Performance Improvement Plan (“PIP”) – Can My New Boss Do That?
Published on May 21st, 2008 by Alan L Sklover
Question: Three months ago I was assigned to a new manager. He doesn’t like me and last week I was put on a Performance Improvement Plan (“PIP”). Apparently it was the lack of communication that is in question. The first meeting that included HR was the first I knew of this, and in this meeting I was informed technically I am outstanding (I am an automotive engineer.) I am close to 58 and have never in my life received a poor performance review. My question is, is he in violation of putting me on a “PIP” as his time as my manager is so short?
Gerard, Michigan
Answer: There really is no “rule” that says a new manager can’t place an employee on a Performance Improvement Plan. That being said, you may have a good point. You should raise your concern – how could he know your communication abilities in so short a time? More importantly, how is it that you haven’t had this complaint before in probably 35 years of working? But I’m concerned . . .
Whenever a client or blog reader tells me he or she has been placed on a so-called “Performance Improvement Plan,” or “PIP,” I worry for them. In over 25 years of counseling and representing employees, I can count on one hand the number who have remained employed at the conclusion of a “PIP” . . . unless they’ve stood up for themselves by challenging the PIP.
The concept of helping someone put together a plan to improve their workplace performance is wonderful. However, in 95% of the times I’ve seen PIP’s used, what’s really going on is close to evil: it is nothing but a “paper trail” that looks objective in order to justify firing an employee who everyone knows is a good employee.
Almost always PIP’s involve giving employees objectives that are so vague and subjective no one can really tell if the objectives have been met. (“Poor communication” sounds like one of those.) Often PIP’s involve requiring the employee to accomplish something they have no control over, or don’t have the resources to accomplish. Frequently deadlines are set that are 200% unrealistic.
In writing – preferably in an email – and to the company president, CEO or Board of Directors, challenge the facts upon which the PIP is premised. Challenge the conclusion that you are a poor communicator. Challenge the motive for targeting you; perhaps it is your age, or simply a personality conflict. And challenge the process used: how could such a new manager be so sure you don’t communicate well? Perhaps he doesn’t listen well; how come others have never “accused” you of this?
If you would like to obtain a “model” memo to help you respond to a
Performance Improvement Plan or Performance Review [click here].
I hope that with respect, and with reason and resolve, you will stand up for yourself – and your family – at this time and in this way.
Best, Al Sklover
Visit the E-Newsletter Library
Send this article to a friend
Recycle: Reduce Waste. Print only when necessary.
Hi,
I too was put on a PIP but only after a new employee in our department bad mouthed me to the department head. My job is actually for two people but – there’s only me. It’s impossible to keep everything current (filing, data entry, etc.) but it gets done – just not in the time frame she puts on it.
I would like very much to complain to her boss at corporate but don’t know how to go about it. Don’t want to get fired but I’m at the point I really don’t care….cause I’m doing the best I can.
Any advice?
Thanks,
“Complaint” is not the word I would like you to think about, or use. I’d rather you consider the phrase “reporting to HR and Corporate a false report that is reducing your effectiveness as an employee.” Said differently, I think you should “confront a problem, not a person,” and that it’s very important that you appear that way, as well. Without anger or disrespect or blame, tell them calmly what you told me: (a) doing two jobs, (b) doing your best, (c) false report by a colleague, (d) harming your morale and reducing your effectiveness. Suggest a solution, too, perhaps that this be part of your P.I.P. evaluation. Hope that helps, and that you’ll subscribe to our blog to keep yourself educated to how to navigate these things.
Best,
Al Sklover
This is my own story: after I told my boss that I didn’t want to renew my position, I was soon after given a performance improvement plan (PIP), claiming I was not doing a good job. When I suggested that it would be best for all for me to simply resign after using up my accrued vacation, my immediate supervisor say, no, I had to leave that very day. Then, they said because I didn’t come in – which is what I was told to do – they fired me.
Like it says in the article, once you are put on a PIP, they are most likely just making a “on paper” trail to justify firing you at the end.
Make your best efforts in just looking for new work. Trust me. I learned the hard way.
Oh my god, I wish I had not been so gullible. I wish I had read these postings.
I just got fired.
