Star employee gets unjustly fired, negotiates one full year of compensation then starts working for top competitor: 'We have to fire you because you are too expensive'

It's hard to find a perfect way to tell an employee that they're being let go, but telling them that the reason is that they're "too expensive" is a bit problematic. At that point, you might as well just not say anything at all. The phrasing feels personal and pointed, as if it's the employee's fault that they're earning the salary that both parties agreed upon. 

Of course, the classic company lines rarely work well either. Chalking up the decision-making to an "overall restructuring of the company" or "cutting down on costs across the board" tends to be part of the classic script when firing someone. No matter what is ultimately, it's going to hurt in some way. It might help if the employee isn't caught completely off guard, or if there is a way to drop the hint that there are going to be layoffs. While every big company handles these "restructuring" difficulties in its own way, listening to the wishes of employees is always a good start to figuring out the best course of action. Obviously, you're not going to go around the office asking people hypothetically how they would like to be fired one day. Otherwise, that would cause even more panic.

Still, there are ways to gently figure out what works best for each employee. It is, in fact, the job of managers to read those social cues. It's an inevitable part of collaboration. So, why don't managers tailor the talking points of this challenging conversation to the individual rather than resorting to a standard script or an unprofessional line that could cause even more unnecessary pain? 

This manager clearly did not handle firing the author of this tale well, and though the experience was dreadful, it was the author ended up having the last laugh.