In this
article
Fried addresses the issue of communication with your staff when someone leaves the company...under whatever circumstances.
Suppose there was unacceptable behavior? You probably don't want to broadcast the gory details, and you might even incur legal action if do. Nonetheless it's important to be as forthcoming as possible so people can accept whatever happened, and move on.
Curious Minds will Find Answers
In the absence of facts, people will spend their time and energy making up their own "facts", diverting energy and attention from what you pay them to do. Gossip is among the most destructive behaviors in a workplace, and it will grow like a weed where real information is missing.
No doubt, at some point, you've had experience with hearing or reading a news account of an event you were personally familiar with. Did the account match what you knew happened? In the fast-paced world of news gathering and reporting, it seems that reporters often get about half the story...and make up the other half.
Having spent quite a few years in the aviation world, I've had first-hand knowledge of a few aircraft incidents and accidents. Often, when I read the story
in the newspaper about what happened, it sounded like a totally different event. And they sometimes state something that's totally impossible in trying to describe it - something equivalent to saying the earth is flat, or the law of gravity was suspended!
Reporters are personally and professionally interested in gathering information (forget for the moment about the possibility, or even likelihood, of a political agenda!). In the interest of expediency, and in the absence of easily obtained facts, they make something up, often about a subject of which they have little general knowledge.
Employees in a workplace, members of a society,
news reporters, and participants of any group are always curious about the facts surrounding extraordinary happenings in their environments...and they'll satisfy their curiosities, one way or another.
A Great Opportunity to Demonstrate Leadership
Want your employees focusing their time and energy on the goals you've set for your company? Of course you do! So one of the best things you can do is to tell them, as accurately as discretely possible, what happened whenever there's a "non-routine" occurrence of
any kind, people-related or otherwise.
Not only will it free their curiosities for productive investigation, it will help them see that
you communicate sincerely and honestly.
And that's one of the cornerstones of effective leadership.
Enjoy Jason Fried's
advice on how to handle "Joe's" departure!
