The Severance
When to Let Go
Syllabus
From Module 1 — read a sample
The most dangerous employee in an organization is not the obvious underperformer — it is the high performer whose output is visible and whose damage is invisible. Toxic high performers create a calculation problem: the revenue or output they generate is a line item on a spreadsheet, while the talent they drive away, the norms they corrupt, and the cultural signal they send to everyone watching exist nowhere in the model. Leaders who cannot make this cut are not protecting the company — they are choosing one person's output over the organization's long-run capacity. The decision reveals what the company actually values.
Teaching a class?
Assign this course as homework. Students sign up free, work through the modules at their own pace, and earn a certificate with a public verification link they submit to you — no teacher account or setup required.
See the educator guide →