How do you know when it’s time to fire?

Funny story to tell you today… I’d planned to write on this topic way back in March. It was something that had come up with a few of my clients when they’d hired help and things were just not working out.

I tend to have anywhere from 40-75 blog topics ruminating on my list at any time so I go in, decide which ones are most topical and requested, and then write them when I’m really in the flow of writing.

My content manager takes the post, occasionally reminds me to submit the content, and then posts for me.

So what happened? Why didn’t this post come out in March? The reason my blog post didn’t go live is how you know when it’s time to fire.

1. It’s time to fire when your team member checks out.

This can be hard to gauge, but when they’re non responsive to email for long periods of time (I’m talking days, not overnight when normal people sleep) or simply out of touch, it’s a sign that your team member has stopped caring.

You can’t train for attitude. If someone is bored, tired of the work and disengaged, it takes a lot of work to re-energize them. Personally, I don’t want team members who require constant cheerleading to do their jobs. I’m busy enough as it is.

2. It’s time to fire when your team member stops doing core tasks or complains about them.

Once, many months back, I had a team member complain that our software was “wonky” and should be replaced. My answer may have been a little glib but I communicated that I pay for them to deal with the hassle. Period.

In the case of my content manager the reason this post wasn’t live 2 months ago was because I didn’t get the heads up. Nothing spectacular, just “hey Kelly, need the blog content for Monday!”

(Please note some clients need constant prodding for content, I’m very consistent with 2 posts a week for the better part of 2 years so this was an unusual case.)

Instead I got the excuse, “it’s not fair that I have to remind you.” Well, fair or not, that is the job and it was in the job description as well.

When a team member begins to resent the work that you rely on them to do, it’s time to consider if they’re still a good fit for your company.

3. It’s time to fire when your team member is unavailable for much of the time you need.

We’ve covered mentally disengaged and even engaged but bitter, but this one is much clearer. When you need hours covered or tasks done and your team member is chronically unavailable due to a change in schedule, more work, or they’re just suddenly “too busy”, then it’s time to move on to someone who does have the time you need.

Again, you have to be reasonable here. If you advertised for 5 hours a week and now you need 40 it’s not the team member’s fault. But you do need to get clear on what they can do and make an adjustment.

Most of all I want you to see that firing an employee doesn’t have to be because of a horrendous mistake, bad mouthing, stealing or other heinous act. It can simply be “this is not working out.” You may want to phrase it as “we’re ending your contract” so it’s not as harsh sounding, but the fact is you need to protect your business and get the right support without settling.

For me, it means having a content manager who is on top of the newsletter which goes out each Wednesday morning, blog posts twice a week, keeping our Facebook page up to date and much more. And I appreciate the reminders!