Retail
Subscription
to Advertise
  • ISSUES
    • 1996 to 1999
      • 1996
        • May 1996
        • June 1996
        • July 1996
        • August 1996
        • September 1996
        • October 1996
        • November 1996
        • December 1996
      • 1997
    • 2000 to 2009
      • 2006
        • January 2006
        • February 2006
        • March 2006
        • April 2006
        • May 2006
        • June 2006
        • July 2006
        • August 2006
        • September 2006
        • October 2006
        • November 2006
        • December 2006
      • 2007
        • March 2007
        • April 2007
        • May 2007
        • July 2007
        • August 2007
        • September 2007
        • November 2007
        • December 2007
      • 2008
        • January 2008
        • February 2008
        • March 2008
        • April 2008
        • May 2008
        • June 2008
        • July 2008
        • August 2008
        • September 2008
        • October 2008
        • November 2008
        • December 2008
      • 2009
        • January 2009
        • February 2009
        • March 2009
        • April 2009
        • May 2009
        • June 2009
        • June 2009
        • July 2009
        • August 2009
        • September 2009
        • October 2009
        • November 2009
        • December 2009
    • 2010 to 2019
      • 2010
        • January 2010
        • February 2010
        • March 2010
        • April 2010
        • May 2010
        • June 2010
        • July 2010
        • August 2010
        • December 2010
      • 2011
        • January 2011
        • February 2011
        • March 2011
        • April 2011
        • May 2011
        • June 2011
        • July 2011
        • August 2011
        • September 2011
        • October 2011
        • November 2011
        • December 2011
      • 2012
        • January 2012
        • February 2012
        • March 2012
        • April 2012
        • May 2012
        • June 2012
        • July 2012
        • August 2012
        • September 2012
        • October 2012
        • November 2012
        • December 2012
      • 2013
        • January 2013
        • February 2013
        • March 2013
        • April 2013
        • May 2013
        • June 2013
        • July 2013
        • August 2013
        • September 2013
        • November 2013
        • December 2013
      • 2014
        • January 2014
        • February 2014
        • March 2014
        • April 2014
        • May 2014
        • June 2014
        • July 2014
        • August 2014
        • September 2014
        • October 2014
        • November 2014
        • December 2014
      • 2015
        • January 2015
        • February 2015
        • March 2015
        • April 2015
        • May 2015
        • June 2015
        • July 2015
        • August 2015
        • September 2015
        • October 2015
        • November 2015
        • December 2015
      • 2016
        • January 2016
        • February 2016
        • March 2016
        • April 2016
        • May 2016
        • June 2016
        • July 2016
        • August 2016
        • October 2016
        • November 2016
        • December 2016
      • 2017
        • January 2017
        • February 2017
        • March 2017
        • April 2017
        • May 2017
        • June 2017
        • July 2017
        • August 2017
        • September 2017
        • October 2017
        • November 2017
        • December 2017
      • 2018
        • January 2018
        • February 2018
        • March 2018
        • April 2018
        • May 2018
        • June 2018
        • July 2018
        • August 2018
        • September 2018
        • October 2018
        • November 2018
        • December 2018
      • 2019
        • January 2019
        • February 2019
        • March 2019
        • April 2019
        • May 2019
        • June 2019
        • July 2019
        • August 2019
        • September 2019
        • October 2019
        • November 2019
        • December 2019
    • 2020 to 2023
      • 2020
        • January 2020
        • February 2020
        • March 2020
        • April 2020
        • May 2020
        • June 2020
        • July 2020
        • August 2020
        • September 2020
        • October 2020
        • November 2020
        • December 2020
      • 2021
        • January 2021
        • February 2021
        • March 2021
        • April 2021
        • May 2021
        • June 2021
        • July 2021
        • August 2021
        • September 2021
        • October 2021
        • November 2021
        • December 2021
      • 2022
        • January 2022
        • June 2022
        • February 2022
        • July 2022
        • March 2022
        • April 2022
        • August 2022
        • May 2022
        • December 2022
      • 2023
        • January 2023
        • February 2023
        • March 2023
        • July 2023
        • April 2023
        • May 2023
        • June 2023
  • FOR DIGITAL SUBSCRIPTION
  • BT AWARDS
    • BT Top 40
      • BT Top 40 2021 – 2022
    • BT Top 30
      • BT Top 30 2018 – 2019
    • BT Top 25
      • BT Top 25 2011 – 2012
      • BT Top 25 2012 – 2013
      • BT Top 25 2013 – 2014
    • BT Top 20
      • BT Top 20 2009 – 2010
      • BT Top 20 2010 – 2011
    • BT Top 10
      • BT Top 10 2008 – 2009
      • BT Top 10 2007 – 2008
      • BT Top 10 2006 – 2007
      • BT Top 10 2005 – 2006
      • BT Top 10 2003 – 2004
      • BT Top 10 2000 – 2001
      • BT Top 10 1999 – 2000
      • BT Top 10 1998 – 1999
      • BT Top 10 1997 – 1998
      • BT Top 10 1996 – 1997
      • BT Top 10 1995 – 1996
  • ABOUT US
No Result
View All Result
Business Today
No Result
View All Result

Sacking is Hard. Managers Make it Harder.

in January 2006
0

By Dinesh Weerakkody.

