Your buddy really is in jail…

OK, this one is for employees who incessantly whine and moan when a colleague is fired. “It’s that big bad mean company screwing the little guy again.” Oh please!

News you can use folks: Your company doesn’t typically fire people for no reason. It’s risky and costly. It’s been my experience that 99% of the time, when someone is fired (and particularly when you have an empowered HR staff who knows what they are doing) it’s for a damned good reason. You just don’t get to know what that reason is. Privacy laws and other reasons prevent us from telling you. So get over your victim syndrome and realize that most likely the guy deserved to be fired. 

We weren’t being mean when -

• We fired an employee because he didn’t show up for work. He was in jail. He couldn’t come to work. For like 6 months. Yeah, that’s right, jail.
• We fired an employee because he exposed his penis to a customer on the elevator. We frown on that stuff folks.
• We fired an employee because he shared with his boss that he intended to punch a co-worker. Excuse us for looking out for your safety.
• We fired an employee for using his company credit card to purchase porn and pay for 1-800 sex phone conversations. Nice wholesome stuff.
• We fired an employee for sending confidential company documents to competitors. We’d like to keep the company afloat and you in a job – so please don’t feel too sorry for this guy.
• We fired an employee for pissing off client after client. I know that you liked the employee and that you spent time partying with him. But listen folks, the guy was impacting the  bottom line in a bad way – and we really don’t want to do layoffs because we are losing too many clients.

So get a clue. When we don’t tell you why someone was fired it’s usually because there are privacy issues or out of respect for that person. Stop blaming the company.

“Similar to me” error

The “similar to me” error occurs when an individual is treated preferentially because the decision-maker sees him or herself in that person. This manifests in the interviewing process where the interviewer envisions a younger version of himself. It also impacts promotional decisions when managers see themselves in “up and comers”. It flies in the face of diversity initiatives and it is termed an “error” for a reason. How can we ever truly grow if we cherish and nurture only those who are identical to ourselves? Why do leaders continue to take the path of least resistance? A firm with “minnie me’s” who are in the succession pipeline will not keep pace with its competition. Further, when the “good old boy” network is solidly in place, the company misses out on what females, individuals with disabilities, veterans, and those of other races offer. And I’m not talking about a positive spin on the old Affirmative Action plan – I’m talking about differing perspectives that may strengthen the company, identify customer needs, and offer creative solutions that the good old boys just can’t come up with. I hope I live to see the day when firms that pride themselves on being “traditional” and “steeped in culture” recognize that these words translate to “discriminatory” and “my way or the highway politics” – and they take proactive steps to embrace those who aren’t cookie cutters of the CEO.