Google just ended a controversial system that warned employees they were at risk of being labeled low performers

• Google has removed a controversial tool known as “support check-ins.
• “They were a way to warn employees who were at risk of being labeled as low performers.
• The decision to kill support check-ins has split opinion among staff.

Insider has learned that Google has discontinued a practice that alerted employees when they were at risk of being labeled a low performer.

According to a person who attended the meeting, Fiona Cicconi, Google’s chief people officer, informed staff last week that the company had ended “support check-ins,” where managers would meet with at-risk employees to help them improve.

Support check-ins, or SCIs as they were known internally, were introduced as part of the GRAD performance-management system, which was implemented in early 2022. According to internal documents obtained by Insider, as part of that system, managers were required to provide support check-ins to employees who were trending toward one of the lowest ratings.

Under GRAD, 6% of employees could be classified as having “not enough impact” or “moderate impact,” up from 2% under the previous system.

If employees didn’t improve after SCIs, performance-improvement plans were the “next step,” according to a Google manager, but SCIs didn’t always lead to the plans.

Performance-improvement plans assign specific goals to employees who have been labeled as underachievers. If they do not, they risk being let go. Being placed on a performance-improvement plan is often regarded as the kiss of death for an employee’s career at a tech company, even if it does not result in dismissal.

Many employees had previously expressed their dissatisfaction with the SCI system, with some believing managers were using it to meet quotas for identifying low performers or as a tool of retaliation.

However, the decision to kill SCIs is dividing opinion within Google as well. According to one employee, removing SCIs and the stigma associated with them puts more pressure on managers to help employees improve before they’re placed on a performance plan. They added that this could be good or bad depending on the manager.

Another employee stated that by removing them, managers would now be able to place employees on a performance-improvement plan with little or no notice. Prior to the GRAD system and the layoffs this year, Google was known for rarely putting employees on performance-improvement plans.

According to a Google spokesperson, SCIs are being removed based on employee feedback, and this should result in more consistent conversations between staff and managers. Employees’ quarterly check-ins are supposed to be improved so that managers can provide more feedback, according to the spokesperson.

“We’re improving our GRAD process to make it easier for Googlers and their managers to have more regular conversations about performance,” a spokesperson said.

The announcement was made during one of Google’s all-hands meetings, dubbed “TGIF” (thank God it’s Friday), which took place last Thursday. In the same meeting, Google announced that it would restart its internal feedback system, known as the Googlegeist, to survey employees on a weekly basis, as previously reported by Insider.

• Google has removed a controversial tool known as “support check-ins.
• “They were a way to warn employees who were at risk of being labeled as low performers.
• The decision to kill support check-ins has split opinion among staff.

Insider has learned that Google has discontinued a practice that alerted employees when they were at risk of being labeled a low performer.

According to a person who attended the meeting, Fiona Cicconi, Google’s chief people officer, informed staff last week that the company had ended “support check-ins,” where managers would meet with at-risk employees to help them improve.

Support check-ins, or SCIs as they were known internally, were introduced as part of the GRAD performance-management system, which was implemented in early 2022. According to internal documents obtained by Insider, as part of that system, managers were required to provide support check-ins to employees who were trending toward one of the lowest ratings.

Under GRAD, 6% of employees could be classified as having “not enough impact” or “moderate impact,” up from 2% under the previous system.

If employees didn’t improve after SCIs, performance-improvement plans were the “next step,” according to a Google manager, but SCIs didn’t always lead to the plans.

Performance-improvement plans assign specific goals to employees who have been labeled as underachievers. If they do not, they risk being let go. Being placed on a performance-improvement plan is often regarded as the kiss of death for an employee’s career at a tech company, even if it does not result in dismissal.

Many employees had previously expressed their dissatisfaction with the SCI system, with some believing managers were using it to meet quotas for identifying low performers or as a tool of retaliation.

However, the decision to kill SCIs is dividing opinion within Google as well. According to one employee, removing SCIs and the stigma associated with them puts more pressure on managers to help employees improve before they’re placed on a performance plan. They added that this could be good or bad depending on the manager.

Another employee stated that by removing them, managers would now be able to place employees on a performance-improvement plan with little or no notice. Prior to the GRAD system and the layoffs this year, Google was known for rarely putting employees on performance-improvement plans.

According to a Google spokesperson, SCIs are being removed based on employee feedback, and this should result in more consistent conversations between staff and managers. Employees’ quarterly check-ins are supposed to be improved so that managers can provide more feedback, according to the spokesperson.

“We’re improving our GRAD process to make it easier for Googlers and their managers to have more regular conversations about performance,” a spokesperson said.

The announcement was made during one of Google’s all-hands meetings, dubbed “TGIF” (thank God it’s Friday), which took place last Thursday. In the same meeting, Google announced that it would restart its internal feedback system, known as the Googlegeist, to survey employees on a weekly basis, as previously reported by Insider.