skill · will · fit — three diagnoses, three treatments
Performance improvement at the senior level
Junior-level PIPs follow a standard 30-60-90 pattern. Senior PIPs at director+ rarely recover — and the right answer is usually a negotiated separation, not a 90-day plan. The exam reliably tests diagnosis before treatment.
Diagnose before designing
SKILL
Capability gap
They know what should happen — they can\'t do it yet. Targeted training, manager coaching, mentorship. Most fixable of the three.
→ training, coaching, mentorship
WILL
Motivation gap
They can do the work — they aren\'t. Coaching dialog, root-cause conversation. Sometimes the answer is a role change, not a PIP.
→ coaching, sometimes redeploy
FIT
Role mismatch
Strong skill, real effort, wrong role. Rarely fixed in role. Internal redeployment when possible, exit when not.
→ redeploy or exit
the rule the exam tests at senior level
Junior PIPs recover. Senior PIPs rarely do.
At director+ level, a PIP usually accelerates a departure that\'s already mentally happened. The right answer for senior performance issues is often a negotiated separation — dignified, documented, with a transition plan — not a 90-day plan that ends in a forced exit and unnecessary friction.
Sometimes the underperformer\'s manager is the problem
Performance issues that show up across multiple direct reports of the same manager aren\'t a coincidence. Before designing PIPs for the team, senior HR asks whether the leader is the source — and considers a leader change before a wave of separations. The exam reliably treats this as a right-answer when the question describes “a manager whose team consistently underperforms.”
Exam Traps
Senior PIPs are different
Junior PIPs follow standard 30-60-90 pattern. Senior PIPs at director+ level are often quiet exits with negotiated separation.
Diagnose before remediating
Skill gap → training. Will gap → coaching. Fit gap → role change or exit. Wrong remediation wastes time.
Documentation drives defensibility
PIPs without documented expectations and feedback are unenforceable. Senior HR audits documentation.
Manager often part of the problem
Performance issues sometimes signal manager-employee mismatch. Senior HR considers manager change before separation.
PIP as exit theater fails
Using PIPs as pre-built termination paths creates legal exposure and culture damage. Senior HR uses real PIPs or moves to separation directly.
Diagnose, then act
Skill, will, fit — three different roots. Each requires different intervention. Senior HR diagnoses before designing.
Manager observes specific gap. Concrete examples documented.
Each root requires different treatment. Senior HR diagnoses.
Specific outcomes, timeline, support, consequences.
Manager check-ins through the period. Real-time adjustment.
Recovery and reset. Or separation with dignity.
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