The average Sparefoot employee is 30 years old; a full five years my senior. So on the rare occasion when I have to let someone go, it can be difficult breaking the news to someone more experienced than myself. It is the one part of my job that I absolutely despise, but it is one of the most important things a CEO can do. This is how I tackle it:
(Wo)Man up
If you are uncertain as to whether or not you, the CEO, should be the one to fire an employee, the definite answer is: yes, you should. I am a firm believer in transparency with my employees, and if I have a manager do the firing, how can I expect my team to trust me? I’m the one who hired them, so I should be the one to let them go. I understand this is not a plausible approach for every organization–many are simply too large. But for medium-sized outfits, I believe this is the best practice. Sure it’s awful, but you need to suck it up and be a good leader.
To read the original article: Firing Employees as a Young Entrepreneur
