--- title: When to Keep Someone. When to Let Them Go. description: Keeping or letting someone go is more than a performance call. Learn the leadership lens that clarifies the real cost. image: https://ksl-coaching.com/hubfs/Frustated%20man.png --- [Skip to content](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/when-to-keep-someone.-when-to-let-them-go#main-content) [![](https://ksl-coaching.com/hs-fs/hubfs/KSL%20logo%20-%20cropped.png?width=1120&height=270&name=KSL%20logo%20-%20cropped.png)](https://ksl-coaching.com) - [Services](https://ksl-coaching.com/services) - Resources Show submenu for Resources - [Blog](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog) - [E-books](https://ksl-coaching.com/e-books) - [About](https://ksl-coaching.com/about-katie) Open main navigation Close main navigation - [Services](https://ksl-coaching.com/services) - Resources Show submenu for Resources - [Blog](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog) - [E-books](https://ksl-coaching.com/e-books) - [About](https://ksl-coaching.com/about-katie) - [Contact Me](https://ksl-coaching.com/contact-me) [Contact Me](https://ksl-coaching.com/contact-me) Feb 18, 2026, 8:45:00 AM # When to Keep Someone. When to Let Them Go. ![Picture of Katie Scullin Long](https://ksl-coaching.com/hs-fs/hubfs/IMG_2257b.jpg?width=50&name=IMG_2257b.jpg) [Katie Scullin Long](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/author/katie-scullin-long) Share: [facebook-f icon](http://www.facebook.com/share.php?u=https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/when-to-keep-someone.-when-to-let-them-go) [linkedin-in icon](http://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/when-to-keep-someone.-when-to-let-them-go) [Twitter icon](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/when-to-keep-someone.-when-to-let-them-go) [pinterest-p icon](http://pinterest.com/pin/create/link/?url=https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/when-to-keep-someone.-when-to-let-them-go) [envelope icon](mailto:?body=https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/when-to-keep-someone.-when-to-let-them-go) Take a moment and think about a time you chose to keep a difficult employee on your team. Why did you keep them? Perhaps they were a star performer, a technical savant, or a revenue engine. Maybe they consistently pushed the team beyond its comfort zone in a measurable way. Now think about the last time you let someone go. Why did you make that decision? Perhaps they missed their KPIs or their contribution no longer justified their cost. Other times, a formerly solid employee's professional development falls out of step with the company's growth.  Most leaders assess talent through a cost-benefit lens. Output matters. Results matter. There is nothing inherently flawed about evaluating performance this way. Yet performance is not the only variable. Every person on your team has an impact beyond their job description. Their presence shapes peer relationships, psychological safety, collaboration, and trust. The ripple effects of keeping or removing someone extend far beyond the measurable output of the role. Deciding solely on work product overlooks a significant component of organizational health. Influence within a system carries weight. The question is not only, “What do they produce?” It is also, “What do they create around them?” One example many leaders recognize is what Patrick Lencioni describes in [*The Ideal Team Player*](https://www.tablegroup.com/product/ideal-team-player/?srsltid=AfmBOoqcAdwZDZASJNeU6VfUxfZIAPPNwMwRo1jLbKdzjoyLHtbmWXPt) as the Skillful Politician. Lencioni writes that the strongest team members are humble, hungry, and smart. They prioritize the good of the team, pursue excellence, and operate with emotional intelligence. The Skillful Politician is hungry and smart but lacks humility. This individual reads people well, advances initiatives effectively, and delivers results. At the same time, personal agenda can take precedence over collective success. The Skillful Politician often becomes the employee leaders find most difficult to evaluate. Their talent is undeniable, but so is the friction they create. I have worked alongside several of these leaders. In fact, one experience prompted me to hire my first coach. The organization waffled on retaining a brilliant yet divisive leader in order to preserve client relationships and revenue. Over time, the cost surfaced in fractured peer relationships and weakened collaboration across the leadership team. In many organizations, the eventual departure of this type of employee occurs after prolonged tension. By that point, other high performers may have exited and trust may have thinned. What appeared to be an isolated issue often affects far more of the organization than intended. People management is complicated and messy, no matter how many years you've been in the game. I'll leave you with these three questions as a lens for the next time you face the decision to retain or release someone: 1. What is this person’s greatest value to the organization? 2. What is their greatest shortcoming? 