Delivering a PIP Without a Lawsuit: What HR Leaders Need to Know

Program Summary

In our interactive instructor-led 60-minute event, you will learn a structured framework for one of HR's most consequential responsibilities: delivering a performance improvement plan. Whether you are addressing chronic underperformance, behavior issues, or attendance problems, the way the PIP is written, communicated, and documented often determines whether your organization is protected or exposed.

This session moves beyond basic templates to cover the strategic and legal side of the PIP process. You will learn how to balance honest feedback with legally defensible language, manage volatile employee reactions in the moment, and document each step to protect your organization from retaliation claims and wrongful termination lawsuits.

You'll discover the following:

• How to write PIP language that sets clear expectations without creating wrongful termination exposure
• Specific phrases to use (and avoid) to balance firmness with legal caution
• Techniques for managing employee reactions without derailing the process or your organization's legal position
• Steps for documenting the conversation to ensure consistent, legally defensible records

Program Highlights

Preparation and Strategy: Building a PIP That Holds Up

• How to determine the right timing, documentation trail, and stakeholders before issuing a PIP
• Ways to gather and verify performance data so the PIP reflects facts, not impressions
• Techniques for writing measurable goals that close the door on vagueness and ambiguity

The Conversation: Delivering the PIP Without Creating New Risk

• How to communicate the PIP clearly without creating false hope, legal loopholes, or retaliation exposure
• Specific scripts and language choices that convey accountability while maintaining professional and legal boundaries
• Strategies for de-escalating anger, denial, or emotional escalation in the moment

Post-Conversation: Documentation and Follow-Through

• How to document the conversation, employee responses, and next steps immediately after the meeting
• Ways to ensure consistent messaging across managers and departments to prevent inconsistency claims
• Best practices for monitoring progress and building a record that supports any outcome, including termination

Question & Answer Session Have your specific questions answered!

ABOUT THE SPEAKER

Margie Faulk, HR Compliance Advisor and E-Learning Trainer, HR Compliance Solutions, LLC

Margie Faulk is a senior-level human resources professional with over 15 years of HR management and compliance experience. A current Compliance Advisor for HR Compliance Solutions, LLC, Margie, has worked as an HR Compliance advisor for major corporations and small businesses in the small, large, private, public and non-profit sectors.  Margie has provided small to large businesses with risk management strategies that protect companies and reduces potential workplace fines and penalties for violation of employment regulations. Margie is bilingual (Spanish) fluent and Bi-cultural. Margie holds professional human resources certification (PHR) from the HR Certification Institution (HRCI) and SHRM-CP certification from the Society for Human Resources Management. Margie is a member of the Society of Corporate Compliance & Ethics (SCCE).