Welcome to The Hero 🗞️. This is approximately a 3.5-minute read.

You've made the decision.

Thursday at 3 PM is circled on your calendar.

And you're googling "how to fire someone" at 2 AM.

Get in, and get out.

But "quickly" doesn't mean "carelessly."

You’re still breaking some serious news to a human…

So far in 2025, there have been 626 layoffs at tech companies with hundreds of thousands impacted.

That's literally hundreds, if not thousands of difficult conversations per day.

Which means this information will probably impact you in one way or another.

That knot in your stomach?

Good. 

It means you're human.

This is serious stuff…

The full breakdown is just below - don’t miss it! 😉

Here are some of the best links I’ve found since last time I emailed you: 

How to Fire an Employee (link)

Employee Termination Script (link)

Structured Interview Questions Guide (link)

Explain Your Structured Interview Process (link) 

Provider Onboarding Software (link)

Build a Best-in-Class Hiring Process (link)

Full Remote Onboarding Guide (link)

All-Remote Handbook Hub (link)

Keep things short. 

Get to the point within the first 30 seconds.

Scripts to off-of:

For Performance Issues:

"[Name], thank you for coming to this meeting. I'm afraid I don't have great news. As you know, we've had several conversations in the past about [specific issue]. Even with guidance from me and the rest of the team, you aren't showing enough signs of improvement. That's why we are letting you go. Today unfortunately be your last day at [Company Name]."

For Layoffs/Downsizing:

"[Name], you've been a valuable employee, but our current situation means that we can't responsibly maintain the same number of people that we've employed in the past. I'm very sorry to share this with you, but your position is being eliminated today, and we unfortunately have to let you go."

For Misconduct:

"[Name], your behavior in [Event] was inappropriate and violated both the rules and the values of this organization. Due to these actions, we unfortunately have to let you go."

Stop talking.

Say what you need to say and then pause to leave some room for them to react.

They need a moment to process. 

Don't fill the silence.

If they argue or ask "Why?": 

If they get emotional:

If they claim discrimination: "This decision is based solely on [performance/business needs/violation of policy]. We have documentation of all our discussions."

Pivot the conversation to logistics, which takes the pressure off of the person to respond.

"Let's talk about next steps:

“I know this is very hard news. And I’m sorry that this is the outcome. If you have any questions about paperwork or next steps, we’ll do our best to support you through the transition.”

Then: "Do you have any questions about the logistics?"

After they respond: "I'll let HR know we've completed our discussion."

Timing:

Who's there:

Documentation ready:

Your checklist: 

✅ State the decision in 30 seconds 
✅ Give specific, factual reasons 
✅ Pivot to logistics quickly 
✅ Have HR handle details 
✅ Keep it under 20 minutes

The quality of your firing reflects the quality of your leadership.

This shouldn’t be easy, but it should be clear.

Use the script. 

Stick to the facts. 

Get through it.

Remember:

Do it right. 

You'll both be okay.

There are a few ways:

Or you can just reply to this email.

I reply to absolutely everyone who writes me back 🙂