Sample performance improvement plan for poor leadership
Addressing any performance issues promptly is essential, but addressing poor leadership is arguably one of the most important.
Underperforming leaders create underperforming employees, which hurts your business’s bottom line.
They also create disengaged or unhappy employees, potentially leading to turnover issues down the road.
Performance improvement plans are one tool for improving employee performance issues such as poor leadership.
These plans help struggling leaders by setting clear expectations and getting them back on track.
Furthermore, the plans provide tools. These tools are for improving leadership skills.
Explore our performance improvement plan examples to see how to use performance plans to address poor leadership.
You can also check out our performance improvement plan employer guide to learn more about the key components of a performance improvement plan and access a blank performance improvement plan template.
What is a performance improvement plan?
A performance improvement plan (PIP) is a performance action plan created to address poor performance, including poor leadership, negative attitudes, low productivity, or other common workplace issues.
It clearly describes the performance issues that need to be addressed and how they currently impact the business, the employee’s coworkers, or direct reports. The plan also provides measurable objectives that the employee must work towards throughout the plan.
The employee performance improvement plan is often created after informal coaching or warnings are unsuccessful. It’s commonly a last resort before termination or, in the case of poor leadership, sometimes demotion to a non-managerial role.
It is a formal process. It is also a serious process. But, it should still be approached with a collaborative tone. And it should be approached with a supportive tone. The employee is placed on a performance improvement plan. This employee should be allowed to contribute to the discussion.
This discussion is about the employee’s goals. Additionally, it covers the resources the employee needs. The employee needs these resources to reach their goals.
A manager might use a performance improvement plan. They use it to address poor leadership. However, the manager must be mindful. The manager is overseeing the process. The manager has a duty. That duty is to model good leadership skills.
They should conduct regular check-ins to monitor the employees’ progress. These check-ins are great opportunities for them to demonstrate how to communicate clearly, lead a performance management discussion, and be positive, supportive leaders.
Sample performance improvement plan for poor leadership communication
Employee Name: Edward Sullivan
Employee Title: Marketing Department Leader
Direct Manager: Alisha Washington
This performance improvement plan will help Edward Sullivan improve his leadership skills and work performance.
Areas of Concern
During Mr. Sullivan’s last performance review, we discussed his need to improve his leadership skills to boost employee satisfaction and productivity in his department.
In the recent employee survey, only 32% of his team felt he was responsive to their needs, and only 21% thought he communicated performance expectations.
We are implementing this plan to help Mr. Sullivan grow his leadership skills, focusing on good leadership communication to better support his staff.
Performance Improvement Goals
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Enroll in assigned leadership communication skills courses and demonstrate proficiency by earning a certificate of completion.
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Implement and host weekly department meetings to improve team communication skills. Document these meetings by creating an organized agenda and taking meeting notes.
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Improve departmental employee satisfaction by at least 15%, as measured by the next quarterly employee survey.
Resources
Mr. Sullivan will be enrolled in a series of leadership development and communication courses on the company’s e-learning platform. He is to complete all of the assigned courses by the set deadlines.
Performance Plan Duration
This performance improvement plan will be in place for an initial 60 days. If goals can not be completed satisfactorily in that time frame, it may be extended for an additional 30 days.
Key Milestones
Milestone: Complete Introductory Leadership Communication Training.
Deadline: February 10, 2023
Outcome:
Complete 30-day performance check-in.
Deadline: February 15, 2023
Outcome:
Milestone: Complete remaining assigned courses.
Deadline: March 20, 2023
Outcome:
Milestone: Complete 30-day performance check-in.
Deadline: March 15, 2023
Outcome:
Acknowledgment
I understand that failure to comply with the set employee performance plan may result in disciplinary action, up to and including termination.
Employee Name: Edward Sullivan
Employee Signature:
Manager Name: Alisha Washington
Manager Signature:
Sample performance improvement plan for general poor leadership
Employee Name: Janet Michaels
Employee Title: Finance Manager
Direct Manager: Elena Rodriguez
This performance improvement plan is intended to help Janet Michaels develop her leadership skills and excel in her role as a Finance Manager.
