Yikes, I've Been Placed on a P.I.P.! What Now?
Another day at the office. A hot cup of fresh coffee steaming in your cup, you open up your email and there it is, sitting there like a bomb ready to explode! A meeting planner from your manager demanding to meet with you in the morning at 8AM. Oh, the Human Resources representative will also be present. Your heart plummets and that fresh coffee is turning sour in your stomach. Your worst fears are going to be realized. You are being placed on a Performance Improvement Plan. Now what?
A Performance Improvement Plan (P.I.P.), also referred to as a Performance Action Plan (P.A.P.), is a formal company document stating in detail, performance or behavioral issues that an employee has exhibited. It also contains goals the employee must achieve in a specified time period to remain employed with the company. It is usually presented to the employee by their manager as well as the organization’s ever-Cheshire cat-smiling Human Resources representative.
You will be asked to sign the P.I.P. Considering that this document includes critical descriptions of your performance the company can use to justify firing you, you may question whether you should sign the document or not. Some organizations will fire you right then and there if you don’t sign it. That’s their prerogative. If you are hesitant, you could sign it and then under your signature write something to the effect of, “I sign only to acknowledge receipt of this document.” You are receiving it but certainly not agreeing with its contents. This may protect you from any negative characterizations the company has stated about you, should it become a legal matter. Once signed, the official paper trail of the P.I.P. journey begins.
Even though you feel like you’ve take a punch to the gut and your self-esteem is falling by the minute, take a deep breath. Now, take another deep breath. During this initial meeting, watch your emotions and by all means, mind your tongue. From this point forward, anything you say will be held against you! Keep your wits about you and ask for specifics regarding the elements you are expected to accomplish and nail down the timeframe in which the specifics should be completed. Be sure the goals are trackable and achievable. Take notes in this meeting, just as the Human Resources representative and manager will be doing. The manager may not want to discuss specifics, especially if you are perceived as a threat or troublemaker and they simply want you gone. Vague, undefined, nonspecific goals are harder to achieve, thus making it easier to fire you. A thorough discussion of expectations is vital during this initial P.I.P. meeting. If you aren’t getting answers, go above the manager’s head. You deserve answers to your questions. Remember, Human Resources is always watching.
There are many opinions regarding the validity of a Performance Improvement Plan. One school of thought believes that the goal isn’t job improvement at all. It’s more about escorting the employee out the door. Liz Ryan, who writes about Human Resources issues on Forbes reveals,
“They already know they want to get rid of you. I was an SVP of HR for eons and I know that when a manager comes into HR and says, ‘I need to put someone on probation’ or ‘I need to put someone on a Performance Improvement Plan’, it means that the manager doesn’t like the employee and wants him or her out of the building.”
Most people can understand that when a new manager takes over a territory or office, they would want to start over with a new hand-picked team, not the dead weight currently present on the team. This may be fertile soil for a P.I.P. to grow. Insecurity among new or younger managers may be peaked by older, more seasoned employees. Even innocent questions regarding procedures or how things are done may cause a manager to feel threatened by such gravitas. After all, they are attempting to scratch out their ownership of the territory or office establishing that they indeed are the new alpha. So, too many questions or good ideas may make you a wolf among a pack of sheep and a perfect candidate for a future P.I.P. placement.
The length of a P.I.P. can vary. Generally, it is between 30 and 90 days depending on how long it would reasonably take to improve the issues documented in the P.I.P. Time extensions may be allowed if the employee is seen as truly trying to perform as required or if the necessary resources for success are unavailable during the stated P.I.P. timeframe. It goes without saying that every effort should be made to provide the employee the necessary tools for success. As the “P.I.P.-ee”, ask and seek out every possible resource. After all, this is your job we are talking about!
Face it, if you’ve been placed on a Performance Improvement Plan, the odds are heavily stacked against you especially if you have had a riff with the boss. If you are honest with yourself, you’ve probably seen this coming. This is your livelihood, so you need to decide: (a) quit right then and there, (b) resign at a later date, or (c) fight. If you do decide to fight to keep your job, then put on your armor. Be prepared not only to eat a slice of humble pie but to swallow the entire pie whole!
The best time to get a new job is when you have a job, so you may have to “play nice” and cooperate fully with the P.I.P. while you search for new employment. While you are “P.I.P.-ing”, update your resume, update your LinkedIn profile, and start networking as soon as possible.
Here are a few tips to follow while on a Performance Improvement Plan:
Bring a positive, committed attitude. Be responsive to and validate your manager’s concerns regarding your past performance.
Be open to criticism. It may be constructive or destructive criticism, but if you have decided to fight for your job, let the barbs fly by without response. Remember that humble pie you swallowed?
Open communication is key. Have regularly scheduled meetings with your manager. Do not skip these and don’t allow the manager to skip these either. During these meetings, be very organized, specific, and detailed. Be present, hearing everything said to you. Ask any and all questions, leaving nothing to assumption.
Keep detailed notes of all meetings as well as documentation of your measurable achievements, goals reached, and any other items detailed in the P.I.P. Documentation counts! Make a spreadsheet if you have to. This is your responsibility so don’t count on the manager doing it for you. If your manager is keeping track, this is an opportunity to validate your results with them, further exhibiting your openness to change.
Seek help from peers and ask for tips on areas where you may be weak. You never know what you may learn from other colleagues.
Move on with grace and dignity if it doesn’t work out. Don’t burn bridges if at all possible. Word travels fast within industries and people move around from company to company. You could very well run into the person who “P.I.P.-ed” you at another job in your future!
Let this be a major reality check. Do a little self-reflection into what you’ve learned and how you can be a better employee wherever you land. This very difficult, embarrassing experience can provide valuable personal growth.
How employees are treated during a Performance Improvement Plan says a lot about an organization. Is the P.I.P. just an old-fashioned tool of the Human Resources department used to bully and threaten employees out the door or is the company really attempting to reconcile an apparent miscommunication between job expectation and perception? Sometimes, the attempt to correct performance (also known as “managing back”) is truly a concerted effort to improve and retain the employee. Perhaps “managing back” is meant to save money on recruiting and retaining employees. Only Human Resources knows, right?
Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to simply ask when put on a P.I.P. whether it’s a walk out the door or an altruistic attempt to sustain employment? Such transparency will never happen. Remember, the Human Resources department exists to protect the company’s interest first and foremost against liability and all else be damned.
If you do survive a Performance Improvement Plan, things will be different. The gossip train is alive and well and the fact that you were on a P.I.P. is juicy gossip and will be known far and wide. Hopefully your “dead man walking” aura will evaporate and you can return to the land of the living at work again. Sometimes the stigma will unfortunately stay with you. Recognize that the higher-ups are watching you more closely, assessing whether you were really worth the risk of keeping around. You now have to work harder than ever before to prove your worth and salvage your reputation.
Being placed on a Performance Improvement Plan is a life-changing event. A change will occur whether you leave the company or if you retain your position. It can be an embarrassing and humbling experience that produces valuable lessons for the future. Try to see it as a new beginning for revision, renewal, and personal transformation. Good luck!
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