I recently had my checkpoint with my boss. I was left in shock as I have never had such a poor review; I was marked a low performer. I didn’t see this coming, and I honestly feel like my work and dedication don’t make sense to the scoring and feedback. It’s been a huge punch to the gut because I approach my work so responsibly and with pride. Has anyone experienced being marked a low performer and if that is just a set-up to be fired? What did the timeline look like from review to firing? Trying to brace myself… appreciate the comments and guidance as I find myself in this unexpected position.
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No Games just move!
How old are you?
You will likely find a job outside of IBM that is more interesting and pays better. That is what I found when I left IBM. Hold you head up and move on
The timeline you are seeking can be different for everyone. Mine looked like this: exceeds/exceeds in Jan, marked low performer in Jul checkpoint (huge shock, just like you). Handed PIP in mid September, which would give you ~90 days til the end, so out by Dec and off their books by the end of the year. You probably have 6 months by the time you are out.
Some great advice here but one you were marked without given a heads up before, you are most likely out.
People who we want to keep are given multiple opportunities to improve with a review so if you were surprised then plan to move.
First, I am sorry to hear of your situation. And you are already on the right track by being proactive. Keep going -- act as if you have 3 to 6 months to prepare for an exit. By some chance it might not happen, but more than likely it will. So now is the time to to get ready -- action alleviates anxiety. Take control and plan your next steps.
Getting ready to find a new job outside of IBM
(1) Stay positive and don't burn any bridges internally. IBMers know alot of people and will be good references for you and they may know of open positions elsewhere.
(2) Do a quick audit of your skills -- are the current? are they the skills that people want now?
(3) If you need to buff up your skills, now is the time to take advantage of all the free education at IBM and earn some new badges. Once you get outside, you may have to pay to get re-skilled. Better to take advantage of the free resources now.
(4) Get your LinkedIn profile updated -- lots of good advice online about how to shine
(5) Start getting connected with fellow IBMers on LinkedIn, now, before you leave. Once you leave, people may be less inclined to link with you. Of course, when you reach out to them on LinkedIn do not tell them you want to connect because you are worried about being laid off -- no need to share that information at this time.
(6) Update your resume -- while you can do it yourself, I suggest you nvest $200 to have a professional help you. Here's a service my HR Partner recommends www.topresume.com/
Getting ready to leave IBM
(1) Get on the phone with the Money Smart program team and have an assessment of your 401K and finances. This will let you know where you stand. The Money Smart program is free so take advantage of it.
(2) Use your Personal Choice days instead of vacation days. Save all your vacation days since IBM will pay you for those days that you have accrued and not used. You will not receive any payment for Personal Choice Days.
(3) If you have an Anniversary coming up (Quarter Century etc), look on w3 to see what you are eligible for -- and think about how you want to handle it before you leave.
(4) If you have Blue Points, cash them in and treat yourself to something.
(5) Download your Checkpoint and PBC history and documents. You will want to refer to them later when you are interviewing and people ask about your work experiences and performance.
(6) Download your Think40 history so you remember all the courses you have taken and the learning you have done. This will be good fodder for your updated resume and will demonstrate that you are a life long learner.
Here is advice from a few years ago and is still relevant:
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/6-things-id-do-i-got-laid-off-ibm-j-t-o-donnell
Best of luck! Ever onward
You are a bowling pin. Do the bare min needed to keep it "not easy" for them and then spend every additional minute looking for new employment. You're window is short on this front. The old saying about finding another job while you are employed is not a cliche but reality. It all depends on your skills and area of expertise but if you don't find something before that in my experience it will be almost a year before you get another job. Especially in the current market. Sorry for your predicament. You are not alone. As others said this includes your manager so remember you'll need a reference somewhere somehow
Yep, best to make your job all about finding a new one.
From what I am hearing from friends, it is just as ruthless at AWS, Google, Oracle, Microsoft, Salesforce, and others.
That is why it is rare to be at a company for more than two years. Keep your skills polish, network with others from other companies, and keep your resume ready. Make sure you have cash reserves for six months of expenses. I know this is really sad but it is how employers are treating employees these days.
My org has a forced 15% low performance requirement. Not based on actual performance, based in HR or Finance request.
Whatever you do for yourself, know this: Your manager and their manager are in the same predicament as you. IBM is now at the point where the deadweight has been cut, and future cuts will be to muscle, bone and sinew (that's you). They are, by all accounts, short on cash and rapidly losing customers. "All hands on deck" used to mean that everyone works overtime to meet a production quota or something...but now it means that the managers have to bail water out of a sinking boat or everybody will go down with the ship. If your manager doesn't get rid of you, then someone will get rid of that manager.
As a manger, we are put through exercises every quarter. Rank the USA employees best to worst. They will mention a number. We provide that number and the names. Most times we never hear about it ever again. But when a layoff happens, HR will come back and then ask us to move forward. People do come off PIP’s if there are no reductions needed. Otherwise USA low performers will get picked. Whats worse is layoffs are per country, not per business need. An international group with low performers in India will be saved while a better person in the USA is gone, because they were the lowest rank of the USA people.
I am sorry to say but your name is likely coming up on a list shortly.
On a positive side, at least you're getting some forewarning. Checkpoint rating is only one of the components for being added to a termination list. Many IBM'ers were laid off with ZERO advance notice (you get a call from your manager or HR, followed by an email from HR with termination details) - do NOTHING to give them cause for laying you off WITH CAUSE and start exploring options.
PS. Document, document, document
start looking for employment asap. you cannot recover from this.
yep like everyone else said, they are trying to get rid of you. Start looking for new job asap.
your gone
Dead man walking.
I received a poor review in Feb of last year after consistently good reviews. I disagreed with their assessment but was put on PIP. They documented and gave me weekly tasks that peers did/could not complete which I duly finished. They finally gave up and kicked me to the curb with severance, about 12 weeks from the faux bad review.
My advice is simple: try to get the most out of severance. That means pursuing the PIP, no personal junk, you can't give them a reason to fire you without compensation. Do not trust management to protect your interests, they are beholden to IBM. Mine actively tried to trick me into misbehavior (e.g., scheduling PIP meetings and forgetting to include me on the mail).
Good luck.
I’m not sure how I feel about my last checkpoint. I was marked as Exceeded, but the manager stated that they no longer care as to what they are asked to do with checkpoints. It was also stated that perhaps I can use the comments if I would need them in the future. Initially, I was happy with the rating, but now weary of what may come. I’ve been here long enough to know that high performers can absolutely get laid off.
They are documenting so they can cover their a-s. You should document why you shouldn’t have received a low rating. Like talk to people on projects you work on or people you interact on day to day.
Very likely. Checkpoint is only a tool for that purpose. Your manager is the one writing the review. If your manager has been told that you need to be laid off, that will automatically trigger a bad review no matter what your real performance has been during the year.
I would start looking for a job elsewhere immediately.
Sorry for the bad news, but you have to look at it realistically.
probably