How I fired half the team
Dismissal often becomes an unpleasant and painful problem not only for the employee, but also for his manager. When it comes to massive layoffs, put out the lights ... or dance and eat sweets. That's exactly what the CEO and co-founder of Close.io did . And then I wrote an article about it. And then we transferred it to Alconost .
One of the most difficult things that I had to do in the role of the CEO is parting with a half of the team. Our startup had times when there were not enough hands to meet the demand; we hired dozens and dozens of sales specialists, trained them ... And then the business went into decline and a couple of really tough months stood out.
Dismissing an employee in a young company is bad in and of itself. But parting with many at once is a separate song, and I learned a lot in the process.
The issue of dismissal can not be called popular among entrepreneurs. Everyone loves to talk about hiring and their interview secrets. But when it comes to parting, people rarely discuss the details. Because:
a) it is "crap";
b) no one wants to earn the image of the dismissor.
')
But I believe that it is useful for entrepreneurs to share such experience as well. I hope that my story is at least partially useful if you face the issue of layoffs.
This decision was not easy for me. What is the best way to announce it? How will the team respond? How will layoffs affect those I would like to keep in the state?
I set aside a whole day for one-on-one conversations with each employee of the company. It was rather strange and embarrassing, because the others were waiting for their turn and wondering if they would stay or be fired.
1. I explained the situation as directly as possible. So that people understand the situation and the reasons for our separation, I tried to speak clearly and unequivocally.
2. Then I asked what they were going to do next. Did they want to pursue a sales career in another company? Or were you going to take a short break? Maybe someone wanted to start their own business?
3. Next, I allocated two hours for each of them next week. At that time I was completely at their disposal, for any questions. I did my best to help them get what they wanted. If someone wanted to find a new job in sales - I called friends of the CEO and managers with the recommendation of their former employees. If someone wanted to launch their startup, we conducted a joint brainstorming on the subject of a business model and attracting investment. In general, I was ready to do everything in my power to help former colleagues achieve their goals.
4. We discussed the details: who has the laptop left, does it need access to the mail, what about the keys to the office, etc. It was embarrassing to talk about it, and I hated those moments. But to go through the list is necessary, and I just tried to get it over with faster.
5. Then I wondered if they wanted to discuss or tell something else. Maybe they have some feedback?
6. Finally, we shook hands (or shrugged shoulders) and said goodbye.
And then the next one came in, and the conversation was largely repeated.
The day ended with my dancing to the song N'Sync - “Bye, Bye, Bye” and everyone eating the cake. If you want details of the evening, it is better to watch the video:
We all agreed to meet at dinner in about three months. It was a strange feeling - I just fired half of the team, and here we are all together, we are quite friendly and we are positively looking into the future.
After I helped former colleagues to take a strong position in sales in other companies, each of them wanted to use our sales support application. Some have even become better customers, and I am incredibly proud of how our relationships evolved.
I hope you never have to lay off good people. But if this happens, remember how I once had to part with half of the team, and how this led to good changes for all parties. Even if the process looked awful.
Have you fired your employees? Or maybe you yourself were fired and want to give advice to those who have to part with their subordinates?
About the translator
The article is translated in Alconost.
Alconost is engaged in the localization of applications, games and websites in 60 languages. Language translators, linguistic testing, cloud platform with API, continuous localization, 24/7 project managers, any formats of string resources.
We also make advertising and training videos - for websites selling, image, advertising, training, teasers, expliners, trailers for Google Play and the App Store.
Read more: https://alconost.com
One of the most difficult things that I had to do in the role of the CEO is parting with a half of the team. Our startup had times when there were not enough hands to meet the demand; we hired dozens and dozens of sales specialists, trained them ... And then the business went into decline and a couple of really tough months stood out.
Dismissing an employee in a young company is bad in and of itself. But parting with many at once is a separate song, and I learned a lot in the process.
Discuss dismissal
The issue of dismissal can not be called popular among entrepreneurs. Everyone loves to talk about hiring and their interview secrets. But when it comes to parting, people rarely discuss the details. Because:
a) it is "crap";
b) no one wants to earn the image of the dismissor.
')
But I believe that it is useful for entrepreneurs to share such experience as well. I hope that my story is at least partially useful if you face the issue of layoffs.
How to part with a dozen people
This decision was not easy for me. What is the best way to announce it? How will the team respond? How will layoffs affect those I would like to keep in the state?
I set aside a whole day for one-on-one conversations with each employee of the company. It was rather strange and embarrassing, because the others were waiting for their turn and wondering if they would stay or be fired.
My dismissal talk plan
1. I explained the situation as directly as possible. So that people understand the situation and the reasons for our separation, I tried to speak clearly and unequivocally.
2. Then I asked what they were going to do next. Did they want to pursue a sales career in another company? Or were you going to take a short break? Maybe someone wanted to start their own business?
3. Next, I allocated two hours for each of them next week. At that time I was completely at their disposal, for any questions. I did my best to help them get what they wanted. If someone wanted to find a new job in sales - I called friends of the CEO and managers with the recommendation of their former employees. If someone wanted to launch their startup, we conducted a joint brainstorming on the subject of a business model and attracting investment. In general, I was ready to do everything in my power to help former colleagues achieve their goals.
4. We discussed the details: who has the laptop left, does it need access to the mail, what about the keys to the office, etc. It was embarrassing to talk about it, and I hated those moments. But to go through the list is necessary, and I just tried to get it over with faster.
5. Then I wondered if they wanted to discuss or tell something else. Maybe they have some feedback?
6. Finally, we shook hands (or shrugged shoulders) and said goodbye.
And then the next one came in, and the conversation was largely repeated.
Eat cakes and dance under N'Sync
The day ended with my dancing to the song N'Sync - “Bye, Bye, Bye” and everyone eating the cake. If you want details of the evening, it is better to watch the video:
We all agreed to meet at dinner in about three months. It was a strange feeling - I just fired half of the team, and here we are all together, we are quite friendly and we are positively looking into the future.
Unexpected and completely impenetrable growth secret
After I helped former colleagues to take a strong position in sales in other companies, each of them wanted to use our sales support application. Some have even become better customers, and I am incredibly proud of how our relationships evolved.
If you have to fire someone ...
I hope you never have to lay off good people. But if this happens, remember how I once had to part with half of the team, and how this led to good changes for all parties. Even if the process looked awful.
Have you fired your employees? Or maybe you yourself were fired and want to give advice to those who have to part with their subordinates?
About the translator
The article is translated in Alconost.
Alconost is engaged in the localization of applications, games and websites in 60 languages. Language translators, linguistic testing, cloud platform with API, continuous localization, 24/7 project managers, any formats of string resources.
We also make advertising and training videos - for websites selling, image, advertising, training, teasers, expliners, trailers for Google Play and the App Store.
Read more: https://alconost.com
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/291338/
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