Microsoft's New PIP: Buyout or Bust

Microsoft is implementing a new performance improvement plan offering low-performing employees a choice: accept a severance package or face a performance improvement plan (PIP). Mirroring Amazon's Pivot program, employees have five days to choose between a payout equivalent to 16 weeks of salary or entering a PIP, forfeiting the payout if they choose the latter. This reflects a broader tech industry shift towards stricter performance expectations and less leniency, following Microsoft's earlier layoff of 2,000 underperforming employees.