PREPARATIONS

Assuming you have adequately documented the employee's performance and you are convinced you have just cause to fire him, now it is time to properly prepare yourself:

1. First, you may need to get permission from your superior or someone in Human Resources to fire the person. Be prepared to give a detailed reason for terminating the employee and be able to substantiate your claim. This makes for a convenient rehearsal for the firing.

2. Consider the person's current work assignments and what affect his firing will have on your department (co-workers, vendors, customers, delivery dates, etc.). Even if a person is working on something critical for the company, and it is absolutely necessary to terminate him, do not let the employee hold his job hostage. Even if you kept the person, there is no telling whether his work would ever be completed to your satisfaction. If he has to go, he has to go. Do not procrastinate.

3. Determine an exit strategy. To minimize disrupting the work of others, determine a proper time and date to terminate the employee. More people are fired on late Friday afternoons than any other time or day of the week. Why? Simple. It is the end of t
   Since Ritalin, Humanism, And Outcome Based Education Are Not Working - Business Can Help!
   There are solutions to schools gone wild that do not drug our kids, mask the truth about where feelings come from, call anything I do good or teach character as a series of definitions and posters.More...I was encouraged to see a recent article (along with several in the last few years) "The Great ADHD Myth" by Jenny Hope in the London edition of Daily Mail.One true story: My friend J was told that both of her adolescent boys needed to be put on Ritlan if they were to continue in public school. J and her husband began researching, seeking wise counsel, and praying. They came to the realization that before drugging their boys they needed to try total parenting. J quit her corporate job and took on free lance work as a photographer. The family moved down in lifestyle and house. Immediately, not in a few months or years, when J became a stay at home Mom, the boys behavior in school improved. She was there to greet her roguish, red-headed, and totally normal boys after school, give them a snack, ask about the day, and inquire about homework.TA-DAH! Presence, accountability, and active parenting replaced the need for drugs. Both boys proved to be positive standouts: one, a genius at creative thinking; one, a social magnet able to relate and entertain. The boys are now in their early 20's. There is power in sacrifice for the right thing. Most folks think sacrifice is a dirty word. J and her hubby found it to be renewing, encouraging, and uplifting then rewarding when it brought good fruits to the labor of rearing kids.The school's role is not to parent! That is so obvious. Look what happens when we force that role on it in the name of “good education;” it moves to drug 'em, shove 'em, and just move 'em on out (not up). The only reason we have pressed education to take on the discipline-and-control role is that we as a nation
   "If we lived in a perfect world, there wouldn't be a need for managers." - Bryce's Law

   INTRODUCTION

   I recently had a good friend experience a troubling termination of an employee. This was for a national retail distribution company where my friend serves as Sales Manager for one of the company's regional outlets. The problem centered on a young (thirty-ish) salesman who was well trained but acted like a loose cannon, e.g., policies and procedures weren't always followed, and he was caustic and abrasive with customers and suppliers alike. This inevitably resulted in some serious customer relations problems for the company. On more than one occasion, my friend was called in to bail out the salesman. His conduct and attitudes were well documented in his performance reviews and my friend went beyond the call of duty to counsel the salesman. Regardless, the salesman recently insulted a young female supplier by using the legendary "f***" word on the telephone (along with several other choice expletives). Not surprising, this traveled up and down the management chain of command until it finally landed on the desk of the Sales Manager who was told to fire the salesman. Dutifully, my friend called him into his office, explained the situation, and gave the salesman the option of allowing him to either resign or be terminated. The salesman flew into a rage and called the Sales Manager every name in the book and came close to exchanging blows with him. It was very ugly.

   I talked with my friend at length about the incident and told him if he was guilty of anything, it was that he was too kind and too often gave his people the benefit of a doubt. Whereas he always hopes for the best from an employee, I generally expect the worst and am pleasantly surprised when things work out. In other words, they have to earn my respect; they cannot take it for granted. This got me thinking about how we terminate employees these days. In the old days, if you screwed up, you were fired on the spot and shown the door. No questions asked; it was a done deal. But in today's litigious society, managers have to be more careful or face a costly lawsuit.

