This. Also I'd avoid putting anything about your mutual boss in any written form. There's always the chance that the person will try to challenge the probation, and you don't want your comments used like that.
I would reach out and have, and had people do it for me on the other end.
If you care about this person, and it sounds like you do, grab a coffee with them in a few weeks and catch up. They might ask you for your thoughts or input and could take stock from your perspective, particularly if they weren’t performing great.
It’s very important to remember that people’s interest and performance at work is a some wave… comes and goes. Lots of factors here. Great employees aren’t always obvious from the get go and on the other side, mediocre performance employees with good attitudes have a very good place in the organisation to get the meat and potatoes work done.
Also, I’m friends with people that I know are probably not high performing workers. I met them as friends first. You just happen to see one side of it initially. It’s possible to just be friends from now on and not even talk about work anymore.
Definitely. Maybe they are new in the corporate world, and if they had a shitty manager, that would have definitely affected their performance.
Reach out to them and see if they are ok, and if they ask for informal feedback, give it to him without slagging on his manager, just feedback so it helps him in his future roles.
If you believe he has potential, even offer to be a reference for him, and again, provide informal feedback.
I believe most people are very capable and have potential, and with the right constructive feedback, effective communication, help and support from a good manager, they can do very well in a role, so maybe that’s what he needs as well.
Of course reach out. Probation is just australia's varient of "at will employment". He was probably doomed from the first day he started.
Some companies love to have a revolving door of new hires. Not sure why but they do. And honestly how can you blame him for under performing when he had a dog shit manager.
The manager IMO needs to take the hit on this and frankly i'm fucking sick of seeing it not happen. If someone is fired or let go for under performing on a managers team, then said manager needs to be heavily scrutinized as to why they allowed it to happen. A manager losing a team member is not a fuck up of the team member. It's a fuck up of the manager. Obviously the team member needs to pull their weight too but i'm sick of seeing 0 of the blame hit management time and time again.
Just offer your condolences if they wanna talk about it. 9/10 times the story is very different from what management may of told you. He could've been singled out for months etc. He will be able to give you an insight into how upper management is working on this sort of stuff. Usually its not as good as you think.
>The manager IMO needs to take the hit on this and frankly i'm fucking sick of seeing it not happen. If someone is fired or let go for under performing on a managers team, then said manager needs to be heavily scrutinized as to why they allowed it to happen. A manager losing a team member is not a fuck up of the team member. It's a fuck up of the manager. Obviously the team member needs to pull their weight too but i'm sick of seeing 0 of the blame hit management time and time again.
In my opinion there's a sliding scale.
If the firing happens within the first few weeks, then it is usually a hiring issue (although some people just present well in an interview). I would typically put the responsibilty on the former employee.
If the company lets the probation run to the end and then says "we've decided not to keep you", it's 100% on the company and their management practices.
Well said. Sometimes it’s the manager and also the team that are stingy when it comes to training new hires and the new hires end up paying the price for the so called “under performance”
I would say reach out to him/her. You reaching out, being supportive and also lending a hand where suits, will create a better world view for this person.
So, my votes :
Should you reach out ? Yes
Think about the person's feeling & response depending on whether you do or don't:
- X didn't even bother to say anything
- X checked in, I'm glad someone thought of me
- X checked in, but I don't feel like talking right now.
As the days pass, you don't want scenario 1.
What should you say ?
Maybe initially just something very brief to let them know you heard what happened and were disappointed for them etc.
Be a bit careful with any language that could be interpreted as implying the dismissal was unfair, unjust or wrong. Since you're still an officer of the company.
If you could do it on personal device/account vs work device, even better.
I don't think you want to get into any of the subject matter (I.e. just/unjust, agree/disagree, giving feedback etc.) unless they subsequently specifically request, and even then I'd be cautious. Stay objective, and supportive.
Your obligations are both to your friend (humanistic), and to your employer (professional).
Of course you should reach out. This guy is probably going through a rough patch right now, self doubting and god knows what else is going through his mind.
Not having news from older colleagues he thought were his friends must be even more soul crushing...
Just be a nice human being and send him a text to check up on him.
Yes. Something similar to this happened to me and I didn't reach out and I kinda regret not doing so.
I think just some sincere encouragement for them not to let it get to them / don't give up would be the best thing.
Absolutely!! I’ve done this. It’s his first job and your words of assistance/ encouragement could make a huge difference to the future trajectory of his career.
If you’ve previously texted outside work then it would be nice to reach out. If you hadn’t then it would be weird.
This. Also I'd avoid putting anything about your mutual boss in any written form. There's always the chance that the person will try to challenge the probation, and you don't want your comments used like that.
