It’s a New Year and many companies are in the process of hiring. But if you’ve recently had to fire an employee or lay one off instead, then you might be feeling discouraged about the year ahead. But don’t let this impact the entire team.
As a manager, it’s your job to ensure your staff is performing optimally. If there’s an employee who isn’t able to do their work – and you gave them ample warnings and opportunities to improve – then it’s up to you to make the hard choice to keep the overall team strong.
The question is: now that the deed is done, how do you communicate it to the rest of your staff? Here are some tips to help you:
Be transparent about the situation.
Don’t let a day go by without addressing the situation. The rumor mill has a way of getting out of hand at work and you don’t want your employees to start wondering if they’re about to lose their jobs. So address the issue immediately and be honest with your staff members that an employee was fired. You can simply send around an email and state something such as:
“Friday was John’s last day on the job. Our company wishes him the best and we will now get to work finding a replacement. In the meantime, Mike will be handling his unfinished projects. Please let him know if you have any questions.”
But don’t share every detail.
You don’t need to go into the nitty gritty details as to why a person was fired. Often, if there is an underperforming employee, the whole team is already aware of the situation, so you don’t need to dive into a deep explanation. Even if they don’t know, you shouldn’t be sharing information that’s private between you and the employee. Simply let your staff know that the firing occurred and when to expect a replacement to be hired.
Make sure employees understand how you handle performance problems.
If the employee was fired due to an issue with their performance, make sure that your existing staff is aware of your expectations and the consequences for not meeting them. This is a good time to do a quick review of the area’s of the employee handbook that are related to this area and to address any concerns or challenges your employees are facing. You want to ensure everyone is on the same page and fully understands how issues with performance will be handled.
Do you need help finding a replacement hire?
Let Provisional Recruiting know. As one of the Northwest’s leading recruiting teams, we have the candidate network, as well as the expertise to help you source, screen and hire talented individuals that will contribute to your company’s success. Contact us today to learn more!