Performance improvement plans
When to use a performance improvement plan, and how to make it fair
Use a performance improvement plan when you have already raised a clear, specific gap informally and it has not closed. A fair plan names one to three measurable expectations, a realistic period to meet them, the support you will give, how often you will meet, and what happens at the end. If you would not be glad to see the person succeed on it, it is not a fair plan.
How managers put it
- “Is it time to put her on a PIP, or is that too much?”
- “What actually goes in a performance improvement plan?”
- “Everyone says a PIP means you're about to be fired. How do I make it not that?”
What to do
1.Check you have done the informal work first
Have you had a direct conversation, written down the expectation, and given time to meet it? If not, do that first. A plan that arrives as a surprise feels like an ambush, and usually is one.
2.Pick a few measurable expectations
One to three, each specific enough that you and the employee would agree on whether it was met. "Close support tickets within two working days" works. "Improve communication" does not.
3.Set a realistic period
Long enough to show real change in that kind of work; thirty to ninety days is common. Say the end date at the start.
4.Write down the support you will give
Training, a colleague to shadow, fewer interruptions, a weekly check-in. A plan with only demands and no help is a plan designed to fail.
5.Meet regularly and record each meeting
Weekly or every two weeks, write down what improved, what did not, and what you agreed. Record progress as carefully as shortfalls.
6.Say plainly what happens at the end
Successful completion, an extension, or the next step. Ambiguity at the end is what makes people feel the outcome was decided in advance.
This is management practice, not legal advice. For a termination, talk to an employment lawyer in your state first.
Where LVL Up helps
A plan with expectations, measures and an end date
You write the concern, one or more expectations each with how it will be judged and a due date, the support you will give, and the start and end dates. A draft stays private to you and your account admins until you share it.
Shared, read and acknowledged
Sharing starts the plan. The employee gets a notice in the app, reads all of it, and acknowledges it once, which records that they read it, not that they agree. They can add a comment. After sharing, the concern and expectations are locked, so the plan you judge is the plan they read.
Dated check-ins and a recorded outcome
Each check-in is a dated note on the plan. You close it as met, not met or cancelled, with a note; a closed plan cannot be reopened or edited.
The record before the plan is already there
If you have been holding 1:1s, setting goals and running reviews in LVL Up, the dated history the plan rests on is on the person's record.
What it does not do
LVL Up records the plan; it does not write it, does not decide whether it was met, does not produce warning or termination letters, and does not give legal advice. Plans are visible to the employee's current manager and your account admins, and to the employee only once shared. Nothing is emailed: the employee is told in the app, and should hear it from you first.
Common questions
What should a performance improvement plan include?
The specific gap, one to three measurable expectations, the time period, the support offered, the check-in schedule and what happens at the end. Both of you should sign or acknowledge it.
How long should a PIP last?
Long enough for real improvement to show in that kind of work; thirty, sixty and ninety days are common. A period too short to succeed in is not fair.
Does a PIP mean I am going to fire them?
It should not. A plan written to be met, with real support, is a last serious attempt to keep someone; if you have already decided, talk to an employment lawyer instead of running a plan for show.
Does a PIP protect me legally?
A fair, consistent, documented process helps, but no single document makes a decision safe. The rules differ by state, so talk to an employment lawyer before any termination.
Do I need a template?
A simple one helps, and the guide linked below walks through one. What matters more is the history before it: dated conversations, written expectations and recorded progress.
Related:
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