How to avoid ungraceful moments while dismissal?

Managers and directors always experience these unpleasant moments when they have to fire an employee. I am sure on 100% that all business owners consider dismissal process as a horrible experience for all people who are involved in this. Basically, if you are a “normal person with feelings” you will try to avoid this because nobody wants to see when someone is miserable, crying or upset especially if you are the reason. However, we understand that without necessary staff reduction we won’t be able to grow. Maybe this sounds cruel but business is like a home plant, you have to keep an eye on it always and see if there is an unnecessary outgrowth or withered twig, you simply have to cut it off otherwise the plant would die over time. The same thing happens when you have to fire someone, if your employee is rather a burden than support, you definitely should solve this problem. First of all let’s figure out how to prevent excessive dismissal and how to deal with it when you actually have to do this.

Genuinely incompetent people

It's our scourge. It comes so often when in-office HR specialist simply cannot select or find competent people, especially if it is about IT. Of course you say: “But we have tests!” Yes, you do have tests, but candidates have Internet. I am trying to say that only an IT specialist during a personal interview can actually identify if that candidate is knowledgeable. The process of sorough selection is quite big. Usually, staffing companies conduct several tests, try to understand candidate’s personality, then have actual interview, and moreover, these procedures are under the guidance of highly qualified specialists. Basically, Staffing companies are intended to find a star for your business so that you would not be forced to fire him/her afterwards. Anyway, you should be on 100% sure that you found a perfect match even though you count on your own resources during staff search.  

Good liers

Well… In order to avoid misunderstanding we do so many tests and interviews but we are not insured against liars. It happens very rare but some people are so good at lying that they can mislead even the most experienced recruiters. These people lie about everything, their experience, their personality and their job expectations. The only question is why are they doing this if they don’t really want to grow and develop within a company. They simply get a position and still a chance from another person. Maybe in this case you won’t feel sorry when you will have to fire this employee. However, it is still risky to have these people in your company since they still the most valuable assets you have, which are your time and patience.    

They are bored

Once in a while we all experience some boredom and a lack of inspiration. Some people overcome this and move on but some stuck and that’s why they need a kick. It does not mean that you have to fire your employees every time they lose their enthusiasm. First of all let them know that there is more interesting to come and they should be ready for this. If it doesn’t work out, and you have noticed some missed deadlines and poor quality of project implementation, you can always put forward warnings. Eventually, your patience should not last forever. Then you may without a twinge of conscience fire your negligent employee and say: “I warned you and the the only person to blame is you.”  

How to fight our feelings

Despite the fact that you realize all the necessity of firing your employee, you still may experience some sort of awkwardness. You may feel sorry for this person since you kind of took responsibility for him/her. Yes, you gave some promises to your specialist, a promise to pay salary, to provide certain working conditions. What if I remind you that your specialist gave some promises instead, like keeping to deadlines or performing high quality of work. If people do not comply with the terms, they should pay for this. But what about someone whom you don’t need anymore because you decided to close the project or department? Then you have an obstacle because you will have to explain your employee that you don’t need him/her anymore. You have this fear to humiliate the person and as a sequence want to avoid responsibility. This is the hardest part when you have to explain politely that you have to fire this person.     

What is the solution  

There are so many reasons to fire your employees and there is no need to discuss them right now because it is always your own perception. The most simple solution in this case is to use staffing companies which take over control hiring and dismissal processes so that you could avoid any inconveniences with these things. Furthermore, you may even choose an option of a remote dedicated team whenever you need it. This is considered to be not only convenient but less expensive for your business as well.