When most people hear the term PIP or Performance Improvement Plan, they immediately think of a struggling employee who’s on their last leg before disciplinary action or dismissal. It’s viewed as a last resort, a red flag, or a sign of failure. But I want to challenge that mindset.
What if, instead, we flipped the script? What if being on a Personal Improvement Plan wasn’t about fixing what’s broken, but about continuously sharpening the skills of every individual and raising the bar for ourselves and our organizations?
PIPs Aren’t Punishment — They’re Opportunity
As sales leaders, we have a responsibility to help our teams grow, not just perform. If our only use of PIPs is to document underperformance, we’re missing one of the greatest tools for building a culture of accountability and excellence.
In a high-performance culture, everyone from the newest BDR to the top producer, from frontline managers to the VP of Sales should be on some form of a Personal Improvement Plan. Not because they’re failing, but because they’re committed to becoming better than they were yesterday.
If We’re Raising the Bar, the Minimum Standard Must Move
Organizations that consistently win in the marketplace are those that refuse to settle. When we raise the bar for what success looks like, yesterday’s top performance becomes tomorrow’s baseline. That means the minimum acceptable standard for our teams needs to evolve, too. And with that evolution comes the need for deliberate, documented personal growth plans.
A Personal Improvement Plan doesn’t say, “You’re not good enough.” It says, “Let’s define what better looks like for you and go after it.” It means helping each person identify their blind spots, stretch their strengths, and build habits that align with new standards.
What a Healthy PIP Looks Like
For this shift to work, PIPs need to shed their stigma. They should be positioned as:
Collaborative: Created with, not for, the individual.
Aspirational: Focused on potential, not just gaps.
Measurable: Centered on clear, actionable commitments tied to outcomes.
Time-bound but ongoing: We don’t graduate from improvement; it’s continuous.
Imagine a team where every person, every quarter, had a documented Personal Improvement Plan tied to their goals. Imagine the compound growth that would drive.
Leadership’s Role: Model It
If we’re going to expect this of our people, we as sales leaders need to lead by example. That means sharing our own PIPs openly showing our teams where we’re working to grow, what feedback we’re acting on, and how we’re pushing ourselves to higher standards.
The Bottom Line
The best sales organizations don’t just manage performance, they build improvement into their DNA. PIPs should be a badge of ambition, not a mark of deficiency. If you want to create a culture where everyone is raising their game, start by making Personal Improvement Plans part of your regular rhythm. If we’re not on a PIP, are we really challenging ourselves?
As always, Stay Hungry, Stay Driven & KEEP GROWING!
Bonus Sandler Resource: Why Salespeople Fail
Did you know that the average tenure of a Sales VP is between two to two and a half years? They barely have time to unpack their bags and get settled before they look for another position. In the meantime, the company does not just lose a Sales VP, they lose their best salesperson as well.
Why does this happen?
And what can we do to change this dynamic? Click here for your complimentary download.
