I’ve watched with interest as a local business owner has run one of his former managers through the emotional and legal ringer.  It seems the manager left the company for what he considered to be a breach of his contract.  He had a non-compete agreement (which he honored) that lasted one year.  At the conclusion of the agreement, he began to work again and to recruit (quite successfully) his former boss’s other managers.  The former employer has a legal staff of many corporate employees, so it costs him nothing to do this.  The ex-employee, on the other hand, has no such support and it has driven him nearly to bankruptcy (to say nothing of being on the verge of a nervous breakdown.)

The ex-employer is angry the manager left the company, because he was very good at what he did and the company flourished under his leadership.  Even though he almost single-handedly led the company forward, he’s now considered a traitor of the worst sort and simply mentioning his name can generate a tirade of horrendous proportions from the owner.

So the obvious question is, why did the manager leave?  He left because he wasn’t treated fairly (in any sense of the word.)  This employer has a long history of fighting with ex-executives.  He’s notorious for treating his people badly.  To be fair, he pays well, but the working conditions are horrible.  So the short summary of what happens is the owner recruits and the brightest stars in his industry.  He pays them well and everything’s great during the honeymoon period.  Then the owner starts in on his mis-treatment and the managers leave.  Then he sues them and makes their lives miserable.  What a guy.  It’s one of those deals where the owner engenders the very behavior that makes him crazy.  Go figure.

From my perspective I can’t help but wonder why this owner doesn’t support, sustain and nurture these fine managers.  He’s gone to all the trouble and expense of getting them there, getting them trained, and then he drives them away.  It makes no sense.  If you treat people well, you don’t have to sue them when they leave because they have to reason to leave.  They’re happy so they give you their very best every single hour they’re at work.  They like you.  You like them.  They respect you.  You respect them.  What could be better?  Why would you try and use the old intimidation method?  It never works over the long term.  It produces results in the short term, sure, but nothing but bad feelings in the long term.

When you add up all the costs of recruiting, training, severencing, suing employees doesn’t it make more sense to just treat them well and get a hundred times the return on your investment?  After all an employee (any employee) is just as much an investment as buying a share of stock.  What would you do if your accountant was buying stocks with your money, then doing everything in his power to drive down the value of that stock?  You’d cut him loose (and rightfully so.)

Protect your investments — every one of them.  It’s only good business.