   I remember firing my first employee several years ago. Even though I hadn't hired the person, it was my duty to terminate him. The night before the termination, I agonized over how I would do it and what I would say. My stomach flipped-flopped and I definitely did not look forward to doing it. Nonetheless, the next day I called the employee into my office, explained his services were no longer needed, and let him go. In hindsight, I'm sure it was less than perfect, but I somehow got through it (and had a stiff drink afterwards). Since then I have had to terminate a fair share of people over the years. I no longer get upset over it and have learned a few things along the way. Perhaps the biggest lesson is that firing employees isn't for sissies. There are not many things worse a manager can do than botching a firing. We laugh at Donald Trump saying, "You're fired," on television, but that is a rigged situation where contestants already understand there is going to be only one survivor. In the real-world, a termination affects a lot of people other than the employee and yourself; it affects the employee's co-workers, family and, in the situation described above, customers and vendors. Firing an individual requires great skill and, as far as I'm concerned should be left to professionals.

   BACKGROUND

   There is a big difference between firing a person and letting a person go. Whereas the latter could be the result of work stoppages, the former is due to the performance of the individual. As such, this article is primarily concerned with firing. From the outset understand this, keeping a poor performer employed is a disservice to the company, the co-workers, you (the boss), as well as the individual. As mentioned in the beginning, a poor performer causes co-workers and/or the boss to work overtime to cover for the employee. Consider this though, it hurts the individual who is either unskilled for the job or has risen above his level of competency. This type of person has hit a "dead-end" in his career and it is unfair to keep him in a position where you know he will undoubtedly fail. Let him get on with his life in another capacity where he might succeed.

   Prior to any firing, a paper-trail is required to document the person's performance. An Employee Performance Evaluation (or "Review") should be conducted routinely, particularly in the early stages of employment. Such a Review should highlight both the person's strengths and weaknesses giving the boss an opportunity to offer advice to the employee on how to better himself. Very important, have the employee read the Review carefully and SIGN IT. Thereby, the employee can never say he was unaware of any problems.

   If the employee is struggling and you have to put him "on notice" (either improve or face termination), this should be written into the Review as well. More importantly, if you put a person "on notice" be sure to follow the worker's progress carefully, not only to make sure he is improving, but to see if he is preparing to bail out on you.

   PREPARATIONS

   Assuming you have adequately documented the employee's performance and you are convinced you have just cause to fire him, now it is time to properly prepare yourself:

   1. First, you may need to get permission from your superior or someone in Human Resources to fire the person. Be prepared to give a detailed reason for terminating the employee and be able to substantiate your claim. This makes for a convenient rehearsal for the firing.

   2. Consider the person's current work assignments and what affect his firing will have on your department (co-workers, vendors, customers, delivery dates, etc.). Even if a person is working on something critical for the company, and it is absolutely necessary to terminate him, do not let the employee hold his job hostage. Even if you kept the person, there is no telling whether his work would ever be completed to your satisfaction. If he has to go, he has to go. Do not procrastinate.

   3. Determine an exit strategy. To minimize disrupting the work of others, determine a proper time and date to terminate the employee. More people are fired on late Friday afternoons than any other time or day of the week. Why? Simple. It is the end of th
      Claim Your Successes, Blow Your Own Horn
      Do you know anyone who is afraid of talking about himself, afraid to blow his own horn? I am not referring to a narcissistic person who believes he is the ‘greatest thing since sliced bread’. I mean someone who is reluctant to let others know about his on-the-job or personal successes.Talking about oneself tends to conjure up images of conceit, self-centredness, egotism and the likes. It’s especially difficult when so many of us have been conditioned to believe that it is wrong to call attention to ourselves. On the contrary, it’s when we don’t, that opportunities pass us by. A chance for promotion eludes us because we believe the boss already knows what we can do.I remember in grade school if someone started talking about himself and how great he was, we would tell him that “self-praise is no recommendation”. That expression taught us to wait for others to shower us with praise; to wait on others to give us permission to acknowledge our accomplishments. We become adults and we find it difficult to acknowledge the role we played in the success of an event or a project. We sit back and watch others claim our successes because we are too afraid to speak up. In fact, even when others commend us for a job well done, we become embarrassed and downplay our role by saying “it’s all a part of the job”.Taking credit for your accomplishments, in or outside the workplace, is not bragging. It’s admitting to yourself that you played an important role just like the others on the team. If you don’t take the credit somebody else will.Time and again I hear clients downplay their contributions because “it’s all a part of the job”. One man told me he had interviewed for a manager’s position last year with his employer, a leading telecommunications company, and did not get the job. When he asked for feedback, he was told that he did not sell himself w
      ion of allowing him to either resign or be terminated. The salesman flew into a rage and called the Sales Manager every name in the book and came close to exchanging blows with him. It was very ugly.

