Once in a while I have to recommend that a client fire an employee. Usually, this is a membership salesperson. There are many reasons to show somebody the door, but most of the time my wanting a salesperson fired has to do with one of two things:
1. Production: They aren’t selling enough, or creating enough revenue.
2. Attitude: Usually, if their attitude sucks, their numbers suck also. But sometimes I run into salespeople who produce because they can “turn it on” when it comes to phone calls and tours, but when it comes to interacting with co-workers and members, they leave a lot to be desired.
In September of this year, I had a long conversation with a client about one of his salespeople. She wasn’t a great producer, but wasn’t the worst either. We could coach her up on that. But where I was really concerned was her attitude. Some days it was “good.” Most days it was not. She came late, left early, said immature things and spent a lot of time complaining about not making enough money.
“Yeah, I would like to fire her, but the timing is bad.”
“Timing is always bad. And it is also always good when it comes to an employee with a bad attitude.”
This client didn’t want to go through the pain of firing and hiring a new employee. He never admitted that to me directly, but I knew that is what the deal was.
He fired her last week. She failed to show up for her shift on the day after Thanksgiving. It took that egregious of an act for him to give her the axe.
Look, in most every state in the country, you can fire a person for any or no reason. Those laws are there to protect the employer. But I want you to operate as if you need a reason. This will force you to follow some guidelines when it comes to employee performance and employee reviews.
– Write up a job description. This document should include as much detail as possible, listing all of the duties and responsibilities for the employee.
– Have monthly performance reviews. Salespeople need to have monthly goals. Get them in writing, meet with each salesperson and have him or her sign off on these goals.
– Go over policies and procedures and stick with them. I recommend “writing up” an employee for each of the following: Being late, leaving early or missing a monthly goal. If an employee is written up three times in three months, that is grounds for termination.
Too many gyms carry too many employees for too long, when those employees are costing them money. You want employees to produce, and you need to provide them with an environment that allows production. But sometimes, they just don’t get the job done. And you have to let them go. And sometimes, they may get the job done, but they do it with a negative attitude, which is actually worse than slightly underperforming while being positive and encouraging. So, when that day comes to terminate an employee, follow these guidelines:
– Do it early in the week, if possible. This isn’t always feasible, but a Monday or a Tuesday is the best day to do it on.
– Don’t do it alone. Bring in a witness.
– Give a reason. Yes, you can fire for any or no reason, but if you follow my advice to have performance reviews and to discuss policies and procedures, it should be easy for you to demonstrate to the employee as to why they are being let go.
“Curtis, we are letting you go. As you know, you have missed your goals for three months in a row, with this month being 30 percent short of your goal. In addition, you have been written up two times this quarter for being late. It is best for you, and more importantly for our organization, if we part ways.”
Now you need a new salesperson. Email me at jason@jasonlinse.com and I will send you back a document that includes a sample job ad and some important interview questions.
Keep changing lives.
Jason Linse is president and founder of The Business of Fitness, a consulting company. He also owns a personality assessment company called People Plus+ Fitness. He can be reached at jason@jasonlinse.com or at 612-310-1319. Visit www.jasonlinse.com.
