Monday, April 26, 2010

Up in the Air

So, I finally saw this movie. If you haven't seen it, it's probably supposed to be this deep movie about life choices and blah, blah, blah. But, what it really was about was firing people.

This is something I know about.

If you want to see it and don't want any spoilers, stop reading. Oh, I'm not going to share the big plot twists, I'm just going to talk about firing.

I liked some of the dialogue used in the firings, but this line
Anybody who ever built an empire, or changed the world, sat where you are now. And it's *because* they sat there that they were able to do it.

really grated on my nerves. Yes, many people that have been laid off end up better off in the long run. I've seen it with my own eyes. But, that line will not go over well.

And the whole sending in a consultant to give the news is really lousy. Yes, firing someone is hard. I've done management trainings where we have the managers practice what they are going to say and some of them can't even get the words out of their mouth when it is just practicing. It's a really, really, really hard thing to do. And if you hire a consulting firm to come in and give the news then I'll come over and fire you for doing such a thing. Laying someone off is a manager's job, and if you don't have the guts to do it yourself then you need to go back to being an individual contributor because you don't have what it takes.

Further more, this Evil HR Lady won't do it for you either. Yes, I'll sit in there with you (always have a witness!), and I'll even jump in to rescue you if need be, but the words of "your position has been eliminated and today is your last day," better darn well come out of the direct supervisor's lips. (I'll settle for your boss's boss in a pinch, but it better be someone in the direct chain.)

And (spoiler alert!) I'm glad that they gave up on the internet firing. Talk about an awful idea. I do give Natalie credit though, she was young and dumb and thought it was a great idea. I liked her character.

What are your thoughts on firing?

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