Companies have adopted different hiring and firing methods over the years, but one of the oldest concepts in business is that you should hire slowly but fire quickly. This is especially prevalent with the increase in hiring over recent years.
In fact, about 75% of employers have said they didn’t hire the right person for a position. Amazon fulfillment centers have a system of offering full-time employees as much as $5,000 to leave their job but under the condition of never working at Amazon again. A recent event where Better.com let go 900 employees on a Zoom call shows how companies are applying the hire slow, fire fast methodology.
There is more to hiring slowly and firing quickly than just replacing someone who left or letting someone go after a serious incident. Hiring slowly allows you more time to understand the company’s goals and expectations so you are able to hire someone with the skills and personality to meet business goals and smoothly integrate into the team dynamics.
Instead of firing quickly, you can be more forgiving of small mistakes while directing your attention to the long-term benefits of hiring decisions. It’s also important to aid the new employee’s transition process while being compassionate. If you do end up firing, think of it as a learning opportunity and confront the possible issues head-on.
Several misconceptions exist among employees and employers about the meaning of hire slow, fire fast. Hiring slowly doesn’t mean immediately hiring someone because they applied early. It also doesn’t mean expecting the best hire to quickly appear in front of you. It’s best to carefully consider whether the candidate is a good match and understand that they can become an ideal hire after proper training.
Firing quickly is not the equivalent of letting someone go based on a whim. Training, coaching, or switching positions should not be replaced with a quick-firing tactic. Selective hiring should also be considered a luxury and not the hiring norm because then people wouldn’t feel motivated to even apply to the company.
Hiring and firing at the proper speed for your company will ensure success for both the employee and the employer. Company culture can remain positive while encouraging people to naturally work together, bureaucracy can be minimized, and employees can remain happy while meeting company requirements.
With more than 4 million people leaving their jobs in November 2021, now is the time to understand the hiring process that best works for your company.
What do you think? How is the hiring and firing process in your organization? Does this infographic give you some ideas for your processes? Please share your thoughts on any of the social media pages listed below. You can also comment on our MeWe page by joining the MeWe social network.
