9 Ways to Give Effective Employee Feedback | 15Five

1. Avoid giving unsolicited advice · 2. Be specific · 3. Come with a deep level of empathy · 4. Don't wait for a quarterly review · 5. Keep it private · 6. Don't ... Skiptonavigation   JoinHRleadersforanunforgettableexperienceinAustin,Nov14–16 RSVPNow Leadership 6 MinRead 9WaysToGiveEffectiveEmployeeFeedback DavidHassell,CEOof15Five Employeefeedbackisanincrediblypowerfultool.Ifofferedproperly,ithastheabilitytogrowanddevelopthepeopleofyourorganization,improvethelevelsoftrustandcommunication,andstrengthenbondsbetweenemployeesandmanagers.Butunfortunately,feedbackisoftenignoredoromittedentirelyinanefforttoavoiddiscomfort. Hereareninetipstohelpmanagersandleadersgiveemployeefeedbackthat’sfrequent,effective,andwillhelpyougetyoutheoutcomeyouneed. 1.Avoidgivingunsolicitedadvice Onlyathirdofpeoplebelievethefeedbacktheyreceiveishelpful.That’sbecausemoreoftenthannot,it’sunsolicited,whichcancreateanimmenseamountofstressforthepersonreceivingit. Ifyourdirectreportdoesn’taskforfeedbackdirectly,eitherinpersonorthrough15Five’sRequestFeedbackfeature,besuretoaskthemif,when,andhowthey’dliketoreceiveit. Bydoingthis,youcangivethecontroltoyouremployeeandincreasethelikelihoodthattheywillactonthefeedbackyoushare.Empoweryourpeopletocontrolthefeedbackagendabyhelpingthemfeelconfidentandcomfortableenoughtoaskforit. 2.Bespecific Employeefeedbackshouldbesolutionsoriented,crystalclear,andtothepoint.Ifyourintentionistooffercorrectivefeedback,generalcomments,like“Yourworkneedstobeimproved”or“Iwasn’tveryimpressedwiththosereports.Youhavetodobetterthanthat”canleaveyouremployeeconfusedandinthedarkastowhataspectoftheirworkneedstobecorrected. Bespecificonwhatyou’dlikeyouremployeetodoandofferguidanceonhowtheycanapplythefeedback.Forexample,“Inoticedyouwerelateonyourlasttwodeadlines.I’dliketoworkwithyouonyourtimemanagementtoensureyou’renotcommittingtotoomuchandcompletingeachofyourtasksinatimelymanner.” Protip:Don’tgetstuckoncorrectivefeedback.Remembertoalsosharepositivefeedbackwithyouremployeessotheyknowthethingstheyshouldcontinuedoing(butnotatthesametime,seetip#6). 3.Comewithadeeplevelofempathy “Deliveringfeedbackthatexposesawidegapinself-knowledgedemandsanextrameasureofsensitivity.Likerippingoffascab,thestingofdiscoveringsuchaprofoundgapoftenelicitsstrongemotionsthatcaneasilybeconfusedasdefensiveness.Ifyou’resomeonewhoboresthebruntofyourcolleague’sdifficultbehavior,besureyoucansetthosefrustrationsasideinfavoroftheempathyyou’llneedforthisconversation.Beforeyouevenapproachyourcolleague,bepreparedtogivethemthespacethey’llneedtofeelshockeduponreceivingyourfeedback.Remembernottointerpretitasintensifiedresistancetoyourmessage,”accordingtoorganizationalconsultant,RonCarucci. 4. Don’twaitforaquarterlyreview Employeefeedbackimmediatelyfollowinganeventhasthegreatestimpactonperformance.Andengagementpeakswhenemployeesreceivefeedbackonaweeklycadence.Ifissuesareleftunaddressed,theymaymultiplybyadominoeffect.Sobythetimethequarterlyperformancereviewcomesaround,you’llbeconfrontedwithahostofissuesthatcouldhavebeenavoidedifmentionedearlier. Anotherflawinsavingfeedbackfortheperformancereviewprocessisthatproblemswillbeforgottenandthetimeforofferingvaluablefeedbackwillhavepassed.Dailyorweeklyfeedbackwillhelpyouavoidtherecencybias—whichmainlyreflectsrecentworkandoccurstooinfrequentlytoalignwiththeemployee’sworkflow—andcanmaketrackingandanalyzingacolleague’sworkmucheasierforallpartiesinvolved. 