20 tips on giving feedback
Tuesday, 9 September 2008
By Eve Ash
People are still very troubled by giving feedback to others. So here are 20 steps to consider:
1. Feedback needs to be about work performance – so it can be something the person does or says that affects the quality of their work or yours, or customer service, or delivery time etc.
2. Communicate directly to the person. Don’t start charting with friends and other colleagues, leaving the person in the dark and out of the loop – and being talked about behind their backs.
3. Do it ASAP. Do it within 24 hours – don’t wait and then later decide not to give feedback at all!
4. Choose a private place, go and have a coffee together or at the very least be out of earshot. There is no need to be over formal and book a meeting room.
5. Remember to be balanced and fair, and give some positive feedback as well.
6. Accept some of the responsibility – it makes it easier for them to accept the feedback. Such as “maybe I didn’t explain this up front… maybe we didn’t give your sufficient training… maybe the deadline was unrealistic – for which I apologise”.
7. Show respect and carefully choose your words – delivered in a calm and caring way.
8. Be specific – explain the exact behaviour and give examples of when/what you have observed.
9. Explain why it is a problem and if possible link to standards or your pre-agreed contract for the way in which you work, or the team ground rules.
10. Ask and listen – hear their view and don’t pre-judge.
11. Be understanding – open and empathic.
12. Agree on issues – ensure you both agree. If there is disagreement then make sure you give facts and examples. And if the person agrees with the facts but disagrees that it is a problem, then provide the consequences. For example, they agree the meetings they run go way over the allotted time but they disagree it is a problem because they say what is covered is so important. You say it is a problem because everyone has other scheduled activities that they are then late for.
13. Solve the problem – ask the other person for suggestions. It helps for them to take some responsibility. If they don’t have any reasonable suggestions then suggest a solution or new process or behaviour.
14. Use silence – don’t do all the talking, which too often happens!
15. Ask for feedback yourself – it’s always a good opportunity to make sure the whole process is two way.
16. Offer a self-disclosure if relevant – your challenges and difficulties when confronted by similar situations can make the other person feel relieved, relaxed and you become more human.
17. Offer support – be as helpful as you can, now and for the future.
18. Be persistent – you may need to give feedback on the same issue more than once.
19. Follow-up – agree on a review date and make sure it happens.
20. Help others be responsible – when someone comes and complains to you about someone else, encourage them to go directly to that person and give feedback professionally.
Now let’s put this into practice – choose a situation you need to give feedback about (for example making personal phone calls, errors, late, poor service skills) and fill in the blanks:
The feedback formula
BALANCED START: eg “I like the way ………………”
EXPLAIN WHAT: “I’ve noticed that when you………………………………….”
EXPLAIN WHY: “I feel ………………………………….”
OR “It’s a problem because……………………………..”
Be specific with examples
CHECK THEIR VIEW: “What do you think? Am I being reasonable?”
WORK OUT HOW TO CHANGE: “How can we change/solve this..?
OR “In the future would you please …………………………”
AGREE: “So we’ve agreed that………………”
ASK FOR FEEDBACK: “Is there anything you think I should be doing differently?”
FOLLOW UP: Make a time to meet again.
Let me know how you go!
By Eve Ash, psychologist and Managing Director, Seven Dimensions, and producer of the best selling Ash.Quarry Productions video Giving Feedback – Basic Skills (FEEDBACK SOLUTIONS series) www.7dimensions.com.au
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