Google manager was ‘underperforming’

One of Google Ireland's senior managers was dismissed after her employers accelerated the disciplinary process against her believing she was persistently underperforming, an employment appeals tribunal has heard.

Rachel Berthold was relieved of her post as a manager at the company in Dublin in May 2011. She was senior to more than 90 per cent of other managers at the operation before she was removed by her London-based superior.

She is alleging unfair dismissal, and the case, which began at hearing in May, continued yesterday.

Transfer to Google
Anne-Catrin Sallaba, the claimant's superior, has told the tribunal that Google acquired a company, Double Click, in 2008 which employed Ms Berthold. She duly transferred to Google.

However, Ms Sallaba alleged the claimant had underperformed in three important areas. Admitting Ms Berthold was skilled in certain aspects of her work, Ms Sallaba said the claimant was not sufficiently pro-active, had failed to show sufficient “strategic” initiative and lacked certain communications skills.

Team 'jeopardised'
These failures jeopardised the performance of the wider team, the tribunal heard.

Ms Sallaba told the appeal the claimant had commenced a performance expectation programme, but concerns persisted about her performance and Ms Berthold was invited to a hearing in November that year to discuss her failure to improve. She was called to a formal disciplinary meeting in January before she was dismissed in May 2011.

Ms Sallaba told the tribunal that the claimant had scored 2.9 on a measure devised by Google to plot the performance of senior managers. Only those scoring 3.0 or more were deemed to be performing satisfactorily.

The claimant has yet to give evidence and this is expected when the tribunal sits again on January 17th 2014. This date is subject to confirmation.