What to do When Your Company Says Performance Review But Really Means Layoffs

Corporate gaslighting is a thing.

Reading Between the Lines: "Performance Management" Really Means

It’s barely 2025, and the news has already been chock full of corporate (or government) gaslighting. Take Meta’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his call for an “intense year” of letting go of the bottom 5% of performers. If you’re familiar with how grueling the hiring gauntlet at tech companies is— you’ll know that there are almost no truly low performers. So when CEOs start throwing around words like "intense," "hardcore," and "aggressive performance management," it's time to read between the lines. These aren't just buzzwords – they're euphemisms that have become all too familiar in the tech industry, particularly when companies are preparing for downsizing.

The Truth About "Performance Management"

Let's be crystal clear: This isn't about your performance.

I've seen this pattern play out repeatedly in the tech industry. Companies start using carefully crafted language about "enhanced standards" or "accelerated attrition." Then come the PIPs (Performance Improvement Plans), followed inevitably by layoffs. Or, worse, firing employees for manufactured causes.

Yes, companies could be forthright about their intent to reduce headcount, lower expenses, or increase shareholder value. But why be clear when you can be dastardly instead?

I’ll be clear now. There’s another word for using language to convince people that something you’re doing isn’t happening: gaslighting. And yes, companies and governments do it, too.

“Why be clear when you can be dastardly instead?”

The Human Cost of Corporate Gaslighting

What makes this approach particularly insidious is how it can chip away at people's self-worth. For better or worse, many of us form pieces of our identities around who we are as professionals. So when you've been consistently performing well, receiving positive feedback, and meeting your goals, suddenly being told you're not meeting expectations can be deeply destabilizing.

Anxiety, stress, and fear can arise when the self-concept is threatened in this way. I've worked with countless professionals who've gone through this exact scenario. They start questioning themselves: "Was I not working hard enough?" "Did I miss something?" "Am I not as good as I thought?"

The answer is no. You didn't suddenly become less capable. The goalposts are being moved for reasons that have nothing to do with your performance. But it hard to keep this clarity in the middle of a storm.

What to Remember in a Turbulent Time

If you're at Meta right now, or, IDK, the Federal government, or anywhere, here's what you need to remember:

• A solid previous performance review doesn't guarantee safety
  One tech company created more fanciful language to obfuscate their motivations, alleging that low-performing managers artificially inflated previous performance reviews. Give me a fuckin break.

• PIPs in this context are often more about documentation and risk mitigation than development
  Firing for “cause” means protection from lawsuits and lower (or no) severance packages. PIPs in these contexts are often designed to be humanly unattainable because, again, this is not about your performance.

• Everyone will be impacted
  Those who leave, those who stay, and those left wondering if they're next. No one comes out of these unscathed.

• The psychological toll can be significant
  Whether you’re waiting and wondering or blindsided by a PIP, the mental health impacts can be more significant than you anticipate.

• Your worth isn't determined by how you fit into a company's "aggressive performance management" strategy
  Period.

A Nod to the Naysayers

Hey, you. ;) Not-so-friendly neighborhood contrarian. 👋🏽

Sure, on a bell curve, there ARE low performers. And no, not every employee is performing at the same level. But when companies post astronomical earnings through crocodile tears about low performers, the math ain’t mathing.

Please miss me with the “maybe they just can’t cut it” BS.

The devil needs no advocates.

Don’t panic, align and act.

What to Do in the Face of Faux Layoffs

Let me say this one more time: This isn't about your performance, your worth, or your capabilities. This is about corporate strategy and economics. Don't let anyone convince you otherwise.

I know the urge to hope it all goes away can be strong. Here are some actions you can take to proactively protect yourself (and your career):

1. Get clear on your needs and values— Do you even like your work anymore? What values are important to you at this stage of life? What do you need to be well at work? We need to clarity to align our actions toward something positive. Otherwise, we jump from one pan into a different fire.

2. Decide if you can be well and stay working where you are simultaneously— Not everyone leaves an organization when it downsizes, whether it is honest about layoffs or not. When you get clear on what you need, can you envision yourself having those things while working there?

3. If the answer is now, start researching organizations that align with your needs and values— The job market is tough right now; I will not sugarcoat that. That means your search might be a long one. Better to search for the places you know you can thrive.

4. Reach out to your network for reconnection and coffee chats early— Network theory tells us that it is our loose connections that benefit us the most professionally. Warm up that LinkedIn network early, you never know who might have just the job for you

5. Polish up that resume and start the recruitment hustle— Don’t delay. It’s probably not going to get better there in the foreseeable future. You can FAFO without applying, but you can also apply while FAFOing.

I’ve been there. It was brutal, and I’m beaming my heart to you. I help people navigate these transitions every day. If you’d like to talk about how alignment coaching might support you during this time, DM me on LinkedIn or book a free discovery call.

May you be well,

S