Greg Crisp

A business relationship is like any other human, interpersonal relationship. It has its ups and downs, and when it’s over, it is over. There’s no use prolonging the agony.

“Fired” is a harsh word. Today’s HR vernacular has a number of softer versions, like “laid off”, “let go”, and “RIF’d”. “Due to the loss of a major client/current business realities/”the Economy”, etc, we’ve had to make some budget cuts, and can no longer afford to keep you on board.” Give it name. It would be kinder to just say “you’re fired.” Management’s desire to deflect responsibility for the situation, either yours or theirs, does not mask the end result: You no longer have a job, through no explicit choice of your own.

When I was fired from a job a couple of years ago, the director did us both a favor. He paid me for the following two weeks, then sent me packing immediately. Requiring me to stick around for the two weeks would have been self-defeating. Having lost my job while being around others who hadn’t would certainly have impaired my attitude. It was better for everyone to walk me out the door. Since I was getting paid for the customary two weeks anyway, I had no hard feelings. In fact, I was happy to just be done. It was the right thing to do, and the timing was never going to get better.

Many jobs in this business have a known term, which typically equates to one or more phases of a project, and whose end dates are well known in advance. I’ve been in these situations also, and have worked up to the last minute finishing what could be finished, as have any of the more professional bit plumbers I’ve known.

Then there are the more open-ended situations, like so-called “perm” jobs, or contracts to provide “staff augmentation”. When these are terminated, it’s often without prior plan or expectation, especially if the termination is due to budget cuts, poor performance, or the basic desire to seek life elsewhere.

I use the phrase “so-called perm” because, in my experience, calling a job “perm” or “contract” rarely correlates to the duration the job is held by the individual. I’ve watched perm employees come and go, while contractors remain. In IT, “perm” often means fixed income [a.k.a. salary] for variable hours and Paid Time Off, while “contract” typically means pay directly associated with the number of hours worked.

The typical reason given for keeping someone on board after giving unexpected notice is to perform “knowledge transfer”. In my experience, this rarely happens to any degree of effectiveness. Here are the scenarios:

• The individual has been fired because the job they hold is no longer needed or funded: The fired individual is checked out, and any amount of effort will be half-assed at best.
• The individual has quit for another job, to go fishing, etc: The quit individual is checked out. See also: the previous bullet.
• The individual has been fired for poor performance: Even if they aren’t checked out or angry, if they sucked so bad at their job that they needed to be fired for it, is there really any value in whatever knowledge they might transfer?

In any case, those that remain will be better able to get on with the job once their now former co-worker has left the building.

It is customary to give a notice when ending a business relationship. If there is truly purpose for this, then do so. But consider: if your presence in the business is really important enough to require a transition, is two weeks enough? If two weeks is enough, are you really that critical to daily business operations? And is it really a good idea to have a single person, other than an officer, be the only one capable of any critical function?

As an entrepreneur, you learn that your goal must be to manage yourself out of the daily operations of the business, so that the business can survive and thrive without your presence. This should be the goal of everyone in the business, no matter their level or equity stake. Question the motives of those whose actions seem counter to this.

Update: I heard a new code phrase today: “Impacted Positions”.  E.g.  ”Those whose positions have been impacted by the change in our business…”.

Update: Thanks for this one, NetworkWorld: “Synergy-related headcount restructuring”.  Wonderful.

Update: Getting fired via Facebook [and other social media, like Twitter]. “@unfortunatesoul btw you’re #fired sry”

Update: “headcount reduction in certain areas that are less core to this year’s objectives”.

Update: “voluntary job attrition plan”.

Update: Fired via text message, and it cost $0.25 to get the message.