- Download the Word doc
- Fill in the bracketed sections with your HR partner before the kickoff conversation
- Update it every week for the full length of the plan, not just at the end
A living record, updated in real time every week for the full length of the plan, not a form you fill out once and file away. Treat every entry as if it may someday be read by someone outside the room, HR, legal counsel, or the employee themselves. Check with your own HR and legal counsel before using this, this is a starting structure, not legal advice.
Document the day it happens. Memory reconstructed at the end of the week is not a record. Be factual, not interpretive, "submitted the report three hours after the agreed deadline," not "has a bad attitude about deadlines." Log the good along with the bad, a record that only contains negatives reads as a case being built, not a plan to help someone improve. Every piece of feedback given, in a meeting, in Slack, in the hallway, gets written down the same day. Share this document with the employee and review it together at each check-in, they should never be seeing an entry for the first time in a termination meeting.
Department: [department] · Manager: [name]
PIP start date: [date] · PIP end date: [date]
Check-in schedule: [weekly, or your cadence] · HR partner (if applicable): [name]
| Target area | Specific performance concern | Expected outcome / measurable standard | Resources or support provided |
|---|---|---|---|
| [area] | [specific, observed concern] | [what "improved" looks like, concretely] | [training, tools, check-ins offered] |
| [area] | [specific, observed concern] | [what "improved" looks like, concretely] | [training, tools, check-ins offered] |
Manager signature: ___________________ Date: _______
Employee signature: ___________________ Date: _______
HR signature (if applicable): ___________________ Date: _______
Repeat this full structure for each week of the plan. A four-week plan gets four of these.
| Date | Time | Observation (factual, specific, no interpretation) | Documented by | Shared with employee? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| [date] | [time] | [observation] | [name] | [yes/no] |
| [date] | [time] | [observation] | [name] | [yes/no] |
Daily observation log. Log every relevant observation the day it happens, not from memory at the end of the week, and include things that went well, not only problems.
| Date | Given by | What was communicated | Employee's response |
|---|---|---|---|
| [date] | [name] | [what was said] | [response] |
Feedback conversations this week. Undocumented feedback is, for these purposes, feedback that was never given.
Manager narrative summary: [summary]
Employee comments (optional, employee may complete this themselves): [comments]
Manager signature: ___________________ Date: _______
Employee signature: ___________________ Date: _______
Summary of final outcome: [summary]
Manager signature: ___________________ Date: _______
Employee signature: ___________________ Date: _______
HR signature (if applicable): ___________________ Date: _______
Not every PIP ends in improvement, and that's what the plan is for, giving a fair, documented shot before a harder decision. If you're at the end of this one and the outcome wasn't met, You Have to Let Someone Go covers the four moves for that conversation, and the Termination Conversation, Manager Checklist has the script.