Saturday Morning Sales

Kevin Latchford

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Holiday Termination Follow-Up - December 22, 2018

Two weeks ago I answered my final Q&A which dealt with the termination of a sales rep a few weeks before Christmas. I received several emails in response which varied from total agreement to being called callous for not being considerate of the holiday timeframe. I was challenged to consider the sales rep at Christmastime and asked why I wouldn’t consider waiting until January.

 

Let me pose this question in reply: Is January a better time to terminate a failing sales rep? What if I were to tell you that she had a January birthday and would also be celebrating her 5 year wedding anniversary? Should we then wait until February?

 

Simply put there is no good time to terminate any employee for any reason. Termination is termination. It is not fun, not easy, and emotional, even though it should not be. Termination is firing. Firing sucks whether you are the firing manager or the employee being fired. I am not callous nor do I lack emotion. In fact, I am empathetic to the young lady being terminated right before Christmas. Considering the worst of the situation, losing your job right before Christmas can be considered downright cold. It may cause the person being fired to have an absolutely miserable holiday season. They may have left the company crying uncontrollably. Or, maybe they have a sense of relief and will go through the holidays with a weight off of their shoulders.

 

In answering the question two weeks ago I did point out that we never know what someone else may be going through in their personal life. But, personal is personal and business is business. Regardless of what time of the year we’re in, business decisions must be made, and such decisions must be made with the best of intentions for the company. Keeping an underperforming sales rep around for another month or two simply delays the inevitable. It costs the company more money in terms of salary, benefits, and taxes. The relationship between the sales manager and the sales rep will continue to be strained putting stress on both people and possibly others within the sales organization. Needless to say, keeping the sales rep around does nothing for either the company or rep.

 

Because we don’t know what someone may be going through and time of the year should not be a factor, let’s take a different view for the sake of this light debate. The underperforming sales rep has been miserable for some time. She recognizes and acknowledges that she is underperforming, and while continuing to try to sell, she is not successful. Unfortunately, while she is not happy, she also has not found a new opportunity yet, but she has been interviewing. She’s not really been looking forward to Christmas because of the stress of work. Each and every day she wants to leave and is hoping a new opportunity comes through soon. Then she is terminated. With HR being involved she is provided a three-month severance package and is immediately shown the door. The weight of her poor sales performance has been immediately lifted. She has time to relax and refresh during the holidays which also gives her additional time to spend with family and friends. And, with the severance package in place, she can now concentrate on the interview process with other companies after the holidays are over. What if? I understand this is a hypothetical, but it may be the real case. Regardless of her story, I stick by my previous post and answer. The company must do what is best for the company, the sales manager, the rest of the sales team, and in the moment not based on the time of year or date on the calendar.

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