Giving feedback key to successful communication

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This article was published 05/05/2018 (2928 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Have you ever thought about the importance of good communication in your workplace? Do you realize just how communication is so absolutely integral to organizational success? It’s a tool that helps us build customer relationships, create and maintain effective teams and create a high level of employee engagement.

However, just because you can talk doesn’t necessarily mean you are communicating.

Communication is a key skill that helps leaders to increase employee morale and productivity. It’s a skill that enables leaders to effectively resolve conflicts and to build commitment throughout their organization. It’s also a skill that can be learned.

The goal of a leader, then, is to build a “communication culture” where everyone is comfortable speaking to one another and messages are clearly expressed without hidden agendas. A communication culture creates strong connections between employees and management and ensures a positive work environment. A communication culture allows for and encourages feedback to help employees modify their behavior so as to more successfully reach their goals.

Yet, giving feedback is one of the biggest challenges in building a communication culture. That’s because giving employee feedback is more of an art. It’s the ability to provide constructive, helpful commentary on an employee’s performance. It isn’t simply about delivering bad news or criticism, it’s about letting an employee know things are going in the right direction to provide advice and guidance and/or to redirect them.

Constructive feedback is an ongoing communication tool that requires somewhat softer language and the inclusion of positive comments. It is a straightforward and solution-oriented discussion with the employee where options can be examined rather than the manager directing the employee with comments such as “You should…” As well, the tone of the communication needs to be friendly and helpful.

Providing effective feedback doesn’t come naturally to most managers — it is a learned skill. Overall, effective feedback is descriptive with actionable information and it is structured in a positive manner. It is non-judgmental and avoids the words right/wrong or good/bad. It also goes beyond saying, “Good job” or “Thank you” and provides feedback that is useful.

The following guidelines will assist you to become more effective in providing constructive feedback.

Clarify your purpose: let the employee know why you wish to speak to them to provide feedback and why it is important. This gives them time to prepare. Meeting without a notice could make someone feel intimidated. Use phrases such as “I have a concern,” I want to discuss,” “I want to share.”

Keep It Private: avoid giving constructive feedback in a group setting as the individual may be embarrassed and/or feel they are being targeted. Meet privately.

Stay face-to-face: constructive criticism is best given face to face rather than through email. If your email is misinterpreted, you will have a more difficult time overcoming the miscommunication.

Be Authentic: employees can tell if you are exaggerating or are stating something with an ulterior motive in mind. If you can’t think of how to make a constructive reason for providing feedback then don’t do anything at all.

Be Timely: it is important to provide your constructive criticism as close to a situation as possible. Otherwise, the purpose of your comments may get lost and the comments not be taken seriously.

Lead with a question: if you are struggling with your comment, try to pose a question and ask the employee for their perspective of the situation and then create your response based on the individual’s answer.

Be descriptive: focus your attention on describing the behaviour and/or actions of the employee without judgment. Avoid words that scream “evaluation.” For example, say, “It appears there was a bit of challenge in dealing with that disgruntled customer.”

Separate the person from behaviour: avoid using the word “You” in any criticism as it sounds accusatory and judgmental. For instance, “You were challenged by that guest” could be restated with, “That guest appeared to be quite challenging.”

Focus on what you see: we often have a tendency to jump to conclusions and misinterpret someone’s actions. Rather than commenting on what you think they were doing, focus just on what you see. For example, “I observed some argumentative comments when dealing with the disgruntled customer.”

Describe your reactions: share your reactions to the employee’s behaviour and explain how you feel about it. This will help the listener understand his/her impact on others and how they may be affected. It develops a better sense of appreciation.

Focus on the individual: knowing each employee’s uniqueness will allow you to provide feedback that is meaningful to each person. Remember, not everyone is the same. Customizing a comment shows caring.

Create a conversation sandwich: known as the “Feedback Sandwich,” this method uses the formula of “Positive-Improvement-Positive (PIP).” In other words, start with a positive comment, then highlight an area for improvement and close with another positive statement. This reduces defensiveness when trying to change negative behavior.

Avoid mixed messages: a mixed message usually includes the phrase “Yes, but…” which only serves to discount anything positive that is being said. Words such as “however” also create the wrong message. Avoid using those discount words.

Avoid comparisons: do not compare one employee to another as this might cause unnecessary competitiveness and/or the person may feel they are being picked on.

Encourage a response: after you have shared your constructive criticism, invite the individual to respond. If they are hesitant, ask an open ended question such as, “What do you think?”

Offer suggestions: if it is appropriate and depending on the situation, offer some suggestions. Ensure the suggestions will be helpful and practical.

Summarize: at the conclusion of your meeting, summarize the main points of your discussion and the action items agreed upon. End on a positive note by stating confidence in the individual’s ability to improve. This avoids misunderstanding and helps to demonstrate your ongoing support.

Constructive criticism helps employees understand what they are doing well and where they might need help. It is a means of clarifying expectations and helping to build strong working relationships. Constructive criticism is an effective tool to help employees improve and to grow professionally.

At the same time, care and attention must be paid to sentence structure, tone of voice and timing of the conversation. If done improperly, most individuals will immediately get defensive, which in turn limits their ability to listen.

Barbara J. Bowes, FCPHR, CMC, CCP, M.Ed., is president of Legacy Bowes Group, the author of eight books, a radio personality, speaker, an executive coach and workshop leader. She can be reached at barb@legacybowes.com