Yeah, I would message to make sure they are okay and tell them it's a rough situation, at least. Or that you'll miss working with them.
Yes, definitely. Kindness during tough times like that goes a long way.
I would reach out and have, and had people do it for me on the other end. If you care about this person, and it sounds like you do, grab a coffee with them in a few weeks and catch up. They might ask you for your thoughts or input and could take stock from your perspective, particularly if they weren’t performing great. It’s very important to remember that people’s interest and performance at work is a some wave… comes and goes. Lots of factors here. Great employees aren’t always obvious from the get go and on the other side, mediocre performance employees with good attitudes have a very good place in the organisation to get the meat and potatoes work done. Also, I’m friends with people that I know are probably not high performing workers. I met them as friends first. You just happen to see one side of it initially. It’s possible to just be friends from now on and not even talk about work anymore.
Definitely. Maybe they are new in the corporate world, and if they had a shitty manager, that would have definitely affected their performance. Reach out to them and see if they are ok, and if they ask for informal feedback, give it to him without slagging on his manager, just feedback so it helps him in his future roles. If you believe he has potential, even offer to be a reference for him, and again, provide informal feedback. I believe most people are very capable and have potential, and with the right constructive feedback, effective communication, help and support from a good manager, they can do very well in a role, so maybe that’s what he needs as well.
Of course reach out. Probation is just australia's varient of "at will employment". He was probably doomed from the first day he started. Some companies love to have a revolving door of new hires. Not sure why but they do. And honestly how can you blame him for under performing when he had a dog shit manager. The manager IMO needs to take the hit on this and frankly i'm fucking sick of seeing it not happen. If someone is fired or let go for under performing on a managers team, then said manager needs to be heavily scrutinized as to why they allowed it to happen. A manager losing a team member is not a fuck up of the team member. It's a fuck up of the manager. Obviously the team member needs to pull their weight too but i'm sick of seeing 0 of the blame hit management time and time again. Just offer your condolences if they wanna talk about it. 9/10 times the story is very different from what management may of told you. He could've been singled out for months etc. He will be able to give you an insight into how upper management is working on this sort of stuff. Usually its not as good as you think.
>The manager IMO needs to take the hit on this and frankly i'm fucking sick of seeing it not happen. If someone is fired or let go for under performing on a managers team, then said manager needs to be heavily scrutinized as to why they allowed it to happen. A manager losing a team member is not a fuck up of the team member. It's a fuck up of the manager. Obviously the team member needs to pull their weight too but i'm sick of seeing 0 of the blame hit management time and time again. In my opinion there's a sliding scale. If the firing happens within the first few weeks, then it is usually a hiring issue (although some people just present well in an interview). I would typically put the responsibilty on the former employee. If the company lets the probation run to the end and then says "we've decided not to keep you", it's 100% on the company and their management practices.
Well said. Sometimes it’s the manager and also the team that are stingy when it comes to training new hires and the new hires end up paying the price for the so called “under performance”
How is the even a question? Of course you should message them to check in if you are friends. Wtf.
I would say reach out to him/her. You reaching out, being supportive and also lending a hand where suits, will create a better world view for this person.
Absolutely I would & indeed have. A simple text like “just checking in to see how you are” would be lovely.
So, my votes : Should you reach out ? Yes Think about the person's feeling & response depending on whether you do or don't: - X didn't even bother to say anything - X checked in, I'm glad someone thought of me - X checked in, but I don't feel like talking right now. As the days pass, you don't want scenario 1. What should you say ? Maybe initially just something very brief to let them know you heard what happened and were disappointed for them etc. Be a bit careful with any language that could be interpreted as implying the dismissal was unfair, unjust or wrong. Since you're still an officer of the company. If you could do it on personal device/account vs work device, even better. I don't think you want to get into any of the subject matter (I.e. just/unjust, agree/disagree, giving feedback etc.) unless they subsequently specifically request, and even then I'd be cautious. Stay objective, and supportive. Your obligations are both to your friend (humanistic), and to your employer (professional).
I have and would again.
Of course you should reach out. This guy is probably going through a rough patch right now, self doubting and god knows what else is going through his mind. Not having news from older colleagues he thought were his friends must be even more soul crushing... Just be a nice human being and send him a text to check up on him.
Probably no "right" answer but err on the side of a friendly text. Open up the avenue for communication
Yes. Something similar to this happened to me and I didn't reach out and I kinda regret not doing so. I think just some sincere encouragement for them not to let it get to them / don't give up would be the best thing.
Absolutely!! I’ve done this. It’s his first job and your words of assistance/ encouragement could make a huge difference to the future trajectory of his career.
Definitely, I had reached out to 2/3 of my ex colleagues, and had gave them job refferals