      I talked with my friend at length about the incident and told him if he was guilty of anything, it was that he was too kind and too often gave his people the benefit of a doubt. Whereas he always hopes for the best from an employee, I generally expect the worst and am pleasantly surprised when things work out. In other words, they have to earn my respect; they cannot take it for granted. This got me thinking about how we terminate employees these days. In the old days, if you screwed up, you were fired on the spot and shown the door. No questions asked; it was a done deal. But in today's litigious society, managers have to be more careful or face a costly lawsuit.

      I remember firing my first employee several years ago. Even though I hadn't hired the person, it was my duty to terminate him. The night before the termination, I agonized over how I would do it and what I would say. My stomach flipped-flopped and I definitely did not look forward to doing it. Nonetheless, the next day I called the employee into my office, explained his services were no longer needed, and let him go. In hindsight, I'm sure it was less than perfect, but I somehow got through it (and had a stiff drink afterwards). Since then I have had to terminate a fair share of people over the years. I no longer get upset over it and have learned a few things along the way. Perhaps the biggest lesson is that firing employees isn't for sissies. There are not many things worse a manager can do than botching a firing. We laugh at Donald Trump saying, "You're fired," on television, but that is a rigged situation where contestants already understand there is going to be only one survivor. In the real-world, a termination affects a lot of people other than the employee and yourself; it affects the employee's co-workers, family and, in the situation described above, customers and vendors. Firing an individual requires great skill and, as far as I'm concerned should be left to professionals.

      BACKGROUND

      There is a big difference between firing a person and letting a person go. Whereas the latter could be the result of work stoppages, the former is due to the performance of the individual. As such, this article is primarily concerned with firing. From the outset understand this, keeping a poor performer employed is a disservice to the company, the co-workers, you (the boss), as well as the individual. As mentioned in the beginning, a poor performer causes co-workers and/or the boss to work overtime to cover for the employee. Consider this though, it hurts the individual who is either unskilled for the job or has risen above his level of competency. This type of person has hit a "dead-end" in his career and it is unfair to keep him in a position where you know he will undoubtedly fail. Let him get on with his life in another capacity where he might succeed.

      Prior to any firing, a paper-trail is required to document the person's performance. An Employee Performance Evaluation (or "Review") should be conducted routinely, particularly in the early stages of employment. Such a Review should highlight both the person's strengths and weaknesses giving the boss an opportunity to offer advice to the employee on how to better himself. Very important, have the employee read the Review carefully and SIGN IT. Thereby, the employee can never say he was unaware of any problems.

      If the employee is struggling and you have to put him "on notice" (either improve or face termination), this should be written into the Review as well. More importantly, if you put a person "on notice" be sure to follow the worker's progress carefully, not only to make sure he is improving, but to see if he is preparing to bail out on you.

      PREPARATIONS

      Assuming you have adequately documented the employee's performance and you are convinced you have just cause to fire him, now it is time to properly prepare yourself:

      1. First, you may need to get permission from your superior or someone in Human Resources to fire the person. Be prepared to give a detailed reason for terminating the employee and be able to substantiate your claim. This makes for a convenient rehearsal for the firing.

      2. Consider the person's current work assignments and what affect his firing will have on your department (co-workers, vendors, customers, delivery dates, etc.). Even if a person is working on something critical for the company, and it is absolutely necessary to terminate him, do not let the employee hold his job hostage. Even if you kept the person, there is no telling whether his work would ever be completed to your satisfaction. If he has to go, he has to go. Do not procrastinate.