3. What is the opportunity cost of maintaining the status quo? The third question is often the most revealing. Opportunity cost includes morale, retention of other high performers, leadership credibility, and the standards you signal through inaction. Keeping someone is a decision. Letting someone go is a decision. Avoiding the decision is also a decision. Clarity about total impact, not just performance metrics, allows leaders to act with greater conviction and integrity. [Recommended Reading​](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/tag/recommended-reading), [Decision-Making Strategies​](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/tag/decision-making-strategies), [Emotional Intelligence](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/tag/emotional-intelligence) ## Related posts [![When Leadership and Environment Are Out of Sync](https://ksl-coaching.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Returning%20to%20school%20in%20summer.jpeg?height=200&name=Returning%20to%20school%20in%20summer.jpeg)](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/what-happens-when-leadership-and-environment-are-out-of-sync) [Assessment](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/tag/assessment), [Gaining Clarity​](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/tag/gaining-clarity), [Values Alignment](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/tag/values-alignment), [Self-Reflection](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/tag/self-reflection), [Leadership Lessons​](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/tag/leadership-lessons), [Decision-Making Strategies​](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/tag/decision-making-strategies) ## [What Happens When Leadership and Environment Are Out of Sync](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/what-happens-when-leadership-and-environment-are-out-of-sync) ![Picture of Katie Scullin Long](https://ksl-coaching.com/hs-fs/hubfs/IMG_2257b.jpg?width=50&name=IMG_2257b.jpg) [Katie Scullin Long](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/author/katie-scullin-long) Aug 19, 2026, 10:59:32 AM Today is my daughter’s first day of school. Everywhere I look, we’re pretending it’s fall. My... [Read more](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/what-happens-when-leadership-and-environment-are-out-of-sync) [![](https://ksl-coaching.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Panel%20Speakers.png?height=200&name=Panel%20Speakers.png)](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/context-is-everything) [Assessment](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/tag/assessment), [Self-Reflection](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/tag/self-reflection), [Career Evolution](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/tag/career-evolution), [Leadership Lessons​](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/tag/leadership-lessons), [Recommended Reading​](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/tag/recommended-reading) ## [Context Is Everything: How to Channel the Behavior You Want, When It Matters Most](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/context-is-everything) ![Picture of Katie Scullin Long](https://ksl-coaching.com/hs-fs/hubfs/IMG_2257b.jpg?width=50&name=IMG_2257b.jpg) [Katie Scullin Long](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/author/katie-scullin-long) Jan 22, 2026, 11:37:09 AM Lately, I’ve been revisiting some of Malcolm Gladwell’s work. Like Gladwell, I’m fascinated by the... [Read more](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/context-is-everything) [![](https://ksl-coaching.com/hs-fs/hubfs/TMNT2.png?height=200&name=TMNT2.png)](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/what-makes-a-leader-memorable) [Self-Reflection](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/tag/self-reflection), [Leadership Lessons​](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/tag/leadership-lessons) ## [What Makes a Leader Memorable?](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/what-makes-a-leader-memorable) ![Picture of Katie Scullin Long](https://ksl-coaching.com/hs-fs/hubfs/IMG_2257b.jpg?width=50&name=IMG_2257b.jpg) [Katie Scullin Long](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/author/katie-scullin-long) Mar 5, 2025, 2:48:33 PM Think back to the best leaders you’ve worked with. The ones who truly left a lasting impression.... [Read more](https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/what-makes-a-leader-memorable) - [Services](https://ksl-coaching.com/services) - Resources - [About](https://ksl-coaching.com/about-katie) --- [![](https://ksl-coaching.com/hs-fs/hubfs/KSL%20logo%20-%20cropped.png?width=1120&height=270&name=KSL%20logo%20-%20cropped.png)](https://ksl-coaching.com) 6009 W Parker Road, Suite 149 #1030, Plano, TX 75093 Copyright © 2025 ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Katie Scullin Long", "url" : "https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/author/katie-scullin-long" }, "dateModified" : "2026-02-18T14:45:00.431Z", "datePublished" : "2026-02-18T14:45:00.000Z", "headline" : "When to Keep Someone. When to Let Them Go.", "image" : [ "https://ksl-coaching.com/hubfs/Frustated%20man.png" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://ksl-coaching.com/blog/when-to-keep-someone.-when-to-let-them-go", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "url" : "https://ksl-coaching.com/hubfs/KSL%20logo%20-%20cropped.png" }, "name" : "Katie Scullin Long Executive Coaching" } } ```