How you fire someone can impact your brand

Have you ever been fired? Or had to fire someone? Let me tell you, it sucks. It sucks regardless of which side of the desk you’re on. I’ve had three experiences with being fired, and they all sucked.

The first time, the entire staff of a small ad agency was called into the conference room and the President read a statement which began, “We are forced to cut our staffing by half. The following seven people are fired…” I survived that one, but took on the duties of two other people in addition to my own work.

The second time, my job was eliminated and my employer offered me a clerical position that came with a 30 percent pay cut. I took the “consolation job” and hung in there for a year.

The third time, my position was eliminated in a re-organization effort and I was escorted to the door by a security guard, told to make an appointment to come back and get my personal belongings, and given a small severance package.

When making a decision to leave a company, employees are always counseled not to “burn bridges.” Sure it would be satisfying to holler “Take this job and shove it!” on the way out the door, but that rarely bodes well when you need a reference in the future.

Well I think the same goes for the business owner or manager: when you are forced to let someone go, don’t burn the bridge with undignified or insensitive methods. You are the leader, after all, and leadership isn’t always easy.

If you treat people decently – which you will do if you take even five minutes to think about and understand the impact your decision is having on their lives – they may just continue to sing your praises even after they’re gone. Treat them like crap, and you may find that while customers speak highly of you, past employees denegrate you repeatedly in their daily conversations. And that sort of “word of mouth” gets around just as quickly as the kind spread by customers. Maybe faster, given the “small world” nature of peoples’ personal and professional networks.

Being a “good company” is not just about good customer service – it’s about good and fair treatment of those who commit to you their time and talents. In short, how you fire someone impacts your brand and you should take the time and trouble to make sure you have a process that meets your needs as an employer but that’s fair and dignified.