      3. Determine an exit strategy. To minimize disrupting the work of others, determine a proper time and date to terminate the employee. More people are fired on late Friday afternoons than any other time or day of the week. Why? Simple. It is the end of t
         How Well Do You Know Them?
         It is often said that it is not who you know that matters, it is who knows you. Well I would like to extend this statement by saying that it is not only who you know and who knows you, but how well do you know them and they you?In business, networking is the ultimate form of promotion. It can help you to obtain new clients, a new job, or even help you to move up the corporate ladder. It is the process of building relationships. Any time that you attend a meeting, trade show, or a social function, you are networking whether you realize it or not. It is the relationship that you have with people, a prospect or a client that makes the difference between success and failure.Often we fail to realize the reasons that we have for doing business with an individual or a company. In the case of products that we regularly buy, what helps us to make the buying decision? There are those that will buy a specific brand of product because they trust that brand to be of a high quality or durability. There are others that will make a buying decision based on price, although this is less frequently the case. Often we simply do business because we feel good about it. In fact most purchases or decisions to do business are based on two things. Trust and comfort. Trust is a very intangible emotion or feeling. How do you measure it? How do you develop it?Trust is measured by the feelings that are generated by a process of letting someone get to know more about you than just product, features and price. I know a gentleman who provides a seminar on selling to C-level executives. He says that to sell to the C-level executive you have to be more than a salesperson selling a product or service. To sell to the executive level, you have to be more of an advisor. You have to find needs other than the ones that you can fulfill and help them to fulfill these needs. In doing th
         t him go. In hindsight, I'm sure it was less than perfect, but I somehow got through it (and had a stiff drink afterwards). Since then I have had to terminate a fair share of people over the years. I no longer get upset over it and have learned a few things along the way. Perhaps the biggest lesson is that firing employees isn't for sissies. There are not many things worse a manager can do than botching a firing. We laugh at Donald Trump saying, "You're fired," on television, but that is a rigged situation where contestants already understand there is going to be only one survivor. In the real-world, a termination affects a lot of people other than the employee and yourself; it affects the employee's co-workers, family and, in the situation described above, customers and vendors. Firing an individual requires great skill and, as far as I'm concerned should be left to professionals.

         BACKGROUND

         There is a big difference between firing a person and letting a person go. Whereas the latter could be the result of work stoppages, the former is due to the performance of the individual. As such, this article is primarily concerned with firing. From the outset understand this, keeping a poor performer employed is a disservice to the company, the co-workers, you (the boss), as well as the individual. As mentioned in the beginning, a poor performer causes co-workers and/or the boss to work overtime to cover for the employee. Consider this though, it hurts the individual who is either unskilled for the job or has risen above his level of competency. This type of person has hit a "dead-end" in his career and it is unfair to keep him in a position where you know he will undoubtedly fail. Let him get on with his life in another capacity where he might succeed.

         Prior to any firing, a paper-trail is required to document the person's performance. An Employee Performance Evaluation (or "Review") should be conducted routinely, particularly in the early stages of employment. Such a Review should highlight both the person's strengths and weaknesses giving the boss an opportunity to offer advice to the employee on how to better himself. Very important, have the employee read the Review carefully and SIGN IT. Thereby, the employee can never say he was unaware of any problems.

         If the employee is struggling and you have to put him "on notice" (either improve or face termination), this should be written into the Review as well. More importantly, if you put a person "on notice" be sure to follow the worker's progress carefully, not only to make sure he is improving, but to see if he is preparing to bail out on you.

         PREPARATIONS

         Assuming you have adequately documented the employee's performance and you are convinced you have just cause to fire him, now it is time to properly prepare yourself:

         1. First, you may need to get permission from your superior or someone in Human Resources to fire the person. Be prepared to give a detailed reason for terminating the employee and be able to substantiate your claim. This makes for a convenient rehearsal for the firing.

         2. Consider the person's current work assignments and what affect his firing will have on your department (co-workers, vendors, customers, delivery dates, etc.). Even if a person is working on something critical for the company, and it is absolutely necessary to terminate him, do not let the employee hold his job hostage. Even if you kept the person, there is no telling whether his work would ever be completed to your satisfaction. If he has to go, he has to go. Do not procrastinate.

