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Fire him. However, how you handle it is of the utmost importance. The truth is, not only will you not be able to work with him, but once it gets out to the co
by pm 14y ago
Fire him. However, how you handle it is of the utmost importance.
The truth is, not only will you not be able to work with him, but once it gets out to the company, everyone else will begin asking, "Why hasn't he been fired?". If you avoid that decision, you will very quickly begin to lose the trust of your employees, as they'll think you're indecisive and that your employee is the one with hand.
If you decide to continue working with him, the employee will continue to undermine you at work. And then he'll leave, start his own company doing the same product, and bring three quarters of your best devs with him, because they think you've lost your edge.
So get it the fuck together, fire him, and make a public statement that his firing was due to a lack of personal integrity and make it clear that you won't tolerate that kind of personal betrayal. Details can be spared, because those kinds of rumours spread faster than diseases through a workplace.
This is a pure power play. Don't let him win.
- pm 14y agoAlso, consult with a lawyer before doing anything (that should go without saying), but do it quick and your goal should be getting him out of there as fast as possible.
- coopdog 14y agoGreat advice, you're right that there's a chance that he could lose the entire company over this. There's a chance he can't fire him, in which case he should probably contain him in a room doing menial tasks and receiving written warnings whenever they aren't satisfactory (3 warnings = can be fired where I live). Either way dealing with it head on is the only way to keep everyone's respect. If he takes everyone's advice and deals with it, but also has the benefit of patience and wisdom to ask before acting (not sure I could), that's probably the most respect deserving course of all.
- pm 14y agoI would suggest patience insofar as he can collect his thoughts to focus enough on the sitatuion at hand without getting bitter, and execute a plan with cold ruthlessness. Whether he likes it or not, his employee is now an adversary, and his wife is only the beginning. It's like the old lion being ejected from the pride because his time has come. He's taken his wife, why not take his company? Just like a serial killer, he's only going to escalate.