Areas of Concern
Since Mrs. Michaels took over the department, her team has frequently missed deadlines. Other company leaders have also noticed finance employees coming in late and appearing off task often.
These concerns have been documented and brought to Janet, but proper action has not been taken to correct these issues.
Employees have reported that deadlines are not properly communicated to them, they are not being provided the support they need to do their work, and tasks aren’t being assigned consistently.
This performance improvement plan is designed to help Mrs. Michaels better oversee her staff, monitor workloads, and lead her department.
She will also need to learn how to better engage in coaching with her subordinates to help them meet deadlines and become more punctual and productive.
Performance improvement goals
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Increase department productivity by 15% over the previous quarter.
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Learn to exhibit strong leadership skills through the use of proper leadership communication, delegation, and employee coaching.
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Institute a more effective workload management system with more transparency through the use of a selected project management tool.
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Meet all department deadlines by exercising good personal time management, coaching staff on time management, and having proactive conversations with direct reports on deadline expectations and workloads.
Resources
The employee will be provided with e-learning courses to complete on time management, delegation, and leadership.
Performance plan duration
The performance improvement plan will be in place for 90 days. Progress check-ins and evaluations will occur at the 30, 60, and 90-day marks.
Acknowledgment
I understand that failure to comply with the set employee performance plan may result in disciplinary action, up to and including termination.
Employee Name: Janet Michaels
Employee Signature:
Manager Name: Elena Rodriguez
Manager Signature:
Sample performance improvement plan for poor leadership: Failure to meet department objections
Employee Name: Gerald Beekman
Employee Title: Sales Manager
Direct Manager: Amanda Chavez
This performance improvement plan is intended to help Gerald Beekman improve their work performance in the area of department leadership. This plan is designed to support Mr. Beekman’s leadership skills development to help him lead his department to success in the next quarter.
Areas of Concern
Mr. Beekman’s team has failed to meet individual and department goals for two consecutive quarters. Approximately 67% of his team failed to meet their individual goals, leading to the department failing to meet its quarterly goals.
After several conversations with Mr. Beekman and his employees and management observation of the department’s conduct, it has been determined that Mr. Beekman’s poor leadership is a major contributor to the team’s failure to meet expectations.
Performance improvement goals
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Increase department-wide sales by 20% over the prior quarter.
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Increase personal sales by 30% to meet personal quarterly sales quota.
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Conduct performance check-ins with each subordinate twice throughout the PIP period to support their individual and larger department goals.
Resources
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The employee will be paired with a leadership mentor to help him develop his leadership skills and navigate any questions or challenges during the performance improvement plan.
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The employee will complete a leadership development course.
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The employee will re-review company sales and leadership training materials to understand expectations and best practices going forward.
Performance plan duration
The performance improvement plan will be in place for 90 days commencing on March 1, 2023. Failure to complete this plan may result in removal from a leadership role in the form of a demotion.
Key Milestones
Milestone: Initial meeting with leadership mentor
Deadline: March 8, 2023
Outcome:
Milestone: Completion of sales leadership training
Deadline: March 30, 2023
Outcome:
Milestone: 30-day check-in
Deadline: April 1, 2023
Outcome:
Milestone: Complete performance check-ins with all direct reports
Deadline: April 1, 2023
Outcome:
Milestone: 60-day check-in
Deadline: May 1, 2023
Outcome:
Milestone: Complete second performance check-in with direct reports
Deadline: May 15, 2023
Outcome:
Milestone: 90-day check-in
Deadline: June 1, 2023
Outcome:
Acknowledgment
I understand that failure to comply with the set employee performance plan may result in disciplinary action, up to and including termination.
Employee Name: Gerald Beekman
Employee Signature:
Manager Name: Amanda Chavez
Manager Signature:
__________________________________________________________________________________________
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