries. Just don’t make the mistake of trying to please everyone – just the ones that matter (for the success of your plan in action).

Pointer #4: Go! Don’t wait for all the answers and for the perfect plan – As Seth says, the real question isn’t whether you have all the facts. The real question is, “do I know enough to make a useful decision?” (And no decision is still a decision). If you don’t, then the follow-up question is, “What would I need to know, what fact would I need to see, before I take action?” Speed of decision-making is very important in execution – there is a time for analysis and a time for action. A perfect launch time, a perfect solution or perfect acceptance is unrealistic to expect. The best way to see if your solution is workable is to put it to work. Define phases of implementation if you can’t see the full path yet but begin the moment you are reasonably sure it will work.

Pointer #5: Don’t drop the ball after execution – Give yourself and the team a pat on the back and celebrate the success. But don’t forget these three important steps. Before you move on to the next challenge, get the process documentation, tracking mechanism and measurement metrics in place.  Create checklists for the activities, documentation of the changed or new process and training sessions as needed. With good processes defined and documented, everyone will always know what has been accomplished and how far have they gone ahead or fallen behind. Set up regular feedback and tracking mechanisms with the right set of metrics to have early warning systems that will help anticipate problems or the need to change the solution.

Summing it up, there is very little that is impossible to get done at work. Getting things done just needs the right mix of enthusiasm, effort, agility and persistence. And isn’t creating order from chaos, a lot of fun?

What are your secrets to getting things done in a complex organization? What have I missed in the pointers above? I would love to hear and learn from you.

photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/31732378@N02/3129967709/ by Jon.B

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Five Management or Leadership Styles that should be Banned from the Work Place – Business Operations Performance Challenges

Five Management or Leadership Styles that should be Banned from the Work Place – Business Operations Performance Challenges

by | Business, Business Operations, Leadership, Management, Managing Yourself, Office Etiquette, Performance, Productivity

Do you think that every work/office space should have a few punching bags around? Sometimes I definitely feel there is some merit in the idea.  All that violence and stress bottled up inside cannot possibly be good for anyone. Violence, stress, punching bags – does not exactly fit the theme of my blog, Happy in the Now.  But hey – work is not all sweetness and light particularly when you have to work sometimes with people who have the talent of bringing out the worst in you. I have written about the barriers to operational excellence before and about behaviors that are best avoided at the work place. This week’s post is focused on the leadership or management styles that block progress and help no one – not the managers or leaders nor their teams and certainly not the organization.

With great power comes great responsibility – leaders and managers need to keep this in mind in all their daily interactions and do everyone a favor by keeping a firm check on these punch-bag reminder inducing styles:

Management/Leadership Style #1 – Waffling: Here is the dictionary definition of the word and I am quite sure some images/experiences will pop up in your mind:

Waffling – present participle of waf·fle (Verb): 1. Fail to make up one’s mind 2. Speak or write esp. at great length, without saying anything important or useful.

This is the work place equivalent of the Hamlet soliloquy – To be or not to be…be, not be, be, not be– God, can you please make up your mind and move on and let your team get to the work at hand  ?

Management/Leadership Style #2 – Death by Committees: This one starts with – sounds like a good idea, let’s set up a meeting to decide who needs to decide, and invite them to a meeting to decide when it needs to get decided and then set up a meeting to discuss who else need to be invited that needs to decide and then set up a meeting to discuss what we need to decide – hey! Can you please remind me what the great idea was again?

Ok, so I know that there is research that says there is wisdom in crowds but seriously, can we please stop killing all possible innovation and initiative through this inclusive decision-making (read as death by committee) style?

Management/Leadership Style #3 – I am the victim – This style shows up in full bloom when the time comes to take hard decisions and set ownerships.  Some symptoms to diagnose this style is when someone says –  Hey don’t ask me why things are not working because I am just the new person here/the markets are down/whoever drew up the budget or the plan was smoking something/no one supports me/other people don’t know how to do their jobs/ whine whine whine whine whine……

You are a manager or leader because sometime somewhere you did do something right. Can you please stop whining and get your act together again – everybody knows the problems, YOU are the person who has to provide the solution – that is why you are where you are.

