What makes us think we're going to get sued if we choose to fire a poor performer? We need to feel confident and comfortable in our supervisory abilities to make good employment decisions that benefit the function, productivity and profitability of our organizations. And that means dismissing those individuals whose performance is contrary to these objectives.

If you just hired an employee, it's the manager's job to help that person succeed. But if you discover that the employee isn't working out, what do you do? I say, "Act Quick!"

Determine whether the employee's problems are something that training, coaching and time will resolve. If so, start a program that ensures the results you want.

But if the problem is a true absence of skills, interpersonal abilities, common sense, attitude, motivation, team work or other "unfixable" work deficiency, document the problem, and let the person go. The longer they stay, the harder it is to justify the termination and the greater your potential of paying unemployment benefits.

My guess is that no matter how quickly you let the person go, coworkers will still ask you (or themselves), "What took so long?" We underestimate the impact of a poor performer on employee morale. So, take charge and act swiftly. As long as you're not discriminating against a protected class of employee, a lawsuit is a low risk. Do what's right for your organization.

Copyright © 2005 Arlene Vernon, HRx, Inc.

 

Sometimes we feel so pressured to fill a job opening, that we rush into a quick decision - not necessarily a good decision. We've all had at least one experience where we thought we selected the right person, only to find out that their "evil twin" showed up for the job.

Consider these questions to improve your hiring process:

• How long do you spend interviewing a candidate? A quick 30 minutes or a calculated 60+ minutes?
   
• How many people interview the candidate to give you different insights?
   
• Do you interview once or do you conduct a second or third interview to evaluate consistency?
   
• Are your interview questions thought-provoking or are they routine, not showing how the candidate thinks?
   
• Did you test the candidate's ability to do the job or are you relying on their self-assured "yes" answer?

There are 100s of questions I can pose to help you redesign and strengthen your interview process. The key is to take the time to learn what the candidate really can do for you.

If you only make the few changes suggested above, you will be hiring slower, taking more of your precious time. Remember, the value is in spending time today to save time in the long run. You will have much better odds of getting the right person the first time.