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If you ever have the unfortunate responsibility of communicating a layoff to someone, it is likely to be the single hardest task you will do as a manager.
To clarify, we are talking strictly about layoffs (or downsizing) as opposed to firing someone for cause.
In these layoff scenarios, you are disrupting someone's life and potentially the lives of their family for a reason that is not their fault and is largely outside of their control.
To approach this with anything other than grace and compassion is a short-coming.
The best philosophy behind communicating layoffs is to make the entire experience as much about the individual receiving the message as possible. In other words, we go out of our way to show compassion even if it makes our job more challenging and uncomfortable.
This is about them, not us. Here are a few ways to approach it…
Schedule it discretely
If you schedule a random, vague and unexpected meeting with the soon-to-be impacted employee, there's a chance they are going to start speculating and worrying. The purpose of scheduling the meeting discretely is not for secrecy but rather to avoid the amount of time that the employee is left spiraling.
The best way to schedule discretely is to plan the discussion for your reoccurring one-on-one meetings. If that's not possible, I recommend sending the invite the same day to reduce the amount of time the employee is left dwelling on the topic.
Get straight to the point
Most people are somewhat in shock when they receive this news. That means it's going to be hard for them to hear and process a lot of information at once.
If you begin with a long preamble, they are only going to start getting anxious about what you both know is coming. The key here is to be quick and concise enough not to cloud the message while also being direct enough so that they understand what is happening. Below is an example…
"Thanks for meeting with me. As you know, the company is undergoing a number of changes in an effort to reduce costs. This has resulted in some staff reductions and I'm sorry to share that your position is being eliminated."
Pause
Once you've shared this news, you are going to insist on a pause. You do this by calling-it out and having them decide when they're ready to proceed. This sounds something like…
"I know this is hard news and a lot to process. I'm going to pause here to give you a moment. Let me know when you're ready to move forward and we can discuss next steps and any questions you may have."
When they are ready, you can proceed to cover the details (benefits, severance, etc.) and answer any questions they have. As you are discussing the specifics of the layoff, let the employee know that you can pause at any moment during this conversation should the need arise.
Offer Follow-up
There is a strong chance that the employee will need time after the meeting to process all the information. They are also likely to need some support in the days and weeks ahead.
Offering to follow-up with them at a later date supports both of these needs. It demonstrates that their layoff was not just a task, but that you care enough about them as an individual to check-in with them and see how they are doing.
Of course, there is always the possibility that they don't wish to have any further communication with you in the future. That is why we make the offer and let them decide whether they want to stay-in-touch.
Let them leave
Hopefully this is a given, but it's strongly recommend that you deliver the news earlier in the day and let them leave afterwards. As we've covered, this is going to be a lot to process and giving them the rest of the day to do so is a really small ask.
Share with team
When you share the news with the individuals remaining on your team, there is another opportunity for compassion.
In the same way that you offered to follow-up with the laid-off employee, you should encourage your team to also reach-out if they know the individual. This is, of course, assuming that the individual was open to follow-up.
Encouraging this outreach acknowledges that the individual was a part of the team and more than just a number. It acknowledges the importance of relationships in business. These relationships are critical not in spite of challenging situations, but specifically because of them.
This week’s action items:
Schedule the meeting discretely
Get to the point quickly
Pause to give them time to process the information
Offer to follow-up only if they are interested
Let them leave early
Encourage the team to reach-out if appropriate
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