Managing People You Can't Fire

A recipe for disaster.

One of the worst situations in management is needing to fire someone and getting blocked. This happens somewhat regularly and is one of the most trust-breaking experiences between a manager and their boss. Let’s talk about why it happens and how to right-size the situation

The Ingredients

Managers end up needing to fire someone for many reasons, the most common being:

• Behavioral issues

• Significant underperformance

Almost all managers loathe the idea of firing someone, so when they advocate for it, it’s almost certainly needed. Think about that again - the point is important. Much, much more often managers are late to fire someone. Because firing is such a traumatic experience on both sides, managers do not come to the conclusion lightly.

So if you’re a manager’s manager and they come to you asking for a termination, the chances that it’s the right thing to do are very high.

Despite this reality, many managers of managers often block the termination, or say not now. The reasons they do this vary, but include:

• They have a personal relationship with the person being fired and intervene.

• They think the manager is being too harsh. Note - this happens, but again, it’s really not common.

• They don’t trust their hire to get it done without that person.

• They’re being risk averse.

From the perspective of the manager in this situation, this was the formative moment where your boss could show that they trust you. You regularly take on work for them, make them look good, accept their critical feedback. All of that is worth it for their respect and trust (and the money). And at this moment, the time where they could really prove they trust you - they do the opposite. They do something that shows that you are in fact just on training wheels.

Then it’s not like HR can write down “manager was probably right, overridden by their boss.” So in cases of behavioral issues, including with the manager, there is often some documented feedback that the manager was wrong, and themselves needs to improve.

Finally, the manager then has to keep on living with that underperformer and dealing with all of the chaos they cause.

The result of this triple whammy is often a deep-seated frustration on the part of the manager and often leads to them quitting. And it’s an issue that doesn’t go away because if that person needs to be fired in the future, the manager’s boss is now invested in that not happening to not be proven wrong.

A Better Way

There should only two versions of firing decisions.

The first is learning mode. The boss is clear to their new manager that for the first 6 months they’ll be the final decision on any performance or firing decisions, because the new manager needs to understand the culture and calibrate to organizational standards. Set the expectation clearly, and it’s fine.

The only other mode is trust. Again, extremely few managers are not going to offer up a termination proposal without cause. If you’re sure it’s a mistake - intervene. If you’re unsure - the tie goes to the manager. They’re living the reality, they deserve that trust.

Summary

In summary:

• If a manager is proposing a termination, it’s almost always needed

• That moment in time is an opportunity for their boss to show if they trust them or not

• So, they deserve to be trusted

Note: there are grizzled VP/C-level psychopaths who fire people like eating Tic Tacs, but this post is not about them. The managers in question are managing ICs, probably have been managing for under 7 years…etc.

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