S12 E6: We Regret to Inform You That This Episode Is About Firing People (with Jennifer Laurie)

Hebba Youssef
Hebba Youssef
May 18, 2026

Nobody talks about their first termination the way they should, which is with a little bit of trauma, because we never forget the people we have to let go of. 

In this latest episode of I Hate It Here, I sat down with Jennifer Laurie, fractional CPO and founder of Equitable HR Guild, to do exactly that! 

We went all the way back to her very first termination…the nerves, the Googling “how to fire someone,” the manager who was just as lost as she was, and then kept going. 

We got into where managers go horribly wrong before they even get to the termination convo, how bias creeps into these decisions in ways that are really easy to miss, and why the debrief after is the part everyone skips but absolutely shouldn’t. 

Take a deep breath, and prepare yourself for this discussion!

00:00:00 – Intro

00:03:51 – Something Jennifer Believed Early in Her Career That She Had to Unlearn 

00:07:15 – What it Feels Like to Fire Somebody for the First Time

00:13:04 – Something Nobody Teaches You About Terminations

00:19:19 – Where Most Managers go Wrong in the Build-up to a Termination

00:24:17 – Addressing Bias in Termination Decisions

00:30:20 – Reflecting and Learning Done After a Termination

00:36:54 – Can Some Terminations Make Work Better for Everyone?

00:44:24 Advice for First-Time Termination Managers

The Predictive Index behavioral assessment reveals how people work, think, and thrive—so teams can understand each other better and perform at their best.

Because when you truly understand your people, work just works.

Learn more: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠trypi.com/ihateithere⁠⁠⁠⁠

If you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration. https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/

 

And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out⁠ https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here⁠ for even more exclusive insider content!

Follow Jennifer

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenniferlauriehr/

Follow Hebba

YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos

LinkedIn:https://linkedin.com/in/hebba-youssef

Twitter:https://twitter.com/hebbamyoussef

Hebba Youssef
Hebba Youssef