Could you all give me some advice regarding PIPs and how they work? After over a decade of being considered an exemplary employee with multiple EE ratings, I find myself struggling with the sales metric this year, mainly due to all the service and billing calls sent over in the guise of acquisitions. I’ll do very well one month and then the next month I’ll be just shy of the midpoint, which make me a complete and utter failure in the eyes of my current manager. She’s a narcissist and spends the majority of our coaching time rattling on about herself and whatever might be going on in her life at that moment. At exactly 25 minutes in, she’ll trot out my scorecard. If I’ve missed the sales metric that month, she’ll let me know in no uncertain terms that I need to pick it up or I will be looking at a PIP. I have a strong feeling that I’ll be placed on one next month. So my dilemma is, should I stay or go? I’ve been here long enough to retire. I would ultimately like to stay at least through the first week in December so I can take advantage of the holiday bonus if there is one. On the other hand, I already suffer from job-induced insomnia and anxiety and I don’t need the extra stress. So does a PIP involve just signing a form agreeing that I need to improve? Or will it involve extra “coaching” time and call evaluations?
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In departments without metrics, a PIP is to inform you that you're not one of their little darlings and favorites and that you're in eminent danger of being scraped off the collective boot of USAA like so much s.h.it.
In departments with metrics like sales or call lengths I'd be less agitated by a PIP since it's based on concrete data and may have been initiated across the board at arms length by upper management who doesn't know you. Therefore, it's not personal and you have a chance to survive it.
I’m sorry you are going through this. It sounds very calculated to me
Insomnia can cause stroke or heart attack
Anxiety can trigger heart problems , weaken your immune system, trigger IBS, cause weight gain and lead to depression
In my opinion, given your situation, your health and wellbeing are much more important than USAA.
Remember, USAA can replace you, but it is difficult to recover your health.
Take care of you!
For additional context from my comment below, and to answer one of your concerns the PIP doesnt impact any incentives like bonuses, raises and such. You can post out still, you can use education assistance.
If you fail the PIP like i did and go on that final notice, thats where posting out opportunity is frozen, education assistance is frozen and any monetary incentives could be withheld, at manager discretion. At least thats what my documentation states.
I am on one now, well rather im on final notice.
My PIP was 30 days, with stupid unrealistic goals. Had to meet with boss every week for status, where i was told i wasnt making enough progress, no matter what i did. It ended last week with my boss saying i failed it. Now im on a final notice -disciplinary action, its for another 30 days. I know i will be terminated at the end, I have been applying for jobs for several months now, even before the PIP cuz i saw the writing on the wall.
This is in IT, so i cant help as to what that means for sales. Its not fun, its bullsh-t. But im not gonna quit, its what they want. I will file for unemployment. Better than working at that cesspool any longer anyways. Best of luck, OP.
Your retirement or holiday bonus is not in jeopardy because of a PIP. It sounds like your manager doesn’t know how to coach. If you are placed on a PIP, escalate your concerns sincerely to your director or AVP.
I don't know about retirement benefits. Perhaps ask an employment attorney.
I mean… I don’t think they can take your retirement benefit away…
I’ve seen the writing on the wall for the last several months and realize that my time at USAA will be coming to an end. I know that my tenure and above average pay make me a prime target for elimination. I’ve been through every stage of grief - the denial, the anger, the depression. I now accept that I will be leaving. I just want it to be on my terms. This PIP is inevitable. My question is, how often would I need to be “coached”? Does it involve more than the usual once a week coaching? I can manage the normal once a week coaching for an extra 30 days or so. If I have to meet with her more than that, I would have to leave ASAP. My other concern is that if I do’t leave soon, this manager will trump up some charge against me and fire me on the spot. She has already told me that if her scorecard isn’t green across the board, she won’t receive her full bonus, implying that I would be the reason for that. So, as much as I would like the holiday bonus, it might be better to leave while I still have my retirement benefits.
To your point regarding "... leaders are cutting without caution or vision, they may be slicing departments while simultaneously looking for the door themselves, so they don’t care about doing it right" --
I was personally contacted by 3 recruiters looking for ex-USAA for, you guessed it, a job at USAA! What is interesting is that I did not "advertise" the fact that I am no longer at USAA, so I do wonder how they got me on the list of people to ask. My guess is that you are spot on, and they released staff with a poor plan (typical for them!).
