How Managers Weaponize the PIP Plan to Mask their Issues with You

Before you dive in, if you’re not sure what a PIP is, let me explain:

PIP= Performance Improvement Plan

If you’ve been in the workplace long enough, you know exactly what the term PIP means. For me, and perhaps for some of you as well, I’ve always associated a PIP with being put on death row. While that comparison may seem extreme, it’s one that can be considered because PIPs often signal that you’re at risk of losing your job. Although it’s positioned as a tool to assist employees who are struggling, the reality is that it’s primarily a tool—yet the ambiguity surrounding its true purpose adds to the daunting and stressful experience of being put on one.

I’ve found that managers sometimes use the PIP as a weapon to handle their unpleasant tasks. While I’m not here to criticize managers—in fact, during my time in the Corporate workplace, I’ve held leadership roles—I can assure you that using such tactics wasn’t my style. I was that COOL manager (paying homage to that COOL mom in Mean Girls), I promise. However, in these roles, I witnessed firsthand the mistreatment and abuse of PIPs by my peers in leadership.

I write these blogs because I understand the roots of conflict and the lasting impact that such misconduct can have on one’s confidence and self-worth when they become a victim of this destructive aspect of PIPs. While it’s crucial to emphasize ethical management practices, it’s also important to recognize and prevent misuse of performance improvement plans (PIPs).

Here are three ways managers might weaponize PIPs:

1. Setting Unrealistic Goals : Managers can create a PIP with goals that are nearly impossible to achieve within the given timeframe. This sets the employee up for failure, providing the manager with a reason for termination.

2. Providing Insufficient Support: A manager might deliberately withhold necessary resources, feedback, or guidance that an employee needs to improve. This lack of support ensures the employee cannot meet the PIP’s requirements.

3. Documenting Minor Infractions: Managers can meticulously document minor mistakes or infractions that would normally be overlooked. By building a case of continuous underperformance, they can justify disciplinary actions against the employee.

Bonus one:

4. Leveraging Others to Justify Their Actions: Managers can sometimes lie and misuse other employees or leadership (without their knowledge or consent) by claiming alignment with their decisions. They might even write commentary on their behalf, addressing falsified issues or concerns to place you on a Performance Improvement Plan (PIP) and remove you from the organization. Be cautious of these individuals.

It’s crucial for organizations to have checks and balances to prevent such misuse and to ensure PIPs are used fairly and constructively.

Stay Flashy!

Author: The Impartial lab. (M.TIL)