I Need to Fire Someone

What if you could handle staff termination with grace, clarity, and integrity while preserving the dignity of the individual and the health of your church community? In today's episode, Todd Rhoades, co-founder of Chemistry Staffing, shares six pivotal principles to guide church leaders through the emotionally charged and complex process of firing a staff member. From the necessity of documenting performance issues to the importance of direct and honest communication, Todd walks you through strategies that ensure the process is both compassionate and clear.

Join us as Todd emphasizes the importance of seeking wise counsel and prayer, maintaining respect and dignity, and avoiding ambiguity in these tough situations. He offers practical advice on balancing empathy for the individual with the needs of the church, making this episode a must-listen for any church leader facing this difficult decision. Learn how to navigate these sensitive waters while honoring God and minimizing harm, ensuring that both the church and the individual can move forward with as much grace and clarity as possible.

Have questions or comments? Send to podcast@chemistrystaffing.com

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Is Your Church Hiring?
If your church is searching for a new staff member, reach out to Todd for a conversation on how he might be able to help.

Are You Looking for a New Ministry Role?
If you are open to a new church role in the next few months, add your free resume and profile at ChemistryStaffing.com.

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:09

The title of today's episode of the Healthy Church Stuff staff podcast is uh-oh, I need to hire someone. How do you navigate staff terminations with grace and clarity? We're facing a reality today that no leader relishes, but one that's sometimes unavoidable, and that's the need to terminate a staff member. Thanks for joining us today. I'm Todd Rhodes, one of the co-founders over at Chemistry Staffing and your host right here at the Healthy Church Staff Podcast. Now let's be honest, can we? Firing someone is never easy. I don't know that well. Maybe I have met one or two people that enjoy firing people, but they're the exception to the rule. Most people find firing somebody is a part of their job that they really don't like. Firing someone is never easy. It's fraught with emotion, potential conflict. You've got a sense of loss, even when you know it's the right decision. But in the church, where relationships and spiritual well-being are paramount, the stakes seem like they're even higher. So how do you navigate this difficult process with grace and with clarity and integrity? That's what we're going to talk about today. How do you balance compassion for the individual with the needs of the church, and how do you ensure that the termination process is handled in a way that honors God and minimizes harm. So let's explore some high-level key principles to help be guided through this really challenging situation. I've got six of them here. I'm going to run through them pretty quickly, but if you have any questions, I'll tell you how to get ahold of me for some better answers or more concrete, or more what am I trying to say? More developed answers than what these are going to be. These are going to be high level answers. Okay, six different things.

Speaker 1: 2:04

Number one is clarify and document. Okay. So, before you even consider termination or firing a church staff employee, make sure that you have set out clear expectations and that you've documented any performance issues and a history of attempts to address the problem. We talk with candidates all day, every day, and the number of candidates that we talk to and of course, there's three sides to every story, or at least two sides to every story but the number of people that we talk to that have been terminated, that say, hey, I thought I was going in for a budget meeting and all of a sudden I was terminated or I had no idea that they were going to let me go, and I still don't know the reason why they let me go Sometimes that absolutely. As we look into it, is true, they're just thinking they're doing okay. Maybe it's a self-awareness problem, but they think they're doing okay and then all of a sudden, they're fired. They had no clue it was coming. Make sure that you clarify and document everything. It protects both you and the employee and it provides a clear rationale for the decision once you have to make it. So, clarity and documentation is number one.

Speaker 1: 3:07

Number two seek some prayer and counsel. Seek wise advice and counsel from trusted advisors and mentors, sometimes even legal professionals. It's really important, before you pull the trigger on terminating an employee, pray for guidance and wisdom and compassion throughout that whole process and get the added counsel that you need before you make the decision. Number three make sure that you do direct and honest communication when it's time to have the termination conversation. You need to be direct and you need to be honest and compassionate. Avoid ambiguity, man, it's so easy to give mixed signals when you're terminating an employee, but you need to be clear and concise, clearly explain the reasons for the termination and offer any necessary supportive resources that you can afterwards really wish you wouldn't have to.

Speaker 1: 4:05

You love the person. Maybe it's a budget issue, maybe they're just not the right person, but man. They're a friend and you love them and it's really difficult. Other times it's been tumultuous, right, it's been a difficult relationship and while you don't enjoy firing somebody, it's the right thing and you feel justified in your actions. But you always need, regardless of how you feel, always show respect and dignity. Treat the individual with respect and dignity, even in the midst of a really difficult conversation. Avoid personal attacks. That should almost not have to be said. But avoid personal attacks. Avoid accusations. Make sure you focus on the facts and the impact of their performance on the ministry and then prepare for the aftermath.

Speaker 1: 4:49

Termination can be emotionally charged for everyone involved. Be prepared for a huge range of reactions and emotions. It can be anywhere from anger to sadness. It can be relief. Offer care and support for both the terminated employee and remaining staff. It affects your remaining staff as well and then learn and grow. Use this as an experience and as an opportunity for reflection and growth. Evaluate your hiring practices, onboard processes, leadership style. Seek feedback from your team Bottom line. Terminating staff members never easy Sometimes it's. Terminating staff members is never easy. Sometimes it's necessary. But it's never easy. But it's necessary sometimes for the health and well-being of your church and if you can handle this process with clarity and compassion and integrity, you can minimize harm and maintain trust and create a path for both the individual and the church to move forward.

Speaker 1: 5:42

We deal with churches and candidates churches that are needing to terminate staff members, candidates that have been terminated all day, every day in our work at Chemistry Staffing, because we've talked to so many churches and so many candidates. If you're needing to make a decision on terminating an employee, we would love to be able to talk with you and walk you through that. Maybe you've got some questions. I would love to do a Zoom call with you and walk through that Also. We do offer some transition coaching for church staff. If you do need to terminate a staff member, from the time that you tell them they will no longer be on your staff, you really lose a great opportunity to speak in because the relationship changes immediately. So if you really want to care and offer some additional care, we offer some transition coaching. Love to talk with you about that as well. We found that it's really helpful for the church and for the departing staff member to have some ongoing support, and I wish more churches would do that, whether it was through chemistry or through other organizations that offer some transitional coaching, but it's really something to consider if you need to let a staff member go or downsize your staff.

Speaker 1: 6:53

Remember, though, termination it's not just about ending a contract. It's about caring for people. You really do need to care for people, especially in these difficult circumstances, and you need to approach it with prayer and with wisdom and a commitment really to honoring God and to honoring that staff person in every step of the process. If you're facing a challenge maybe you've just been terminated, maybe you're on a church, maybe you're the leader of a church team and you're going to have to terminate an employee, and it's going to be really difficult reach out to me. I'd love to talk with you at any point in time. If there's any way I can help you, I'd love to be able to do that. Some coaching, or some transition coaching, or however. You can reach out to me anytime. Podcastchemistrystaffingcom. I'm here to offer support and help however I can. That's today's edition of the Healthy Church Staff Podcast. Hope you'll join us again. We'll be back tomorrow. Every day, monday through Friday, right here on the Healthy Church Staff Podcast. Hope you have a great day.