Madeline,
Dismissing an employee is one of the tasks that goes with the territory. It is not a task that anyone ever enjoys doing. If a path of progressive discipline has been followed, the dismissal should not come as a surprise to the employee. The only suggestion that I would add to your response is that I always like to have another manager, preferably from HR, in the room as well. They can then deal with the gathering of keys, computer, etc. and if questions arise in terms of what was said, they can corroborate your statements.
Pat