         3. Determine an exit strategy. To minimize disrupting the work of others, determine a proper time and date to terminate the employee. More people are fired on late Friday afternoons than any other time or day of the week. Why? Simple. It is the end of t
            How To Demonstrate That Your Employee Communication Strategies Really Do Engage Employees
            One of the most important aspects of employee communication today is measurement. But so much of that measurement is whether employees access the tools to communicate with them. You know, questions such as do they read the newsletter, do they access the corporate blog, do they find the information sessions interesting. None of these questions prove that your employee communication tools measure engagement. There is one key reason; you are measuring the acceptance of communication tools, not measuring employee communication strategy. So here’s what you do.Every organization conducts market research surveys. These surveys typically measure customer satisfaction levels across services and products provided by your organization. Sometimes they even ask questions about competitor product and services. Organizations then take that information and work towards improving the rating they received by introducing improvements to services, products and information.Now many organizations have a human resources department that usually conduct a staff survey annually. And this survey typically includes questions about communication within the organization, understanding the direction, satisfaction with employee benefits and training and so on. What I suggest is that organizations include a supplementary survey of just 10 questions at the end of this survey. And these questions should be framed by selecting key questions from the customer survey and asking staff what do you think customers think about X? Typically the result demonstrates disparity between what customers think and what employees think customers think. Once you have the difference measured between perception and reality then you have the opportunity to commence dialogue about with your employees about what customers really think. Most importantly it allows you to design employee communic
            , as well as the individual. As mentioned in the beginning, a poor performer causes co-workers and/or the boss to work overtime to cover for the employee. Consider this though, it hurts the individual who is either unskilled for the job or has risen above his level of competency. This type of person has hit a "dead-end" in his career and it is unfair to keep him in a position where you know he will undoubtedly fail. Let him get on with his life in another capacity where he might succeed.

            Prior to any firing, a paper-trail is required to document the person's performance. An Employee Performance Evaluation (or "Review") should be conducted routinely, particularly in the early stages of employment. Such a Review should highlight both the person's strengths and weaknesses giving the boss an opportunity to offer advice to the employee on how to better himself. Very important, have the employee read the Review carefully and SIGN IT. Thereby, the employee can never say he was unaware of any problems.

            If the employee is struggling and you have to put him "on notice" (either improve or face termination), this should be written into the Review as well. More importantly, if you put a person "on notice" be sure to follow the worker's progress carefully, not only to make sure he is improving, but to see if he is preparing to bail out on you.

            PREPARATIONS

            Assuming you have adequately documented the employee's performance and you are convinced you have just cause to fire him, now it is time to properly prepare yourself:

            1. First, you may need to get permission from your superior or someone in Human Resources to fire the person. Be prepared to give a detailed reason for terminating the employee and be able to substantiate your claim. This makes for a convenient rehearsal for the firing.

            2. Consider the person's current work assignments and what affect his firing will have on your department (co-workers, vendors, customers, delivery dates, etc.). Even if a person is working on something critical for the company, and it is absolutely necessary to terminate him, do not let the employee hold his job hostage. Even if you kept the person, there is no telling whether his work would ever be completed to your satisfaction. If he has to go, he has to go. Do not procrastinate.

            3. Determine an exit strategy. To minimize disrupting the work of others, determine a proper time and date to terminate the employee. More people are fired on late Friday afternoons than any other time or day of the week. Why? Simple. It is the end of t
               What is Creative Destruction?
               Joseph Schumpeter believed that the process of invention to create a new commercial product or service was the key to creating new demand, and new wealth.Entrepreneurs could start up or growth their businesses by exploiting suitable inventions.This creation would "freshen" up the market and those companies unable to respond may well have outlived their economic usefulness (Destruction).Clearly these entrepreneurs are not responding to changes, more making changes and making markets. There is therefore an emphasis on education of the consumers of the new product.To achieve this takes a special motivation and a special vision.Can you recognise destruction or potential destruction in a business from talking to them?Consider this possibility.Imagine you are the best in your field, and your company has the best technical people.You have a monopoly - you probably charge too much for your people's services, and you may over engineer your solutions.If there was a solution available to the market place that could deliver "your" expertise at a cheaper cost or watered down the need for engineers, what do you think your technical people would say?If the competitive advantage of your company has been its technical people, who may win through in the short term?It may therefore be useful to watch our for the signs of destruction, and when you think it may endanger the long term success of your company.It is also useful to remember that when you are caught up in a new product, and you can see why everyone should use it, you shouldn't forget that all your potential customers may not have the same vision. Your task is much larger.
               e is improving, but to see if he is preparing to bail out on you.

               PREPARATIONS

               Assuming you have adequately documented the employee's performance and you are convinced you have just cause to fire him, now it is time to properly prepare yourself:

               1. First, you may need to get permission from your superior or someone in Human Resources to fire the person. Be prepared to give a detailed reason for terminating the employee and be able to substantiate your claim. This makes for a convenient rehearsal for the firing.