Now, maybe the recruiters may be "shooting in the dark". But USAA yet again proves to me that they just don't know what they are doing. One of their quack managers may have said, "Hey, I have a brilliant idea! You know all of these staff that we screwed over? Well let's save $ on training and ask them back. After all, it's only been a few weeks and they've probably totally forgotten what worthless POS we are, and we will low-ball them while we are at it!"
@mjb+1oU1FoHV
Very well said. For those paying attention, these warning signs are popping up all over USAA. Contrast this with Citi, where the CEO is driving painful change with visionary purpose and frank attitude. That doesn’t mean Jane will succeed or do better than Wayne, but I certainly like her odds better. There are red flags here that leaders are cutting without caution or vision, they may be slicing departments while simultaneously looking for the door themselves, so they don’t care about doing it right.
Like you said, surviving a PIP can be grueling, and what use is it if the company is circling anyway.
The one caveat is that USAA still has a very lucrative layoff payment, so I think that’s the main reason people would fight a PIP so hard even though you know you may not have much of a career trajectory after beating it.
One thing most internet commentary on PIPs ask: is it worth your time, energy, and mental health to stay on a sinking ship OR invest your energy in finding a better position?
Chances are, you have already seen warning signs. You may not be "given" work appropriate for your level ( although most of the company probably "qualifies" for this red flag, what little work there is may be given to others and you are left with crumbs). You may see colleagues who are unqualified for leadership being put in those roles, willing to do anything to get that promotion (the carrot placed in front of their ambitious noses). You are left out of strategic meetings and have no idea what you will be doing in the next sprint. In other words, you are being "shut out".
Your manager may be playing "good cop", but the lead is the "bad cop", actively blocking your efforts. It's all an orchestrated strategy.
I say "learn from the nonsense", invest your energies elsewhere, and always charge your highest rate! Knowledge is power, so grow yourself. Make lemonade out these lemons.
Definitely start taking steps to start looking for a new job. However, document! Write down every coaching start/end time and how much time is spent rattling about herself and then what ever was discussed and what coaching was provided.
I had a manager who placed me on a pip, consistently cancelled our 1:1 meetings and I documented all of this along with a laundry list of other items. I presented my documentation to our AVP and the pip was pulled. You may need to take to ethics if you don’t feel like her leader will listen.
But sad thing is this might be all part of the efforts to reduce staffing so I’m not sure if anyone reasonable is going to give it the time of day to really do the right thing. I’m sorry you are going through this. I recently left and I know everyone says it, but really, I love my new job! Sometimes it’s these things that push you to finally say you had enough and it is all a blessing!
@gjv+1oU1FoHV
Exactly, that’s why you’re being threatened with a PIP. If a PIP were innocent, they wouldn’t threaten people with it. It’s used as a threat because once it’s thrown down, it’s nearly always a point of no return short of some serious professional kegels.
This is a targeted tactic against senior-level employees. In my case, it came down to whether it was worth my time and mental health to stay in a toxic culture. When I figured out the "game", I quit immediately and have very happily moved on.
It is a personal choice as to whether it is worth the time and stress to stay. But, my guess is that they will try to force you out so they can feed their pennies to the peacock. If you have the $, I would dump them ASAP. But whatever you do, be sure they don't wreck your reputation. You may retire now, but care to return to your career in a few years.
BTW, I have been contacted by 3 recruiters recently regarding USAA hiring prior USAA employees. They are so cheap, they don't want to hire non-usaa and train those folks on their convoluted, antiquated systems. They probably will march those unfortunate souls in front of the entire company to say how great USAA is and how they begged to return, and how horrible the "beyond the gates" employees are.
I don’t have statistics, but most PIPs are not set with the expectation you will succeed. At that point, it’s more about building the case for your firing. True, if you do an amazing job you may be able to stop it, but don’t mistake a PIP as just “being in trouble”. If you’re on PIP, you’re on the precipice with your manager stamping on your fingers.
If you are in a group that can be retired out, then you are a target. They are trying to manage you (and others) out so that you are replaced with cheaper labor. The PIP is 90 days of the manager “coaching” you on how to improve. If you have not demonstrated improvement at the end of the 90 days then most of the time they will terminate your employment. Since you are able to retire they may give you the option to retire instead of termination.
Start looking. Stay until you find something but start looking. This mental health abuse is rampant there and it needs to stop. Would you stay married to a narcissist? Re-read your post and pretend it's not you - what would you do?