All,
I’ve been reading the posting here and feel that, while there may be some managers out there that use PIPs as a justification to terminate a person, I do not. I see the plan as a way to ensure the success of an individual when traditional methods have failed, such as an ‘individual development plan’ or some other structured training curriculum.
I was put on a PIP plan beginning at the end of September. Prior to that I had great reviews. In my work enviroment however managers came and went. I ended up with a manager who knew nothing of our dept and how it worked. After about 5 months of working underneath this manager i was suddenly on a PIP plan and I was disgusted at the things they said about me and how they tried to justify it. They gave me goals that were so unrealistic and out of reach. Even after explaining my concerns it didnt matter. Knowing this i sought after another job, found a great opportunity thank god. I tried being professional and went in to put my written two weeks notice and they told me I had to leave right then and I was not considered re-hireable. I found out later that night they had a replacement for me already in line. I found it interesting this new person had no experience at all and she was supposed to be able to exceed my capabilities…not even the 10+ year veterans could pull off what the manager subjected me to.
I too was gullible to believe I would prove them wrong by completing my PIP. I worked for this company (who is very highly respected, Fortune 500) for over a decade and everyone loved me and my work. Last year’s review was really great. This year a jerk came on board “Mr eager beaver”, gave my boss a horrible review and I became the fall guy. Similar to the stories above, there were no clear examples of my lack of skills, or performance issues. The PIP was bogus. I completed everything on it, but he came up with some other petty crap to undermine it. Luckily I had already been looking for another job since this place was so vile. I come out of this feeling relieved yet infuriated, but I know that all my colleagues respect my work and can’t stand my boss, who is known to do nothing all day. (I would like HIS contract).
I was put on a PIP last October. In it, my performance requirements were specifically listed. I focused on what my boss wanted me to improve on, even though I thought most of it was boggus. I swallowed my pride because as a single mom, I couldn’t afford to lose my job. I followed that PIP to the letter for 6 months. I just had my review and the plan was removed.
Follow up to my posting. One consolation for me- my boss got let go. Although I have moved on since and am now helping others in this evil predicament, it is certainly a great feeling to see Karma working.
Although my job performance was above average, I was placed on a PIP after working here over four yrs. My PIP is bogus. I’ve continually been sabotaged and sensed in advance I would be placed on a PIP to set me up for termination. I was right. I will probably be terminated in 1 – 2 weeks. Managers here make favored employees look like better. It is like a game. All this from a company that deals with business ethics. No doubt these dynamics hurt the company too.
If you suspect you are being set up for termination, you probably are. If so, evaluate the situation and consider transferring or seek other employment. In my situation two managers got others involved to push me out. There are some situations an employee may not be able to turn around.
If you are placed on a bogus PIP, write on it you received a copy, it is inaccurate, and you will follow up with details before you sign and date that you received it. Keep a copy. Then follow up, preferably with examples demonstrating your good performance. Send a copy to high level managers.
PIPs can be used to make a good performer look bad to justify termination. My early work showed my performance was good. My Manager has been posting my inaccurate performance scores so my coworkers have the impression my performance is poor, meeting with me every week and having someone coach me. This give the company witnesses and a paper trail.
Take detailed notes. Keep records. Avoid negative comments about the company. They just make you look bitter. Pay attention to the interactions among employees when you interview for jobs. Does the worksite have a high turnover? I saw glaring red flags from the moment I began working there, but I liked other things about the company and I was too busy in my personal life to seek other employment.
If you are being mobbed as I am:
Reading about mobbing and bullying helps you realize it is
not usually a problem with the employee.
Exercise, meditate, seek the company of friends,
sports and hobbies. Help others or volunteer.
Recall the things you have done and do well.
Write a list of them.
Use the experience to motivate you. Can you return
to school or take a course in something you
always wanted to do?
