Just Say No to the HR Ambush Meeting
I’ve written about this before, but I have to keep talking about it because it keeps happening. A client contacts me in a panic over an HR ambush meeting. I can write the script because it’s the same playbook every time.
Things has been amiss for sometime and you’ve been on pins and needles. Then, the meeting invite comes; here are the telltale signs:
1. The last-minute meeting magically appears on your calendar.
HR is suddenly in a hurry, but only when they want something. Convenient.
2. No agenda.
Because who wants to send: “You’re getting fired” ahead of time? They want you caught off guard, emotional, easier to manage. It’s strategic.
3. You work from home and suddenly they “need you in the office.”
Why? What exactly requires your physical presence? Nothing good.
4. The worst sign of all: it’s with your boss and HR together.
That’s the death squad.
I just had a client go through this. She actually asked her boss directly, “Am I getting fired?” and he refused to answer. That is a screaming tell. If someone wants to reassure you, they do. If they dodge, it’s because they can’t.
So I told her: Do not go.
She works from home, so why on earth should she endure a commute only to turn around and drive home upset? It’s humiliating and 100% unnecessary.
And don’t forget, it’s the end of year. ’Tis the season for firings. Companies are “cleaning up headcount,” cutting budgets, and trying to get it all done before January so they don’t have to carry your salary into the new year.
This is PRIME ambush season. Here’s what I always tell my clients:
Do not meet.
Certainly do not commute.
And most importantly, do not sign anything.
Ask for everything via email. It is not 1990. Nothing requires “paper format.” There is no legal or practical reason they can’t send you any documents electronically. And if they refuse? Even more reason not to go.
Repeat after me:
Just say no to the HR ambush meeting.
Protect yourself, and your dignity. No one else will.
This is what I help clients do every day: stay one step ahead of the ambush, keep control of the process, and walk out with their self-respect intact.