Knowing Who, When, and How to Fire

Firing somebody is a truly miserable experience, and unless you’ve done it yourself, you’re unlikely to appreciate just how miserable it is.

Perhaps this explains why so many CEOs don’t fire the people that they know they should, or at the very least why they so often defer doing so until the evidence points to only one remaining option.

Unfortunate at this reality may be, in this week's blog post, I will argue that firing (specifically knowing who, when, and how to fire) is a required core competency for any CEO, and is arguably as important as hiring, communication, capital allocation, and other tools within the CEO’s toolkit. The extent to which this is an unpleasant (and perhaps even unpopular) topic to discuss doesn’t negate its critical importance in building and sustaining a healthy and vibrant company.

For those who have had the unfortunate duty of having to fire somebody in the past, I'd be interested to hear your thoughts and reflections after reading this post, including if you disagree with anything contained within. Link below, I hope you enjoy.

This Will be a Hard Conversation: Knowing Who, When, and How to Fire