from Hacker News

Tough Call: Handling “Difficult” Remote Conversations Like a Pro [video]

by deepersprout on 3/27/20, 9:51 AM with 24 comments

• by nsxwolf on 3/28/20, 3:51 PM

  I was laid off a few months ago over Zoom. The thing that irked me about it was I got an invite to it with a dishonest description the night before. Since this was a director I didn't ordinarily communicate with, I wanted to make sure I knew what I was talking about so I did a few hours of research on the fake subject that night.

• by tyingq on 3/28/20, 11:19 AM

  I wonder how many "performance improvement plan", salary reduction, or layoff discussions are happening over chat, email, and video this week. I imagine this week's unemployment numbers will eclipse last week's record setting number.

  I've had to lay people off in the past, but face-to-face. Which is, at best, a terrible experience for both parties. Can't imagine having to do it remotely.

• by User23 on 3/28/20, 2:20 PM

  The most efficacious way to make these conversations less “difficult” is offering a generous separation agreement.

• by Can_Not on 3/28/20, 5:49 PM

  I'm also curious about how remote dismissals are returning company laptops.

• by lonelappde on 3/27/20, 1:51 PM

  47min video. Presented slowly, very little of the info is about "difficult conversations". It's largely about giving presentations. A written summary of key points would be helpful.