Fired yesterday now tricky boss wants 2 hour meeting!

[NotMyDust]

Very badly managed project, no busonness plan, unclear goals,anager has fallen out with a lot of people. Previous post holder walked out, his targets transferred on to me with no real handover process, losing money fast, so yesterday I was called on to. a meeting with the CEO and my line manager and "let go". I made it easy for them as the writing was in the wall for a while and I've been applying for new jobs right left and cente.

BUT line manager now wants a 2 hour meeting this morning! juat handover stuff officially I guess which part of me cba to do after being treated so badly, but otoh I am a decent human being and like to be professional.

However she has said some pretty horrid/immature stuff to me in the past eg I give her a negative feeling every time she sees me.

Please can i have some tips for how to deal with this, what to say, boundaries etc? ideally I would channel Michelle Obama rather than pissed off teenager (which is secretly how I could be triggered after everything she's put me through) .
thanks

I agree with this. Don’t make work for yourself. Don’t ask for time to prepare materials/ responses in advance.
As the poster above says, respond only to what is asked, make them do all the work.

I don't think if a company pays you for an extra month you're beholden to them in any way if they've got rid of you.

This.

HNRTT but as the meeting would be within the notice period then I would participate. Ask for an agenda and suggest a third colleague who will be taking the work forward participate. Hand over would include contact details for counterparts and the current position about the deliverables. Be hazy where it strays into the 'what needs to be done and how to do it'.

Some workplaces and managers are too toxic in which to perform successfully.

Good luck.

If you need a reference from them you need to be careful. Don't act as though everything was your fault, point out where there was no support, but don't unnecessarily antagonise them either. Could you ask for a copy of the reference they will give you before the meeting?

If you are minded to attend ask them for agenda / list of questions so you can consider them beforehand. Tell them they must stick to the agenda.

"You don't mind me recording this meeting, do you? Just so I can review it again in case we miss anything that needs to be handed over."

I wouldn't say that. I would a) make sure a 3rd party was involved and b) say "I'm recording this in case there are questions afterwards" and give them no chance to say no.

Follow up the meeting with a summary and get them to confirm that back to you. Or if they follow up with a summary, make your comments and make sure to send it back and cc someone you trust who is still working there.

It reads to me like they are asking you to do a sort of a handover because the handovers in the past either haven't happened or been very poor. Unfortunately for them, they let you go before asking you to do the handover.

You mention that they have paid you, but is that in lieu of working the next month? If you're not actually working for them any more, even if they have paid you for the next month, I don't think you do have to attend this Teams meeting even though you may have accepted it.

I would agree with getting an agenda for the meeting and keeping it very factual and I certainly wouldn't agree to take them through any process or procedure. They are their processes and their procedures and it is up to them to familiarise themselves with their own processes and procedures.

Best of luck with the meeting, op, lots of good advice.
But what’s with the Sandra stuff? Is this people who know scapegoating Karen is unacceptable, so are moving on through Karen’s class mates?

@Fernticket - That's the one thing I'm really pleased about where I left (was pushed) from recently - their probation process and then the getting rid of me process was very drawn out and I could've stayed if I'd wanted to. However, I had two bosses, one had never had a PA/EA before and the other was on his second one (me). It's amazing how so many bosses don't know how to delegate/what they want.

When I left I'm really pleased that I made things difficult and only left the bare minimum for them that I needed to give. If they can't train/induct me etc properly and then expect me to slip up, well stuff them. My good move was that after I was pushed I spoke to a senior people person who actually negotiated my months pay etc - and realised I'd been treated badly and might have a case against them. Had I not spoken to her (honestly), I think I'd have come off worse. My main boss and the 2 others should be held accountable - especially if someone is fired.

I've been in my new job 3 weeks (almost a month) and the contrast between them has been like night and day, both my new bosses really want to work with me etc.

It looks like your former manager is now shitting herself because she doesn't know enough about the project. She's realised that she's in difficulty so is trying to get vital details before you leave.

I'd email her a brief handover document and ask her to email any questions before meeting her for 30 mins. I would copy in HR as well as proof of your goodwill before leaving, snakes like her will twist facts.

In the spirit of looking after your own interests, attend the meeting, and stay cool calm and professional. You don't ever want to burn bridges.

This sounds good to me

I think if they ask you about progress/procedure etc on the project you should just say “Well, as it hasn’t been going the way you hoped, I’m sure you’d like someone else to take over with a fresh approach” (and of course the MN tinkly laugh, head tilt)!

i would get the reference first and then do the meeting.

Don't feel bad. You were put in an impossible situation being expected to spin straw into gold.

Be calm, formal, and professional. Communicate in writing via email as much as possible, with your line manager, and cc her manager in on everything - people behave better when someone is watching.
If you don't already have it in writing then ask them to send an email formally stating the reason for dismissal. It would do no harm to mention when you make that request (or as part of another email) that you understood from the previous meeting that you were being given a month's gardening leave. It also would do no harm to mention that you understood the project had continued to go badly after the previous post holder left suddenly with no handover. If you had not received any warnings about your performance then mention that as well, and say the dismissal was unexpected because of that. Keep everything factual. Don't get personal or blame anyone for the failing project. Don't mention anything about bullying, or constructive dismissal. Don't threaten them with legal action. They know the situation as well as you do. Their asking for a handover indicates they acted hastily and had not thought through "letting you go", and if they have had time to reflect they might be regretting having acted so impulsively.

Be professional, positive and constructive. Suggest "documenting" your handover in email which will give you time to research and give the best answers to any questions they might have about the project. If you are forced into in-person communication then say you are taking minutes of the meeting (again saying it will help to document your handover) - taking notes is apparently a subservient role, but it gives you power - writing gives you time to think, control your emotions, and give measured responses. Don't feel you have to respond immediately or in full detail. A genuine general reply (not obstructive) is fine. Say you are recording the investigation of a full answer as an "action point" for you after the meeting. After the meeting, research the action points and add detail to your notes. Then send them to your line manager and cc in her manager.

Good luck.

Thank you so much for all your replies, thanks for taking the time to input so supportively.

Quick update, I had the meeting, stayed calm and unemotional, took charge of the agenda, grey rocked where necessary, clarified terms of reference etc.
I was even scrolling through mumsnet for a while off camera while she faffed her end which really helped! we left on good terms. I did give her a little bit of advice then realised it's not my problem any more so used the phrase "you may choose to do things differently going forward".

Where she criticised a decision I'd made (which we'd all agreed to) I just said again "you may wish to change that if you're not happy with it".
So I will have a standard reference, 1 months pay and lots of holiday pay owing and a good wodge of expenses so that's a couple of months to get a new job!
again, thank you 💐

That 2 hour meeting would cost them a weeks wages for me.

when I say scrolling through mumsnet I mean this thread obviously not just random AIBU's hahaha

I would have wifi issues, practice freezing on screen.

Oops cross posts

Great outcome Op. Onwards and upwards. Not sure if industry specific but I’ve had a lot of contact through LinkedIn recently worth making sure your profile up to date and open to offers.

@Dixiechickonhols yes good point will adjust my profile to say that, at least I got a great profile pic out of this employer!

😀:D

Can I suggest that if you still have access to your work emails you go through it and forward yourself any emails that praise you for work or the like? You may never use them but they might be nice to have. When I was let go I didn't have the time/forethought to do this and I wished I had. I'd had several complimentary emails from clients and managers but they're all in the ether now.

I'd be happy to provide a written handover, face to face, not so much.