Management/Leadership Style #4 – My way or the highway – This is the style of the professional bully who relies on his/her title, or a loud voice, or a threat or other trappings of power to force complete submission of subordinates or colleagues and does so because he/she can, and because that’s the only way he/she knows how to manage.

But seriously, the command and control style of leadership was outdated even a century back – isn’t it time to change your style so that people actually WANT to work for you or with you?

Management/Leadership Style #5 – Divide and Rule –  Best explained in Wiki (derived from Latin: divide et impera) (also known as divide and conquer) is a strategy of gaining and maintaining power by breaking up larger concentrations of power into chunks that individually have less power than the one implementing the strategy. In this case, insecurity rules, the leader/manager’s own insecurity makes him/her intentionally create disharmony, goes about collecting information (the water-coolers sessions equivalent) from team about team-mates, discusses and is dismissive about subordinates in front of their peers and actually pits one against the other. When this happens, the subordinates would obviously not come together as a team and be a threat to his/her security.

Excuse me – but the Cold War is over, can you please stop behaving like a secret agent/playing childish games and grow up and be the fair and trust-worthy leader that your team needs you to be?

We all need to look into the mirror frequently and do some honest evaluation of our leadership and management styles. It is easy to slip and slide and fall prey to the trappings of power – remember the adage, power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely? Introspect, Acknowledge and Change – it is never too late to be the leader or manager we should be (and then the idea of punching bags in the office would become obsolete!)

So did reading my post ring any bells for you? Do you have some “boss from hell” or “the best boss” stories to share? I would love to hear back from you.

Five Working Principles for Business Operations Performance Management – In Gratitude and Honour of Seth Godin

Five Working Principles for Business Operations Performance Management – In Gratitude and Honour of Seth Godin

by | Business, Business Operations, Career, Leadership, Life, Management, Managing Yourself, Performance, Productivity

Isn’t it strange (in a good way) how sometimes someone who you have never met or interacted with can have such a profound impact on your life and work? I think it was two years ago when the CEO of one of the places that I have worked in quoted Seth Godin in a discussion. I went and looked him up and wow – did he make me think! Seth posts every day and almost every single one of his posts have made me take a step back and take a close look at one or other area of my life and work. If you already follow him, then I am sure you have also experienced this – if you haven’t yet, then I suggest you go and subscribe to his blog here – I can confidently say that your thought processes will never remain the same.

This blog is a compilation of five of his posts from 2012 only (and it was very difficult choosing five, I may need to do a follow-on post) that can inspire you to change the rules of the game in business operations and management:

Working Principle #1: Ask Why Often – Why ask why?

“Why?” is the most important question, not asked nearly enough.

Hint: “Because I said so,” is not a valid answer.

  • Why does it work this way?
  • Why is that our goal?
  • Why did you say no?
  • Why are we treating people differently?
  • Why is this policy?
  • Why don’t we enter this market?
  • Why did you change your mind?
  • Why are we having this meeting?
  • Why not?

Working Principle #2: A Path which may look like a shortcut may not actually be a shortcut – Quick shortcuts (in search of)

There aren’t many actual shortcuts.

There are merely direct paths…

Most people don’t take them, because they frighten us–too direct, I guess. It’s easy to avoid the things that frighten us if we wander around for a while. Stalling takes many forms, and one of them looks like a shortcut.

Things that look like shortcuts are actually detours (disguised as less work).

Working Principle #3: Identify and focus on the Leak First – Insatiable

Long-lasting systems can’t survive if they remain insatiable.

An insatiable thirst for food, power, energy, reassurance, clicks, funding or other raw material will eventually lead to failure. That’s because there’s never enough to satisfy someone or something that’s insatiable. The organization amps up because its need is unmet. It gets out of balance, changing what had previously worked to get more of what it craves. Sooner or later, a crash.

