How to Explain Being Fired to Future Employers 2

[lilkane3np]

Ok I'm going to try to explain this as concise as possible, but still cover the basis.
I was recently fired for my job, here is, in brief, what happened. I was a production engineer, as such I was responsible for keeping up with production for my shift ( i.e. keeping up with cycle times, troubleshooting production issues, assisting the supervisor with monitoring shift operators, etc, etc. On the night in question we had two troublesome systems. One was a spray dryer, which had constantly been giving problems, and the other involved the production of a thickening agent. The spray dryer was at such a state that it required constant monitoring. As there was no "spray dryer operator" this was my responsibility as well. In the process of focusing my attentions on getting the spray dryer up and running, I instructed my operators on what they needed to do to keep the other troublesome system moving. Well after I was able to get the spray dryer up and reliably running (~2 hrs later), I find out that my operators had not done what I instructed them to do, resulting in a lot of downtime on that system. Keep in mind during this whole ordeal ( which in total was about 4hrs), I had no idea where the supervisor was. Im pretty sure he was somewhere sleep (this happened on graveyard shift).
So long story short, there as a big deal on the amount of downtime incurred on the shift, although no one actually asked me any questions as to what happened or why so much downtime occured. Then a week later I am told I was being fired. Prior to this I had had no serious incidents or downtime on my shift.
The question is, how do I go about presenting this to future potential employers. I know as soon as they see or hear "fired" many immediately will throw the red flag and I won't make it past that point. I know it is in bad taste to talk bad about a previous employer as well... So what do I do? How would you word it. I have both of previous direct bosses ( the unit manager and assistant unit manager) who are willing to provide excellent references for me to attest that I was an excellent employee.

 

[YoungTurk]

Aspix has the general gist right.

If they press for details, remember that you don't want to give the impression that you are blaming someone else or didn't learn from the incident. What if they asked you what you learned? Its not the catch 22 it sounds like; even if you were largely not at fault, surely there is something you could have done better in retrospect. They're not going to ask you what your former employer learned, they don't care. And avoid the F word.

 

[ajack1]

The posts above do assume you actually get to the interview stage that would be highly unlikely in the UK given the current job market and the fact someone has been fired. As I said above it might be a totally different outlook in a country where you can be fired “at will”

 

[MechEng2005]

Ajack, I'm confused. Do you put how previous employement was ended on your resume/CV? How do you expect the hiring company to know that the person was terminated prior to asking in the interview?

 

[lilkane3np]

UPDATE:

I appreciate all of your comments and suggestions on dealing with this issue. I am pleased to announce that I just found out that I will be offered a new position at a company that I feel better utilizes my skills as well as will offer me more of a challenge and an ability to grow as a young chemical engineer. In the interview I was very candid and honest about what happened, and that seemed to go over quite well. I was actually thanked for being honest about the situation. This is truly a blessing and truly a testament to the fact that when one door closes another will open if you remain positive and hopeful. Once again I appreciate all the suggestions and I look forward to posting more "technical" questions in the future, lol.

 

[desnov74]

GOOD FOR YOU! BEST OF LUCK, AND CONTINUED SUCCESS. HONESTY'S THE BEST POLICY.