Performance Improvement Plan
Concerns, targets, support and review dates in one page.
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| Employee | [employee name] |
| Role | [job title] |
| Plan period | [date] to [date] |
1. Areas of concern
| Area | What has been observed |
|---|---|
| [add areas of concern] |
2. What good looks like
| Target | |
|---|---|
| [add targets] |
3. Support we will provide
| Support | |
|---|---|
| [add support] |
4. Review
We will meet weekly during the plan period to discuss progress, and hold a formal review on [date]. The purpose of this plan is to help you meet the required standard. If the standard is not met by the end of the plan, we may need to consider further steps under the capability procedure.
What is a Performance Improvement Plan?
A performance improvement plan states what is falling short, what the standard is, what support the employer will provide, and by when the gap must close. It is used when informal feedback has not worked and the alternative is a formal process. Done properly it gives the employee a real chance and the employer a documented record. Done as a formality before a dismissal already decided, it becomes the first exhibit in the claim.
Line managers write them, usually with HR alongside, when documented informal feedback has produced no change. Typical triggers are missed targets across more than one review period, repeated quality failures, or a promotion into a role the person is not yet performing in. The plan is a capability tool rather than a conduct one — lateness, dishonesty and policy breaches go down a disciplinary route instead. Some organisations also use a shorter version at the end of a probation period, where the standard is the same but the timescale is compressed.
What a fair process looks like before a dismissal is set by local employment law, not by the plan. The UK has the Acas Code on disciplinary and grievance procedures and qualifying service rules for unfair dismissal; Australia has the Fair Work Act's unfair dismissal regime and the Small Business Fair Dismissal Code; Canadian provinces and most EU member states have their own notice and process requirements; most US employment is at will, with significant exceptions. Where underperformance may relate to a disability or a health condition, a duty to consider adjustments applies in most of these jurisdictions. Take advice on your specific case.
A plan does not decide the outcome. If the standard is met, the plan ends and the matter closes — writing one with dismissal already agreed is precisely what tribunals and courts look for, and it usually shows. It is not a disciplinary sanction and should not be recorded as one. It does not remove the employer's obligation to consider whether health, workload, training or a change in the role explains the shortfall. And it is not a substitute for the conversations that should have happened months earlier.
What to put in a Performance Improvement Plan
These are the details this template asks for. Anything left blank is marked in red on the preview so you can see what is still missing.
| Field | What goes in it |
|---|---|
| Issuing organisation | For example: Maple Grove Homeowners Association |
| Organisation address | For example: 1420 Kinnear Road, Columbus, OH 43212 |
| Issued to (full name) | For example: James Whitfield |
| Designation | For example: Senior Assistant |
| Areas of concern | One per line: Area | What has been observed |
| What good looks like | One per line |
| Support being provided | One per line |
| Plan starts | Free text |
| Plan ends | Free text |
| Signatory name optional | For example: K. Srinivasa Rao |
| Signatory designation optional | For example: Honorary Secretary |
How to write a Performance Improvement Plan
Describe the gap with specific examples
Name the standard, the actual performance and at least three dated examples. ‘Target is 40 qualified leads a month; delivered 22, 19 and 24 in June, July and August against a team median of 38’ is a gap the employee can address. ‘Performance is below expectations’ is an opinion, and the first thing the employee will say is that nobody told them what the standard was.
Set targets that can be measured
Each objective needs a number or an observable output, a deadline and a source for the data. ‘Reduce reopened tickets to under 5 per cent, measured from the helpdesk report, for two consecutive months’ can be assessed. ‘Improve attention to detail’ cannot, and a plan built on unmeasurable targets fails whichever way it goes, because neither side can say whether it was met.
State the support the employer will give
Write down the training, the shadowing, the reduced caseload, the weekly one-to-one, the mentor, the software licence — with dates and owners, exactly as you would for any other project. A plan listing obligations on one side only is the version that reads badly later. If the employee asks for something reasonable and it is refused, record the request and the reason for refusing it.
Fix the review dates in the diary
Set the review points up front — weekly or fortnightly check-ins and a formal review at the end — and hold them even when things are going well. Each review needs a short written note of progress against each target, agreed at the meeting. Plans that run for eight weeks with no contact and then end in a decision meeting are indefensible, because the employee was denied the chance to correct course.
Say what happens at the end, both ways
State plainly what follows if the targets are met — the plan closes and no record follows the employee into future decisions — and what may follow if they are not, in the language of your own policy and local law. Have the employee acknowledge the plan in writing, note any disagreement they record, and tell them whether they may be accompanied at review meetings under your procedure.
Common mistakes
- Writing the plan after the decision to dismiss has been taken produces a paper trail that shows exactly that, and it is the document the other side asks for first.
- Setting targets such as ‘improve communication’ with no measure means neither side can say at the end whether the plan was met.
- Listing the employee's obligations without recording any employer support makes the plan read as a countdown rather than a chance.
- Skipping the scheduled check-ins removes the employee's opportunity to correct course, which is the part of the process most likely to be examined afterwards.
- Routing a conduct issue such as dishonesty through a performance plan puts the matter in the wrong procedure and undermines whatever follows it.
Frequently asked questions
Does a performance improvement plan mean I am being fired?
Not by itself. A plan is meant to set a standard and a period in which to reach it, and plans are met more often than people expect. What tells you more is whether the targets are measurable, whether support is written into it, and whether the review meetings actually happen. If the plan is vague and the reviews keep being cancelled, that is a signal worth taking seriously.
How long should a performance improvement plan last?
Long enough for improvement to be demonstrated and measured, which for most roles means somewhere between one and three months. Sales cycles, project lengths and seasonal patterns should drive the period rather than a standard company figure. A two-week plan for a role whose results take a quarter to appear is not a plan, and it is difficult to defend as a fair process.
Can you refuse to sign a performance improvement plan?
You can decline to sign agreement to the contents, and employers usually then record that the plan was issued and discussed but not agreed. A signature normally acknowledges receipt rather than acceptance — read what the signature line actually says. If you disagree with the facts, put your account in writing and ask for it to be kept with the plan. Rights here differ by jurisdiction.
What should be included in a PIP?
The specific shortfall with dated examples, the standard expected, measurable targets with deadlines and data sources, the support the employer will provide with owners and dates, the schedule of review meetings, what happens if the targets are met, and what may follow if they are not. Plus the employee's acknowledgement and any comments they wish to record.
Is a performance improvement plan a disciplinary action?
In most organisations' policies it is not — performance and conduct run down separate routes, and mixing them causes problems. Check your own policy wording, because some employers formally place capability within the disciplinary procedure. Where a dismissal may eventually follow, the fairness of the whole process is judged under the employment law where you work, so take advice on the specific case.
This page explains general practice and is not legal advice. Requirements differ between countries and, in some cases, between states — check what applies where the document will be used.