More fame! More money! More investment! Push too hard and you lose what you came with and don’t get what you came for.

An insatiable appetite is a symptom: There’s a hole in the bucket. Something’s leaking out. When a system (or a person) continues to demand more and more but doesn’t produce in response, that’s because the resources aren’t being used properly, something is leaking.

If your organization demands ever more attention or effort or cash to produce the same output, it makes more sense to focus on the leak than it does to work ever harder to feed the beast.

Working Principle #4: It is not about You, it is about the Outcome -The quickest way to get things done and make change

Not the easiest, but the quickest:

Don’t demand authority.

Eagerly take responsibility.

Relentlessly give credit.

Working Principle #5: Caring Enough is a competitive advantage in your hands – “It’s not business, it’s personal”

It’s too easy to blame the organization and the system and the bottom line for decisions that a person would never be willing to take responsibility for.

Whenever you can, work with people who take it personally.

And finally a bonus one from Mr. Godin that I can’t just resist putting in here – It’s never too late…….to start heading in the right direction.

There are many new initiatives that I started on and new directions that I took in the last year inspired by Seth’s daily doses. Who inspires you ? What blogs do you follow that are a must read for you? What do you think of the five principles above? Have you tried them at work ?  What other posts from Seth have you found thought provoking? I would love to hear back and learn from you.

Five Practices to Get People to Work Together – Entering the Collaboration Zone

Five Practices to Get People to Work Together – Entering the Collaboration Zone

by | Business, Business Operations, Career, Communication, Leadership, Management, Managing Yourself, Mentoring, Performance, Productivity, World of Work

It is tough times for businesses today. Never has it been as important as now to do more with less, share resources and leverage each other’s strengths and get people to work TOGETHER as a single unit to beat the odds. Collaboration is the key to accelerating performance improvements and transformation. Different cultures, working styles and views make any project or initiative that needs collaboration a nightmare.

It does not have to be that way, though.  With a little bit of respect, give-and-take and clear communication, collaboration can become a reality.  Here are five behaviors to get people to work together that if put into practice will align individual performers into a high performance cohesive team ready to take on any challenge:

Get People to Work Together #1: Have One Shared Purpose –

Everyone on the team needs to have a shared purpose or goal leaving individual ambitions or personal agendas aside. Before starting on a project or mission, decide what the primary motive for collaboration is and what needs to be achieved when. Pull your weight, give it your best effort and be mindful about deadlines and commitments.

Get People to Work Together #2: Treat Each Other With Respect –

Treat each other with respect. Allow different views to come on the table giving each view equal consideration before collectively agreeing on the best course of action. Listen, participate and contribute. Give value to get value.

Get People to Work Together #3: Share Credit –

Don’t be an appreciation hog and shy away from giving appreciation where it is due. Be quick to praise and slow to blame. Aim for visibility of the group efforts and not just of your own. As Harry Truman said – It is amazing how much you can accomplish when it doesn’t matter who gets the credit.

Get People to Work Together #4: Let go of the “I” –

You may be an expert and know just the right way to get things done but that’s not what is wanted here. Let go of your ego and consider what the right way is to proceed as a team. Focus your energies and abilities in competing “outside” rather than “inside”. In-fighting is a sure recipe for failure.

Get People to Work Together #5: Leverage Strengths and Manage Weaknesses –

Leverage strengths and make up for each other’s weaknesses to take your group to levels of success that would not have been possible individually. Spend some time knowing each other’s strengths and weakness – ask questions, share ideas, learn new information, and bounce suggestions off one another. Then, divide responsibilities and set accountabilities so that the right people are on the right jobs and the goal becomes manageable.

What other behaviors have worked to get people to work together and improve collaboration in your organization? What irritates you when you are part of a team? I would love to get your insights.

Pic Courtesy : Tim Fishburne, the Marketoonist.