Short HR horror stories

So, you work in HR. Good for you!!! U just love all the positive feedback from colleagues when they receive increase, a new benefit or perk, to put it simply when things are OK. Sadly, a company is an all the time changing organism which means all of a sudden, a project is over, market clashed, inflation happened, you name it, the reasons for things to go bad are multiple and can happen surprisingly quickly.

When things go south, the first thing that you notice is that HR Department becomes management number one friend. Strange indeed since until then scheduling a meeting to discuss employees’ growth and development programs is like trying to reach the Pope, but not anymore, now you are the star in the entire organization. Guess it has something to do with all worried and upset employees and managing their expectations. Of course, management should be able to manage employee’s expectation just fine, but hey, you remember that training that department managers took and paid attention to, yeah me neither…

Another thing that happens when things are not OK is the inevitable downsizing. Maybe we are talking about just one or two employees but everybody that works in HR understands that letting go even of one employee is the most difficult thing we get to do. Feelings are involved, usually of sadness and anger, words are said, and emotions and energy are completely outside of the normal course.

And finally, people who are staying in the company need to be reassured, that even though they lost their colleagues and things are not looking good at the end of the day, together everybody will overcome the difficult times. To overcome anything, you need motivated people. So, you are presented with the challenge to propose measures and programs to increase employee’s motivation and overall to find a way and create a new, improved, company culture.

Now, I am aware that there are companies that have sit for HR at the table and listen to what we have to say. Sadly, in most of the cases, HR gets its glory when we need to resolve what market or management spoiled. And this here is exactly what creates frustration in HR personnel, and it is killing their drive.

But worry not, cause not everything is bad as it seems. I mean, it is bad, people are being let go, but we need to use this bad to create good in the long run. The most important thing here is that you are finally at the table. Management is asking for your feedback and opinion. Use the wave. Prepare your facts and numbers. Discuss with lawyer, get familiar with Law itself, know the provisions, the compensation, the challenges, in order to provide smooth dismissal process. Remember that employee’s satisfaction program that never went through, now more than ever is time to introduce this program. After all, we need people that are staying to be motivated. Show them that you are on top of everything, and they need to use you more often.

And here is the magic, while you are doing this, stay true to HR and make sure that you are providing the best dismissal conditions for employees that are let go. Think fair compensation, an honest conversation where you will explain what is happening but also hear their challenges. Support them in finding a new job by suggesting places that are hiring or even updating their CV. By talking with employees and offering your support they will not feel just like a number, but rather a person who found him/herself in a bad situation but has a support system.

Finally, when it comes to colleagues that are staying, practice shows time and time again that open communication is the only way for people to remain calm during changes and motivated to give their best in order to overcome any problems. When people are kept in the dark, they tend to create their own stories and explanations of why things are happening. Most of the time these stories are based on the worst-case scenarios, it is in people’s nature to think negatively, and are very far from the truth. These stories create fear, deteriorate trust among staff and kill teamwork. Keeping employees in the loop and sharing all the facts gives them importance, motivation, and a certain responsibility to be involved in the processes for improvement since this is now OUR problem.

Not everything will go as planned. Some of the employees that are laid off will not appreciate the support you are offering; management will not be interested in fair compensation or even open and transparent communication with the staff. But this is something that is out of your hands. The most important thing is for you to give your best and do what you believe suits best for your organization.