“Human resources will not let you fire anyone around here.” That is a statement I have heard over the years. It is also a statement I made at one time. It’s not that HR will not let anyone get let go. It’s that they protect the organization from decisions that do not fit its values—decisions that, if not handled well, can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees. The real issue is the lack of performance documentation. When a leader makes the decision to let someone go, hopefully they have an expert in human resources on staff, or at least a consultant and access to legal counsel.

I spoke with Leonard Friedman, PhD, a professor at George Washington University, on the topic of employee performance issues. He made two statements that stuck with me. One was, “If it is not documented, it did not happen.” The other was when he referenced the advice one gets in looking to buy a house: The top three things to consider are location, location, location. He added that when looking at performance concerns, those top three things are document, document, document.

My own situation as a first-time supervisor involved many of these items. I was hired to lead a small department even though I had little experience. (I was the youngest person in the department.) The thought was that I would learn what was needed. Working in the department was an employee who had some job issues. Early on, this person would make comments that were not terrible, but also not helpful. I let them slide. I even gave the employee special tasks, hoping these would turn him around. Looking back, there were at least three situations over the first nine months when I should have spoken with the person and documented the incidents. Three months before the annual review, things got much better. I felt we had turned the corner. During the review, I had three choices: I could mark the person’s performance as exceeded expectations, met expectations, or did not meet expectations. Rationalizing that he had improved and that I had not addressed the previous issues, I thought water over the dam and checked met expectations.

Soon after that, another incident occurred, and I decided this person had to go. I made a list of the incidents and headed over to human resources. I met with an HR professional and went over my long list of incidents. I thought I was convincing. They listened with empathy and understanding. Then the HR person said, “Let us review his personnel file.” They noticed right away that I neglected to document the incidents, that there was no evidence of a conversation or an action plan to move forward, and I had in fact said the employee met expectations. The HR person then outlined the steps I needed to take moving forward.

You may be wondering where my leader was. They were in the dark. Beyond complaining a bit, I had never asked for help. Holding up the mirror, I will say this was no one’s fault but my own.

I do not feel that I am alone in blaming HR at first. In my workshops, I do hear the “We cannot fire anyone around here” statement. Yet my experience is that at least 50 percent of people identified as having performance issues have minimal or no documentation. The issue is not human resources as much as it is not understanding how to document and address performance concerns overall.

It is important that all leaders understand the value of solid documentation and clear and specific performance conversations. No one being let go should be surprised.

A few tips on performance documentation:

1. Document items of concern every time. Do not let it go, assuming that it will not happen again.
2. Do not wait to address the issue. Hold a private conversation with the person as soon as you can.
3. Be specific on the impact of the person’s action or lack of action on the organization. Connect the situation to the company’s values and standards of behavior. For example: “One of our values is treating each other well. Yelling at a coworker violates both a value and a standard.”
4. Be calm. Keep your composure. Stay on the high ground.
5. Assess how aware the person is of the situation and its impact. (That is why step 3 on specifics is so important.)
6. Try to discover if there are any underlying causes impacting the person’s work.
7. Explain and follow the due process. This may include a verbal warning and a written warning. (If it is the final warning, termination would be the next step. Each company needs to create their own process and ensure that it is followed.)
8. Outline your expectations and lay out the actions the person needs to take next.

These tips just scratch the surface. Performance documentation is such a difficult task, and there are many great articles and books on the subject. I suggest you check them out.

My main lesson here is that, as a new leader, it was up to me to know the rules of documentation and how to coach someone who was having performance challenges. No one enjoys letting someone go; however, it is part of leadership. But it should not be surprising to the person being let go, and it should not put the company at legal risk.