I and serveral of my fellow team members in my department were placed on the so called “PIP” within the last year. There were only 11 people in our area of the department; included in the 11 were the Director and 3 Team Leaders. Every single one that was put on PIP have been “let go”! We worked for a Fortune 500 company, the only Fortune 500 company in our city. I am 58 years old and have been working since I was 13 yrs old and had never been let go from a job before this, had always had good performance reviews & have always maintained a great relationship with my past employers. I was let go only 5 weeks into the PIP while all others were allowed to suffer through the entire 90 days. I was let go early, I’m sure because I told my “Team Leader” (who was only my Team Leader for 1 week before the date I was put on PIP) that I knew that the company did not use PIP for the purpose that it was intended but as a means to degrade a team member & to document “issues” to cover the company legally. The very next day, I was called in to the Director’s office & dismissed. The reason given for my dismissal was that I was “sulking”. I was proud to work for that company and I thought that the dysfunction & extreme stress was only within the department I worked in; however, I have since learned that the PIP is being used thoughout the company. When the 1st person in the area where I worked was dismissed, our team was told that the person who was dismissed would not be replaced & that our dept. was being reorganized. More people were put on PIP & let go, that area of the company was reorganized & yet from what I hear from my friends that are still there (& who are praying that they aren’t next) the dysfunction is still there and the executive team seems to have a blind eye to the common denominator.
I am close to the 1 yr anniversary of my dismissal and I have moved on. As soon as one of my former employers learned that I was available, I was rehired. I am so happy to be back among people who appreciate me for the job I do each day. While my position with my current employer can sometimes be stressful, it in now way compares to what I put up with at the Fortune 500 company.
I am astounded by what I am reading here. I had never heard of a “PIP” until last year when I received one just a few weeks before being fired/quit. I certainly did not realize they were in such common use for the nefarious purpose for which they are being used until I read this blog. Amazing! I wish I had known then what I know now!
I went through a similar experience I see others have gone though. My manager was asked to step down and his replacement targeted me from the very instant he walked into the office. I had been second in command behind my previous manager, so the new manager decided I had to go before we were even introduced. After 4 years of employment and glowing reviews, one as recent as only two months prior that included a raise, within a week of the new manager coming on board I suddenly found myself in repeated panel meetings with HR and the new manager and being forced to sign a PIP. Like others, I was cited for “poor communication” in the PIP, which was a completely bogus charge and I knew it.
Conditions deteriorated rapidly until it reached the pitch that I was being harrassed. Luckily for me, HR realized they had crossed the line so had to give me a reasonable severance package. HR even told me during my “exit interview” that the new manager disliked me so much that he had gone to great lengths to insure that other department managers would not welcome me on their team, and that any attempt to transfer would likely result in more of the same harrassment tactics.
To this day I’m not even sure if I quit or was terminated. I’ve never been fired or forced out of a job before in my 40+ years of working. I personally consider it a mutual agreement that conditions had become toxic and intolerable. But that doesn’t help in answering the question from prospective employers about why I’m unemployed. What can I possibly answer? “The new manager hated me” doesn’t fly, even if it is the honest truth and the only reason for my unemployment.
I have been on medical leave for three months due to a ongoing medical codition. My doctor initially wanted me to stay off work for six months but after three he said I could return only if I could telecommute at least 90% of my reduced hour week.
Opon hearing this my employer insisted I see a “independent” company paid doctor for a second opinion. I saw this doctor and he suggested I could return on a reduced work schedule which gradually got me back to full time hours with NO restrictions. My doctor had many restrictions including side effects from meds he had me on. I was informed that they were going with their doctors accessment and would have to be back at work in two
weeks. Within two hours of my first day back I was called into a meeting and presented a PIP to sign. I started reading this “plan”
And could not believe they were talking about me. I am a almost 13 year employee with perfect reviews and this read like I was the worse employee ever. If had bizarre proclamations like ” I need to be Optimistic at all times” and ” must pat attention in meetings and maintain eye contact”. Almost everything was either a lie about me or so vague or ridiculous I told them no way am I signing this thing. I was also suppose to be 100% at all times. Something my ongoing medical problems makes impossible.
After speaking with a higher up manager then the one that dislikes me so much he drew the Performance Plan. I was given the choice of going back on disability. I was told I will be Medically separated (fired) on October 15th unless my doctor writes a note that I can return but I’ll have to be a 100%. OH, and the Performance Plan will still be in place whether I sign it or not.
Looks like I’ll be joining the rest of you in the unemployment line unless I can maintain my disability. Amazing how one manager with a bad attitude toward you can undermine 13 years of good employment. I hope he believes in Karma because it will get him some day. You’d think you’d get some compassion for a illness your suffering with, instead they gave me a PIP.