Most Sri Lankan managers who have survived the trau­mas of industry overcapac­ity and restructuring, the onslaught of foreign talent, and the growing sophistication of customers and tech­nologies will agree that getting rid of employees is one of the most difficult executive actions a manager has to take in his career – often because they are totally clueless about how to rise to the occasion and be a positive influ­ence on the departing employee. It is perhaps the most unpleasant task of a manager’s career. Having to tell employees that they no longer have a job. That can cause nervousness, guilt and fear, which is understandable. Often CEOs use ill-prepared manag­ers to give the message. As a result they fluff the interview. Failing to give the individual relevant information, appearing offhand or insensitive or making promises that cannot be kept are common mistakes that top man­agers make. Some managers abrogate responsibility altogether. “You’d be shocked at how poorly this is managed,” says Ahamed Ali, Chief Executive of Cornucopia con­sulting in Bangalore, which advises top Indian companies on human re­sources issues. I have heard reports of employees learning in emails that they’re being laid off. That is poor management. As the slowdown continues to put many out of work, Consultants, are still to provide a guide to handle redundancy interviews. A step-by-step guide is long overdue that covers everything from the details managers need to know about to severance packages, benefits and outplacement deals to handling employees’ reac­tions. Mishandling the task can cause more than temporary distress for the employee, says Ahamed Ali, who has more than 25 years’ experience in hu­man resources consultancy. Research following the mass re­dundancies of the early 2000s found damage to the morale of remaining employees lasted longer if they felt their departing colleagues had been treated rudely or unfairly. Legal action is another danger. If managers start of­fering different people different pack­ages, you end up with inequities that can become the basis for legal suits. 

Treated with Dignity
In any redundancy situation employ­ees should be treated with dignity, even when they are escorted straight out of the building, a policy still com­mon in many companies. Some US technology companies have recently sent employees to off-site locations to tell them their jobs are axed and they cannot return to their offices. Such policies would simply load more guilt on to individual managers.

The best thing is to tell an em­ployee that’s the deal and they’re not being singled out. Fridays are appar­ently the best time to deliver the bad news, giving people the weekend to prepare for the reality of a work­ing day without any work to go to. The venue for the meeting should be private and the conversation un­interrupted. Managers are advised to rehearse their remarks but never to read from a script – to start with the reason for the cuts, to make clear this does not reflect on the employees work, and to express empathy for the difficulties it will cause.

Ahamed Ali, a former HR Asia Pacific Area Vice President of Glaxo­SmithKline who took a leadership role in the merger of Glaxo Wellcome and SmithKline Beecham, says, “The employee’s reaction may be the most difficult part.” The management should ‘be prepared for a cloud of uncertainty to settle over the company, because employees start wondering about the future of the firm and they get braced for more surprises. The most common responses are: accepting, ar­gumentative, angry, confused, upset. Therefore, overwhelmed. Managers need professional ad­vice on how to cope with the trauma. For example, an often-angry em­ployee would say: “This is a sell out or oh yeah, like they’re going to save money on my salary. Why not lay off one of the fat cats who make 10 times what I do?” Another, overwhelmed by the news, asks “How am I going to find another job? There is nobody else who hires people in my position.” For an employee in the middle of a personal crisis, this can be the crush­ing blow. The ones managers should worry about most are the people who are overwhelmed or distraught. You know that some employees will be hot heads and argue and blame everybody around them. But there are always a few employees who are ready to take the package and go.

Professional Tips
Before you embark on a challenging mission of telling an employee to go, check whether key messages have sunk in. Then should you be flexible and make exceptions whenever you can? There may be cases where an exception can be made, but it is al­ways better to check first rather than making a promise that you can’t keep. Then should you tell the employee: “I know how you feel.” No, because you don’t. Should you be subtle with the news to spare their feelings? No. Unless you make yourself very clear, they may not understand that they are losing their job. Much of the advice seems like common sense. So why are manag­ers often ill-prepared for the task? For one thing it may happen only once in their careers and many HR Departments do not have the capabil­ity to advise their teams. Most CEOs do not have the required skills and competencies to handle employee separation because it is not antici­pated when managers are recruited and receiving training. It may seem negative and defensive to suggest that an early task should be learning best practice in giving people the marching orders.

Mass job cuts also put the whole organization under strain, leaving senior managers unable to devote time to emotional needs of those who are departing. The worst thing that managers do is to be unnecessarily terse and cut off employees’ questions or reactions. It is all about being open and honest, listening, recognizing that the messages are going to be unwel­come and being empathetic without taking all the trauma on yourself. In the final analysis there may be no one good way to deliver the mes­sage to a departing employee, but there are certainly many bad ways to do it! @

Business Today August 2023

Business Today September 2023

  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions

© 2023 BT Options. All Rights Reserved

No Result
View All Result
  • ISSUES
    • 1996 to 1999
      • 1996
      • 1997
    • 2000 to 2009
      • 2006
      • 2007
      • 2008
      • 2009
    • 2010 to 2019
      • 2010
      • 2011
      • 2012
      • 2013
      • 2014
      • 2015
      • 2016
      • 2017
      • 2018
      • 2019
    • 2020 to 2023
      • 2020
      • 2021
      • 2022
      • 2023
  • FOR DIGITAL SUBSCRIPTION
  • BT AWARDS
    • BT Top 40
      • BT Top 40 2021 – 2022
    • BT Top 30
      • BT Top 30 2018 – 2019
    • BT Top 25
      • BT Top 25 2011 – 2012
      • BT Top 25 2012 – 2013
      • BT Top 25 2013 – 2014
    • BT Top 20
      • BT Top 20 2009 – 2010
      • BT Top 20 2010 – 2011
    • BT Top 10
      • BT Top 10 2008 – 2009
      • BT Top 10 2007 – 2008
      • BT Top 10 2006 – 2007
      • BT Top 10 2005 – 2006
      • BT Top 10 2003 – 2004
      • BT Top 10 2000 – 2001
      • BT Top 10 1999 – 2000
      • BT Top 10 1998 – 1999
      • BT Top 10 1997 – 1998
      • BT Top 10 1996 – 1997
      • BT Top 10 1995 – 1996
  • ABOUT US

© 2023 BT Options. All Rights Reserved