Human Resources: Executive with Personal Issues

Situation:
A Human Resource Director called on Task Force at the direction of the Chairman of the Board and informed us that the President was known to be having an affair with a subordinate. Notwithstanding the fact that the executive was married, company policy expressly prohibited such office relationships. The clients also determined that there was a significant risk of legal action by the female against the company and the executive if and when the relationship eventually became public.

Approach:
Although the affair was routinely known and discussed within the company, the Chairman had no hard evidence to support termination of the employees for violating company policy. Task Force was engaged to operate a ten-day surveillance, which soon caught both subjects in compromising positions and places on videotape.

Resolution:
Task Force management presented its findings to the corporate board and discussed strategic options to resolve the situation, with the goal of minimizing the risk of a lawsuit from either party. The board agreed that Task Force should manage the termination process for both employees in a discreet and confidential manner using the video evidence as justification. This enabled the client’s Human Resources department to maintain a level of separation from the process to minimize legal risk while effectively bringing the situation to a close.

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