I was put on one this Monday for things like poor decision making and judgment, timeliness, productivity..things that for the most part I excel at. I am the earliest of my team including my manager to arrive at work. They usually arrive at 10:00 am to work and I am usually here at 9:30 sometimes once a week at 9:40 am due to traffice and gridlock and I call ahead to let my boss know and he himself is not there yet. That frustrates me. Beyond that timely work..seriously you assign me a joint project with someone else take them off said project and leave me to fend for myself and then when the project is ready.. the layman’s portion the the messages that the user will see accordingly to him and the development lead need revision and they would change they minds this continued for a month.. delaying the project’s release. Is that my fault no ? Was I held accountable that I should have known what those messages where to say properly the first time ? Yes. Still what ticks me off is that my boss had a conversation once in passing with me saying hey you need to improve in a few areas and I want to see this happen. Once. Before that all great reviews. Then on Monday evening he calls me to a meeting with an HR rep on the phone on mute and say he is going to put her in on the conversation. What the hell ? The PIP is in front of him and he wants me to sign it and it reflects all of the above.. timeliness, effectiveness, detailled work, judgment etc. I stay quiet and let them go on. I realized two things that a) I will work harder to beat this and 2) I am not hedging my bets I put my resume back out on the market the very next day( updated) so that I have the option to leave if I choose to do so. Infomation technology is hiring in nabundance lately even with the bad economy just exceedingly high levels of competition. I will be damned if I will be on the chopping block without options and morevoer to be honest here I don’t trust my boss anymore with that stunt he pulled.. he could have talked to me in the interim and related his concerns to me rather than have done that radical shift and to me I don’t know if I could work for someone who could be so cavalier as to put myself and my family who relies on my paychecks in such jeopardy in just under a year’s time.
i was also put onto PIP within my first 3 months of 2 year contract probation in IT dept of HK’s most expensively charged Power company. Having 15 years in the industry and holding multiple certs and awards, I know such nitpick tactic is out to destroy someone. Where I worked they had CCTV and security guards, and the bosses seem to be sadistic workaholic style people that glue to a screen. I only handed in what i think is reasonable, and in the end they forced me out. They think they had lots of CV coming in for post they advertised, so maybe they think they can call in a slave and burn him out like their food of entertainment, which i disagree. i walked off in dignity, but those community charity shows they put up, im tired of these corporate lies.
I was just put on a PIP last week out of the blue. My manager, who is very smart and knows the corporate world very well, once used to be at my level rose to the managers position by back stabbing our former boss and stepping on everyone’s head. Three months ago, she took up the position and immediately called me in and gave me a Met Most on my year end review. I immediately knew she’s documenting everything. Low be hold, 2 weeks ago she told me that in our one-on-one meeting HR will be sitting in and there it was a PIP for 2 months with termination of employement language built in. I couldn’t challange it, but did speak to a higher up boss, who said that I did fall behind on a few project deadlines. I agree, but it was not in my control. I brought up the fact to both the senior supervisor and HR that while working on the high visibility projects, I encountered problems and sought out assistance from my senior, which is exactly what I am suppose to do and my boss called it lack of leadership. She further devised plan on giving me additional projects in which she knew that I would need her or senior manager’s assistance, which again I attempted to sought and which she documented as lack of consideration, leadership and not able to bring to completion on time. I immediately began my job search. I further edited the PIP document and asked for a one-on-one twice a week to show the steps that I am taking on each projects with status update that would require her signature. PIP requires managers to provide guidance, and I have incorporated such terminology in the project status update template. Showed it to my senior manager and he was very supportive of it. Lets see what happens now. I’m in the market talking to recruiters (tough market) and working harder at my current job. I feel that I’m out of the frying pan (previous manager) into the blazing fire…current manager, who is paving the exit road for me. She is kicking me in my stomach and taking food out of my family’s mouth. All I have to say is what goes around comes around….Karma.
Wow,
1) If you’re on a PIP and are pissed at your work, maybe check yourself. You probably did something that management want you to stop.
2) Not everyone uses PIP’s as a “paper trail”
Geez, I’m glad you’re not my staff.