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Dave Conrad: Delivering bad news can be difficult - PostBulletin.com

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Dear B: No one likes to get bad news, especially when it applies to one's work, livelihood, and career prospects. There is no doubt that layoffs are very difficult to accept. The word itself frightens workers and makes them feel like they are expendable. However, there are communication formats that can lessen the pain.

First of all, it’s important to be transparent with your team and your customers. Being upfront with people and telling the truth should not be so hard to do for managers, but many managers believe that “They can’t handle the truth,” so they hide things that people should know – especially things that may directly and negatively impact the welfare of the employees and their families.

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Most managers know that delivering bad news requires initiating difficult conversations that might make the manager and the employee feel uncomfortable – or even hot-tempered. If managers raise their voices and start losing emotional control, so will the employees. People may resort to shouting and everything falls apart. The discussion should start with a composed manager and a receptive employee. Then, the conversation should evolve and the news the managers have to relate should rollout with concern and a state of calm.

I am not saying you can make something as devastating as layoffs sound like a Sunday church picnic but treating people with respect and showing great empathy will certainly help. People often look at their work as who they are, even though there is much more to someone’s life, such as family, friends, interests, faith, and health. Good managers make sure their employees know this.

Delivering bad news with that word, “empathy.”

Using layoffs as an example, the message needs to be clear and concise. I think that beating around the bush isn't acceptable – neither is a very brief, dramatic, and caustic statement like "You're fired." I can just imagine a manager discussing some exciting parts of their weekend with an employee and then saying, “Oh, by the way, pack up your crap, you’re outta here!”

One manager I know believes most employees have similar expectations about how they want bad news communicated to them. This manager tells me this is why it's important for managers to communicate business concerns to their employees when they arise. When employees are aware and have had time to digest the situation, they are more apt to understand and accept difficult decisions. And bad news must not be accumulated and dumped on employees all at once – like beating them over the head with a bag of “bad news dumbbells.”

So, how can bad news – such as an individual firing or mass termination – be given with some care and understanding? The following bad news communication process, recommended by organizational psychologist, David G. Javitch, has been called the “bad news sandwich” because it starts positive, delivers the bad news, and ends with a positive. Even as a sandwich, it is hard to swallow (bad pun). Also, I am sorry to keep using job terminations as examples, but I believe that everybody understands and fears them.

1. Start out with something positive, like, "You've been a valuable member of our team for some time. I want you to know that I appreciate your contributions." This statement can be better accepted if you are certain to show empathy for the employee and you don’t come across like a callous “firing barbarian.”

2. Continue with the bad news. Tell them what you have to do, such as terminate some people (them) or cut back on certain projects. Pause and wait for your words to "sink in.” The bad news is probably hard to take, so be silent and don’t make any promises that you can’t keep.

3. State what you'll do to help those being terminated. Mention that you have a program to help employees develop their resumes, search for new jobs, etc. If you can’t do this, then kindly ask them to gather their things, say their goodbyes, and leave the building by a certain time. This finality must be specific, and it must be said with compassion.

Deliver bad news the way you would want to receive it. Accordingly, it is best for managers to show employees respect and concern when delivering bad news. I advise managers to be completely straightforward, brief, and to the point. Then leave ample time for questions or clarification.

Contact Dave Conrad with questions or comments at conradd@augsburg.edu. Conrad is an associate professor of business at Augsburg University in Rochester.

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