5.Keepitprivate Don’tcriticizepublicly—ever. Forsome,evenpraiseisbetterdeliveredinaprivatemeeting.Somepeoplesimplydon’tlikebeingthecenterofattention.Youcanalsoconsiderofferingemployeefeedbackintheformofawrittenresponse.Thiscangiveyoutimetoreflectandofferamorethoughtfulanswer. Feedbackisn’tjustuncomfortableforthereceiver,itcanbeuncomfortableforthegiveraswell.Bymovingthelocationtoamoreinformalarea,youcanhelptoalleviatesomeoftheunderlyingpressure. 6.Don’ttakethe“sandwichapproach” Helpingsomeoneimproveshouldalwaysbethegoaloffeedback,butsandwichingcorrectivefeedbackbetweentwopiecesofpositivefeedbackwon’tsoftentheblow.Thismethodcreatesconfusionforthereceiver,underminesyourfeedback,andcandecreaselevelsoftrust. Althoughitmayfeelmoreuncomfortableforthegiver,beingupfrontandtransparentwithcorrectivefeedbacksetsthefoundationforanauthenticconversation.Focusondeliveringfeedbacktactfullyinsteadofbeatingaroundthebush. 7.Maketheconversationatwo-waystreet Lecturingsomeoneonhowtheyshouldimproveisaboutaseffectiveastalkingtoabrickwall.Don’tforgettheimportantelementofrespectwhendiscussingvulnerabletopics,andcertainlydon’ttalkatsomeonewhenit’sfarmoreeffectivetoopenuptheconversationandtalkwiththem. Letthereceiverrespondtoyourfeedbackandallowthemtoaskfollowupquestions.Oncetheissueisclear,thenyoutwocanworktogethertolandonasolutionorcourse-of-action. 8.Focusonperformance,notpersonality Focusonanemployee’sbehaviors(whattheydo)ratherthanontheirpersonalitytraits(whatthey’relike).Considerthesetwoexamplesfrom“TheSecrettoGivingConstructiveCriticism”andthinkaboutwhattypeoffeedbackyouwouldliketoreceive. Example1:“Yourarroganceiscausingaproblem.” Example2:“Whenyouinterruptmeinfrontofaclientitcausesaproblem.” Thebetterapproachtofeedbackisinexample2becauseit’sfocusedontheperson’sbehavior,whereasexample1takesajabattheperson’scharacter,whichwon’tbeconducivetoimprovement. 9.Keeptheconversationgoingbyfollowingup Evaluationistough,andittakesalotofthoughtandenergytodoitproperly.Insteadoftreatingfeedbackconversationsasaone-and-done,followupwithyourdirectreportandshowappreciationwhenyouseeimprovementalongtheway.Thiswillshowthemthatyoucareabouttheirsuccess,anditcanmotivatethemtokeepupthegreatwork. Employeefeedbackisanecessarypartofgrowthanddevelopment.Thesetipscanhelpmanagersandleadersdeliveritmoreeffectively,whichwillleadtomorecollaborative,communicative,andhigher-performingcultures. Imagecredit:Shutterstock ShareonLinkedIn ShareonTwitter ShareonFacebook RelatedContent Leadership 5 MinRead HowtoSetGoalstoAchieveGreaterDisabilityInclusionandAccessibilityintheWorkplace Leadership 7 MinRead LowBudget,High-ImpactHRHacksFrom3ExperiencedPeopleLeaders  Leadership 6 MinRead HowtoRetainTopTalent:HRLeadersShareTipsforKeepingHighPerformers Categories Leadership Culture Performance Engagement Best-SelfManagement Science Announcements More HRSuperstarsPodcast Events&OnDemand ContentLibrary Lookingforsomethingelse? Searchresultsfor Let’sbefriends InstagramIcon FacebookIcon TwitterIcon LinkedInIcon