A fair PIP has five parts: the specific gaps with concrete instances (not "attitude"), measurable outcomes that define success, a realistic duration — one to three months is typical — scheduled checkpoints, and the support the company commits: mentoring, a scope change, clearer priorities. And it says out loud what happens if the outcomes are met, and if they are not.
The honest question before opening one: is this a performance problem or a placement problem? An engineer failing on a project that mismatches their skills, burned out after a death-march delivery, or never actually briefed on expectations doesn't need a PIP — they need staffing, recovery, or a manager who sets context. A PIP where the decision has already been made is paperwork theater; people recognize it instantly, and the rest of the team updates its trust accordingly.
Run genuinely, it is the opposite: a documented, resourced chance with a clock. In a services company, where an underperforming engineer becomes visible to a paying client within weeks, the structured version is far kinder than months of hints followed by a surprise exit.
Helia doesn't ship a dedicated PIP module. Teams run the same mechanics through what exists: SMART goals scoped to a period for the plan's outcomes, and a recurring 1-on-1 cadence with private, author-only manager notes for the checkpoints — both already in the product.