               2. Consider the person's current work assignments and what affect his firing will have on your department (co-workers, vendors, customers, delivery dates, etc.). Even if a person is working on something critical for the company, and it is absolutely necessary to terminate him, do not let the employee hold his job hostage. Even if you kept the person, there is no telling whether his work would ever be completed to your satisfaction. If he has to go, he has to go. Do not procrastinate.

               3. Determine an exit strategy. To minimize disrupting the work of others, determine a proper time and date to terminate the employee. More people are fired on late Friday afternoons than any other time or day of the week. Why? Simple. It is the end of the work-week and people are more interested in going home than listening to someone being fired. By Monday, the person will already be a memory.

                  Psychologists might suggest Monday mornings are a better time for terminations as opposed to Fridays, simply because the employee won't have time to think about it over the weekend and become despondent or irrational. As for me, I am a Friday man as I don't want this to weigh too heavily on the staff.

                  In preparing for the employee's exit, consider what corporate paperwork is involved (see Human Resources), what keys, locks, badges, computer passwords may need to be changed, and back up the employee's computer files. Under no circumstance should the employee be allowed to touch his computer after being dismissed; there is no need to invite sabotage.

                  Select a witness to attend the termination meeting (this should be done in all cases regardless if you are expecting a hostile firing or not). Even better, be prepared to record the termination if possible in case it is needed in a court of law.

                  If necessary, have a box prepared for the employee to empty his desk.

               DO IT PROFESSIONALLY

               Now the hard part; actually terminating the employee. Now you have to prepare yourself psychologically. If you go into it with any emotions (guilt, anger, sympathy), you are doomed to fail. Always remember you are an emissary of the company, not an individual with a vendetta. It is hard to be cold in situations like this, but you have to be well organized and in the proper state of mind to pull this off. Ideally, the objective should be that the employee being terminated comes away from the dismissal knowing he had been fired by a pro, not a clown.

               Just prior to the dismissal, talk to your witness and let him/her know what you are about to do and what will be expected from the witness during the termination (which should be to simply observe and not to speak during the firing).

               When ready, invite the employee into a private room, preferably away from the co-workers. Be cordial but avoid idle chit-chat as it is not relevant at this point. Inform the person of the purpose of the meeting and why he is being terminated. It is important the person understand why they are being fired. Some people feel this is unnecessary. I don't for two reasons: First, if a person starts litigation against you or the company, he cannot claim he didn't know the reason for the termination, and; Second, if the person is ever going to improve in the future, he should understand why he is being dismissed.

               It is very important you remain in control of the meeting at all times. Stick to the facts and do not waver. The employee will react one of two ways: either surprised by the termination (didn't see it coming) or knew it was inevitable. The emotional reaction to the termination may take many forms:

               • Grateful it is over (allowing them to move on to something else).
               • Understands reasons and accepts it.
               • Embarrassment.
               • Anger.

               Regardless of the emotional reaction to the termination, stay in control of the meeting. Do not show weakness by back-peddling or allowing second chances. Remember, you reviewed the employee's work performance in the past and the employee should have already adjusted his work habits. Providing an employee a second chance at this stage only invites sabotage.

               Do not prolong the termination either; keep it short and to the point (do not give him time to think and react). Sympathy is not necessary, nor is gloating. Also, it is not necessary to be apologetic, after all, you have a valid business reason for terminating the employee don't you? Just keep things in a "matter of fact" tone of voice. Again, you represent the company in this capacity; maintain your composure.

               If it is necessary for corporate papers to be signed as part of the exit, have the employee sign them at this time. If the employee refuses, have it so noted by the witness. Also explain to the employee how he will receive his final paycheck.

               In some situations, it is better to try and get the employee to resign as opposed to being fired. If the person is fired, they are automatically eligible for unemployment (which the company has to ultimately pay). If the person resigns, collecting unemployment is considerably more difficult to obtain (although the government loves to give away your money anyway).

               If the employee shows signs of being upset, allow them to regain their composure before exiting the meeting. An emotionally distressed person can have an adverse affect on the staff. It also allows the employee to save face.

               POSTMORTEM

               Fired employees should clean out their desks of their personal items as soon as possible. This should normally be supervised by someone, preferably not the witness or the person who just fired the employee. Further, when the employee is gone, make sure the desk is cleaned out to your satisfaction; leave no traces.

               Farewells are not necessary and should be discouraged. The less contact the employee has with your staff, the less chance he has of "infecting" your people. Some com