I’ve been chatting with a number of friends around the infosec world recently, and here’s one of my takeaways

If you have people (or you are a person) who’s secretly worried their days are numbered for any reason, performance or otherwise, your organization is seriously broken

If someone is a poor fit for any reason and needs to be let go, this shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone. Because of course there were plenty of one-on-ones, mentorship sessions, and counselings leading up to this moment, and everyone concerned has had plenty of heads up

Conversely, if someone is, in fact, not about to be let go, but they’re actually a valued member of the team, that shouldn’t come as a surprise either. Because of course there were plenty of one-on-ones, mentorship sessions, etc. so everyone concerned knew it all along

If a person is struggling, one of leadership’s goals should be to identify how to help the person realize their potential, and to help them understand ways they can add value to the team

If a person is already valuable to the team, one of leadership’s goals should be to recognize that person’s value and contributions on an ongoing basis

“Oh sweet I got a bonus this year, guess I’m doing okay after all” is something no one should be saying