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Exposed: The Truth About PIPs — How HR Uses “Performance Improvement Plans” to Let You Go
When appropriately implemented, PIPs could be helpful, but usually, they’re just an excuse to let you go.
As someone who’s worked in the Talent Acquisition, Talent Operations, Talent Management, Leadership, and DEI space for about 17+ years, I cringe and suffer every time an HR Professional mentions they’re considering putting an employee on a Performance Improvement Plan (PIP)
… and if one of my Mentees says they’re being forced into one? I ask them to run as quickly as they can! Because, friends, they’re just a future excuse to let you go without severance.
Okay, okay — before you go for my jugular: when appropriately implemented, PIPs could be helpful, and sometimes, they’re the best tool a Leader has to get an employee the support, coaching, and mentoring they need.
But a lot goes into that “properly,” and 90% isn’t even part of the PIP itself!
That 90% is about everything that came before a Performance Improvement Plan conversation even takes place. From the interview and hiring process to the onboarding process and systems, to how 1:1 leadership check-ins are scheduled, planned, and documented, to performance review cycles, and ongoing culture and belonging surveys.
With that said, it’s essential we all know that Performance Improvement Plans should *always* be the last resort, and they should only take place when many (many!) other performance and goal-setting conversations have taken place. Especially heavily documented discussions around how the employee isn’t meeting expectations, what they should be doing to improve, and how their performance negatively impacts their work, the team, and ultimately, the product they’re trying to build.
More importantly, PIPs should never (never, ever!) address physical or personality traits. (Hello, biases and stereotypes!)
Performance Improvement Plans should only be implemented for actual, factual, easily identifiable, firmly documented performance issues. These issues must be easily recognizable and…
