The author, chairman of JetBlue and an adjunct professor at Stanford, has fired plenty of people during his long career--and he's been fired himself. In this article he outlines an empathetic approach in which the manager recognizes that he or she played a role in the employee's failure to perform--and that this difficult conversation, which should not be outsourced to the HR department, is something a manager should strive to handle well. The person you're firing today could become a key contact at a supplier or a client tomorrow. Peterson offers specific steps--and mistakes to avoid--to help this tricky process go as smoothly as possible: (1) Don't wait for a "firing offense." (2) Do be willing to fire friends or family. (3) Don't surprise people. (4) Do prepare and practice. (5) Don't hand off the dirty work. (6) Do deliver the message immediately and clearly. (7) Don't overexplain the decision. (8) Do be human. (9) Don't shift the blame. (10) Do be generous.

Paradise Bakery and Café: The Challenges of Success traces the journey of entrepreneur Daniel Patterson from the founding of his bakery in Southern California, through the challenges of growth, to an eventual sale, and a post-acquisition crisis. The case focuses on three key decision points for Patterson. The first centers on his decision to hire an experienced outside chief financial officer with strategic vision, succeeding the longtime and well-liked accountant the company has used for years. Patterson must figure out how to communicate this decision to his senior leadership team, addressing their concerns about her compensation and whether she will fit into the company. The second challenge focuses on how Patterson should break the news to employees (and the rest of the world) that the founders have decided to sell the company to Panera Bread, a bigger competitor with whom Patterson had stoked a vibrant rivalry. Finally, once the deal with Panera is concluded, Patterson is faced with a decision of how to steer the business just as the 2008 financial crisis is snowballing, given that he promised Panera that Paradise would open 35 new stores in two years.

Blackwell Consulting Services is the largest minority-owned IT consulting firm in the Midwest. Describes the growth of the firm and focuses on the issues of how the protagonist should handle the issue of succession and a difficult partnership separation with his minority owners.