Undercover

Terminating a Trusted Employee

Concerned about whether an employee is fit for a job? Sometimes your gut knows best

By Anonymous

An hour came and went and no report. So, this time I called him on his cell phone and asked him where he was. After tripping over himself trying to formulate a reply, he ended up telling me the truthâ¬he was picking up his daughter from school! I never did ask him where his wife was. I told him I wanted a detailed report of where he had been every day the past week, and even if he had to stop on the side of the road and send it, I wanted it within the next 15 minutes. I got it.

He claimed to have completed two audits that week; he actually had completed only one. He claimed to have been in the office on a day when he wasn't. The rest of the time, he said, he had been home straightening out problems with his remodelers. He justified being home and not at the office by claiming that he had been taking phone calls during that time from his direct reports and operations people.

Steve is no longer with us. We allowed him to resign. I assume he's out there looking for another loss prevention position. I hope he's learned his lesson. I know I've learned mine. The warning signs were there, I just didn't act on them.

Other stories by Anonymous

• Email
• Print
• Comments
• Digg This
• SlashDot

• Deprovisioning: Firing Line
• How to Keep Your Security Team Happy
• The Best Defense Is a Firing Offense